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Translator: Silavin & Qing
Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun
Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys
When Shen Tu Mo heard that, he answered, “Yes, and no…”
Yang Kai was confused.
Then, Shen Tu Mo fell silent as if he were thinking about how to explain this matter to Yang Kai; after all, it was not a simple matter to understand.
It took quite some time before Shen Tu Mo spoke again “It’s been about 300 years since you arrived at the Black Ink Battlefield, and although that’s not a long time, you’ve already gathered more experience than the average soldier could gather after battling the Black Ink Clan for thousands of years. Moreover, you’ve also been to places that even the Eighth-Order Masters had never gone. Have you ever wondered why the entire Black Ink Battlefield is so large and vast?”
Yang Kai answered in his mind, [Why would I wonder about that? Even if I did, would I be able to find the answer?]
However, now that Shen Tu Mo had brought it up, it naturally evoked Yang Kai’s curiosity. He was right. Why was the Black Ink Battlefield so vast? Among the 3,000 Worlds, any Great Territory could be described as vast beyond what the eye could see, none was even comparable in scope and scale to the Black Ink Battlefield.
The area of the Black Ink Battlefield had already gone way past the area of a Great Territory. It was like the Black Ink Battlefield was never-ending.
After sighing, Shen Tu Mo explained, “According to some ancient texts, in the era when the Universe was just created, the Black Ink Battlefield was also divided up into many Great Territories, each of them flourishing and filled with life. Each Great Territory was separated by Territory Barriers, but connected through Territory Gates, similar to the 3,000 Worlds. However, the rise of the Black Ink Clan changed everything. Born out of nowhere, the Black Ink Clan’s natural aggressiveness and unique reproductive methods made it easy for them to dominate the Great Territories.
Whenever the Black Ink Clan fully conquered a Great Territory, that Great Territory would start to corrode and the Territory Barriers around it would collapse, resulting in it merging with the adjacent Great Territories to become an even larger area. Then, like a snowball rolling downhill, the Great Territory would become larger and larger, which is why the Black Ink Battlefield is so vast.”
While scrunching his eyebrows, Yang Kai asked, “In other words, the Black Ink Battlefield we’re standing in now is the product of merging countless Great Territories?”
“That’s right.” Shen Tu Mo nodded.
It was his first time hearing such a description. It was quite interesting.
Yang Kai continued, “Sir, why does the Territory Barrier collapse after the Black Ink Clan fully dominates a Great Territory? Also, how do we conclude whether the Black Ink Clan has fully conquered a Great Territory?”
Shaking his head, Shen Tu Mo replied, “I don’t know either. All the knowledge I have about this matter comes from reading those ancient historical records, but the contents in those documents aren’t complete anymore, and no one can determine if the contents written are real or fake. However, this theory is able to explain why the Black Ink Battlefield has such a vast area.”
“Then, where did the Black Ink Clan come from? A typical Black Ink Clansman is bred from a Black Ink Nest, and Black Ink Nests are divided into different Ranks. A Low-Rank Black Ink Nest is the sub-nest of a Mid-Rank one, so if we trace that logic, what is the primary nest, where were the Royal Lord Black Ink Nests originally spawned from?”
That question had confused Yang Kai for a long time, but he still hadn’t found an answer to it. Ever since he found out about the secret behind the Black Ink Nests, he began to wonder about their origin; therefore, he seized this opportunity to ask Shen Tu Mo, wanting to get an answer to his questions.
However, Shen Tu Mo shook his head, “I don’t know. Before you discovered the secrets behind the reproduction of Black Ink Nests, we Humans had no idea they were even linked.”
That answer naturally disappointed Yang Kai, but when he thought about it, he suddenly had a more pertinent question to ask, “Sir, why are you telling me these things?”
Just now, Yang Kai was asking about why so many Squads had been recalled from the forward base, so how did the topic suddenly change to this?
Shen Tu Mo answered, “I’m telling you these things because the higher-ups are planning a new operation, and it involves not only Blue Sky Pass but all the Great Passes.”
Yang Kai’s eyes lit up, “Is an all-out crusade about to begin?”
Ding Yao, who had been silent throughout the conversation, finally spoke up, “It has something to do with that, but before we begin the crusade, we must finish this first! Just shut up, listen, and don’t ask any questions.”
Obediently, Yang Kai stopped talking.
Shen Tu Mo continued, “Back in the ancient era, the Black Ink Clan were on a rampage, and the Great Territories were falling rapidly. In the face of this threat, some Human Great Experts banded together and created 108 Great Passes in the Black Ink Battlefield to fight back against the Black Ink Clan. This initiative has blessed the following generations to this day. Without these 108 Great Passes, the current 3,000 Worlds might have already become the Black Ink Clan’s territory, and you and I might never have existed. Although these 108 Passes seem to be fighting independent campaigns, in reality, we are all closely connected into one, creating a strong line of defence.”
While he was talking, he stretched out his hand and drew something in the air. Then, pure World Force gathered together to become a large tapestry of light.
Under his control, the light rays were divided into two distinctive areas, one white and one black. He then pointed at the white area, “This region corresponds to the 3,000 Worlds.”
After that, he pointed at the black area, “And this represents the Black Ink Battlefield.”
He then pointed at the middle area between the two, and a drop of golden light suddenly appeared, “This is the No-Return Pass, which has been guarded by the Dragon and the Phoenix Clans since ancient times. It is also the only connection point between the 3,000 Worlds and the Black Ink Battlefield. All reinforcements from the Cave-Heavens and Paradises, as well as our resources from the 3,000 Worlds, must pass through the No-Return Pass. So, we can say that the No-Return Pass is the 3,000 World’s last line of defence!”
With a wave of his hand, Shen Tu Mo caused more than 100 golden lights to appear in the Black Ink Battlefield region and arrange themselves into a semicircle that shielded the No-Return pass.
This was the first time Yang Kai clearly saw the actual arrangement of all 108 great passes in the Black Ink Battlefield. He asked in shock, “Is this the real arrangement of all the great passes?”
Shen Tu Mo nodded and explained, “That’s right. Such an arrangement can ensure that every great pass has a Theatre to defend, and as long as we can defend our own Theatres, the Black Ink Clan will never be able to step foot in the 3,000 Worlds.”
Yang Kai was astonished, “The Ancient Great Experts’ abilities are truly awe-inspiring.”
At that moment, Ding Yao came forward with his hands behind his back, “We Humans have been relying on this defence line to hold back the Black Ink Clan for countless years. Although we’ve sacrificed more elite soldiers than we can count, we were able to ensure the freedom of the 3,000 Worlds. However, something happened 30,000 years ago, which completely changed our situation.”
While saying so, he stretched out his hand, and under Yang Kai’s gaze, one of the over 100 golden lights suddenly turned black.”
Yang Kai felt his heart sink and could vaguely guess what had happened 30,000 years ago.
As he expected, Ding Yao elaborated, “30,000 years ago, the Black Ink Clan managed to break through Great Evolution Pass, which was guarded by Great Evolution Paradise. The Old Ancestor of Great Evolution Pass led tens of thousands of soldiers to fight with the Black Ink Clan for several years, and the whole Army was almost wiped out while the Old Ancestor himself died in battle. Since then, Great Evolution Pass has been in the hands of the Black Ink Clan.”
Despite having guessed as much, Yang Kai still felt depressed when hearing Ding Yao mention this incident. Almost the entire Army of a Great Pass was wiped out, and even the Old Ancestor overseeing the Pass had died in battle. That battle must have been a huge blow to the Humans as it was not only the loss of a Great Pass, but also the annihilation of a Paradise!
That was the first and only time since ancient times that Humans lost a Great Pass.
That battle also caused the Great Evolution Paradise to wither away.
The Humans considered that matter a great shame, which is why Yang Kai had never heard about it directly despite joining the Black Ink Battlefield for over 300 years. Those who knew about this were mainly the Eight-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, who wouldn’t tell him such things. Cultivators under the Eighth Order had no idea about this incident. In fact, Yang Kai first heard about this news from Hei Yuan Territory Lord.
Yang Kai didn’t know what actually happened 30,000 years ago that caused Great Evolution Pass’ demise, but he knew that something was obviously not right about that battle because not only was the Army almost wiped out, but even the Ninth-Order Old Ancestor had been killed.
“An Old Ancestor’s strength is on par with that of a Royal Lord, or possibly even slightly superior, so how could the Black Ink Clan manage to easily defeat a Great Pass with an Old Ancestor assuming command? Also, why did the Great Evolution Pass fall so quickly?” Yang Kai asked in confusion.
Ding Yao explained, “Though an Old Ancestor can fight a Royal Lord to a standstill quite easily, what about when it’s two against one?”
Yang Kai was shocked, “Did the Black Ink Clan deploy two Royal Lords to that battle?”
Nodding, Ding Yao replied, “We only learned about this after the fact. It’s not easy for a Human to advance to the Ninth Order, but that is true for the Black Ink Clan’s Royal Lords too. Such a Master might not appear even once in several thousand years. Back then, there had only been one Royal Lord in the Great Evolution Theatre, and he had been fighting with the Great Evolution Pass’ Old Ancestor for countless years, so they knew each other very well. However, one of the Territory Lords advanced to become a Royal Lord, and the Black Ink Clan was able to keep that hidden from Great Evolution Pass’ Old Ancestor. Then, while the Old Ancestor was in the midst of fighting with the old Royal Lord, that newly advanced Royal Lord managed to launch a sneak attack and severely injure the Old Ancestor. How could the Old Ancestor win a battle in such a situation?”
Shen Tu Mo added, “Although the Great Evolution Pass’ Old Ancestor died in battle, he was able to bring down one of the Royal Lords with him. In a way, his death wasn’t in vain.”
In a battle, where it was two against one, and being severely injured, the Great Evolution Pass’ Old Ancestor still managed to kill one of the Royal Lords before he died. It was a feat worthy of being recorded in history.
“Though you’re only a Seventh-Order Master, you’ve joined many secret operations, so you must know that the Humans are preparing for a grand crusade.”
With a nod, Yang Kai replied, “I understand.”
Then, Ding Yao pointed at the black dot symbolising the Great Evolution Pass, “If we want to start a crusade, we must first take back Great Evolution Pass! Otherwise, our lines will have a critical weak point. This is the purpose of the recent personnel rearrangement made by the Inner Sanctum. Not only is it happening in Blue Sky Pass, but also at the other Great Passes.”
Yang Kai now understood the situation.
In the meantime, he also finally understood why Grandmaster Ma Fan was so excited back then. He was one of the few remnants of Great Evolution Paradise, and now that he found out that the Humans were planning to take back Great Evolution Pass, of course, he would want to have a part in the campaign. Great Evolution Pass was the place that his ancestors shed blood to protect and where they were buried. Standing from Grandmaster Ma Fan’s point of view, he had to go take a look no matter what and pry their lost Great Pass from the Black Ink Clan’s clutches as revenge for his ancestors.
However, Shen Tu Mo and Ding Yao were wary about that and didn’t want Grandmaster Ma Fan to join the operation, which would naturally lead to the latter flying into a rage. In such a situation, perhaps everyone would be against him joining this operation.
In fact, Yang Kai even suspected that Grandmaster Ma Fan was able to be enlisted into the Black Ink Battlefield 200 years ago because the Humans had been planning to take back Great Evolution Pass even then.
Mission: Take it back
New mission