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Translator: Silavin & Sara
Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun
Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys
The report from E-5 Territory clearly stated that Jiang Chi had been killed and five other Pseudo-Royal Lords, including Hu Yu, had been captured. Mo Na Ye knew without a doubt what their fate would be.
Thus, he swiftly gave the order, “Send a message back to E-5 Territory. Tell the Pseudo-Royal Lords to group up and keep a close eye on Yang Kai. Don’t let him get a chance to strike again.”
The Territory Lord left to do as told.
However, a few moments later, he came running back again. Seeing the ashen look on his face, Mo Na Ye had a bad feeling. He gritted his teeth and asked, “What happened now?”
The Territory Lord hung his head low and held out another jade slip with trembling hands. His voice quivered as he informed, “A second report came from E-5 Territory…”
Mo Na Ye glanced at the jade slip but did not check it right away. First, he took a deep breath.
If a second report was sent so soon after the first, it could only mean one thing. Mo Na Ye knew that something terrible must have happened in E-5 Territory. More importantly, the Black Ink Clan had to have been the ones who suffered; otherwise, they would not have sent two reports in a row within such a short period.
The situation was probably even worse than he feared!
Mo Na Ye slowly took a seat before taking the jade slip. He composed himself and checked the dispatch. Despite being mentally prepared for it, he nearly fainted from the latest report.
The previous one stated that Yang Kai showed up at E-5 Territory, slaughtered Jiang Chi, and captured five Pseudo-Royal Lords, including Hu Yu.
This second report said that Yang Kai had snuck up on the remaining Pseudo-Royal Lords despite their vigilance. He withstood the attacks of all of them and used the Dao Strength River to capture two more Pseudo-Royal Lords. None of the Pseudo-Royal Lords had noticed him approaching and there had been no sign of him at all before his appearance.
In just half a day, the Black Ink Clan lost eight Pseudo-Royal Lords in E-5 Territory. Even though there were many of them posted there, it did not mean that the Black Ink Clan could afford to let them be killed off in such rapid succession.
The surviving Pseudo-Royal Lords knew the situation was dire and had retreated from E-5 Territory immediately after the second raid. Many of the Territory Lords followed suit and were fleeing as well.
Though the report did not mention the rest of the Black Ink Clan Army in E-5 Territory, it made no difference.
Since the Pseudo-Royal Lords and a majority of the Territory Lords had fled, the Army could only offer their heads up to the enemy if they stuck around any longer. Mo Na Ye was certain that they were already fleeing in defeat as well, but the Humans would not be merciful given this incredibly rare opportunity. He could foresee how bloody the chase would be. Without the more powerful Black Ink Clansmen, the Black Ink Clan Army would not be able to put up any resistance against the Human Race Army.
Many emotions flashed across Mo Na Ye’s face as he sat there after reading the second report, ultimately crushing the jade slip by accident in the end.
The Territory Lord carefully eyed Mo Na Ye’s expression as he asked, “Sir, should we order the army in E-5 Territory to retreat?”
He knew that the situation did not look good for the Black Ink Clan and was worried about their Army.
Mo Na Ye just took a deep breath and slowly shook his head, “They can’t retreat.”
Even if others did not know what Yang Kai was capable of, he did. The Black Ink Clan had set up their base near the Territory Gate because it made it easy for them to deploy more manpower or make a quick retreat. If they did fail to hold out against their enemy, they could withdraw through the Territory Gate and prevent further losses.
However, that was no longer possible with Yang Kai around. He, who was unmatched in the Dao of Space, would surely lock down the Territory Gate at once.
There was a high chance that a mass slaughter was taking place in E-5 Territory at this very moment!
Mo Na Ye did not know how many members of the Black Ink Clan would successfully escape, but the only silver lining was the fact that the Pseudo-Royal Lords had fled in advance with many of the Territory Lords as well. Although the losses were heavy, it was not a complete massacre of everyone there. Furthermore, the ones who escaped in time were the more powerful ones, so it was a bit of good news amidst all the bad.
That being said, Yang Kai was bound to hunt the Pseudo-Royal Lords down. While they might have escaped for now, they were not entirely out of danger yet.
Mo Na Ye composed himself and gave the order, “Send word out for everyone to be on high alert for any sign of Yang Kai. If there is even the slightest hint of him, report back to me right away!”
“Yes, Sir!” The Territory Lord replied before leaving to carry out the order.
Soon, a slew of reports were transmitted back to the No-Return Pass.
Yang Kai had left E-5 Territory and entered Silver Frost Territory…
Yang Kai showed up in Thunderbolt Territory, found the Black Ink Clan’s forward outpost there, and was swiftly making his way over…
The Black Ink Clan lost contact with a mining Squad in Sun Dragon Territory and suspected that they had been eliminated by Yang Kai…
…
As the reports gathered in front of Mo Na Ye, he fixed his eyes on the Universe Chart and mapped out Yang Kai’s movements. Soon, he figured out Yang Kai’s true intentions.
[The No-Return Pass!]
[He’s heading straight for the No-Return Pass!]
Mo Na Ye’s expression darkened, though it was not a complete surprise to him. Yang Kai had often shown up at the No-Return Pass to cause trouble even when he was only an Eighth-Order Master. He was the perfect example of someone who had both brains and brawn, as well as the boldness to go with them. Now that he was a Ninth-Order Master, he was even less wary of the Black Ink Clan. Sooner or later, he would have shown up at the No-Return Pass.
Nevertheless, Mo Na Ye did not expect Yang Kai to be this impatient and head straight for the No-Return Pass after helping the Red Flame Army at E-5 Territory. Based on the reports he received from the various Great Territories, Yang Kai did not seem to be pausing for anything, save for dealing with the Black Ink Clansmen he happened to encounter along the way.
[That Bastard sure has the guts!]
Mo Na Ye was shocked and also a little expectant.
Yang Kai’s confidence also provided the Black Ink Clan with a chance to deal with him. To arrive at the No-Return Pass, Yang Kai would need to pass through the Barren Territory Territory Gate; thus, the Black Ink Clan could set up an ambush in advance there and catch him off guard the moment he appeared. They had a fighting chance of taking him down if all the powerful Masters at the No-Return Pass joined forces.
The Black Ink Clan had attempted this strategy before. They had set up a Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array at the Territory Gate in advance and isolated the surrounding space; however, Yang Kai did not appear at the Territory Gate back then. He used some kind of method that allowed him to travel through a path that the Black Ink Clan did not know about, and appeared on the Black Ink Battlefield instead, which led to the failure of that plan.
However, things were not the same now. At the time, Yang Kai was an Eighth-Order Master who was vigilant enough to take precautions. Now that Yang Kai was a Ninth-Order Master and his power multiplied many times over, Mo Na Ye was fairly certain that the former had become rather arrogant. Based on Yang Kai’s movements, he was bound to enter the No-Return Pass through the Territory Gate, so the Black Ink Clan had an opportunity.
With this thought in mind, Mo Na Ye quickly went to meet with Mo Yu, who was currently cultivating in seclusion, and informed him about Yang Kai.
Mo Yu was stunned, furious, and sorrowful over the news that Yang Kai had shown up at E-5 Territory, killed numerous Pseudo-Royal Lords, and caused the loss of the majority of the Black Ink Clan Army stationed over there.
He did not care about the Black Ink Clan Army’s casualties, only the deaths of the Pseudo-Royal Lords, but even that was hard to accept. Ever since all the Innate Territory Lords that snuck out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had been turned into Pseudo-Royal Lords, the Black Ink Clan had no way of increasing the number of Pseudo-Royal Lords they had.
After several centuries of not hearing any news about Yang Kai, Mo Yu thought he would never have to see that Human again. Who would have thought that Yang Kai would show up in such a manner and cause such heavy losses for the Black Ink Clan?
It was just as Mo Na Ye had said once, it was one thing to deal with Yang Kai if he was still an Eighth-Order Master, but after he became a Ninth-Order Master, he had become the Black Ink Clan’s most formidable opponent.
However, when Mo Na Ye informed Mo Yu of his plan, Mo Yu could see that it was a good opportunity as well and readily agreed to it.
All at once, the Pseudo-Royal Lords at the No-Return Pass, along with Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu, the two true Royal Lords, began setting up outside the Territory Gate before waiting with dire expressions.
While they were busy setting up their trap, Yang Kai was steadily making his way across many Great Territories where the Universe Worlds seemed to be lifeless as they were all covered in Black Ink Strength. He could not detect any vitality from them.
Yang Kai knew that his movements were not hidden from the Black Ink Clan right now, but he did not intend to hide from them in the first place; after all, the Black Ink Clan would not have been able to discover his tracks if he used Thunder Shadow’s Innate Divine Ability.
He was making this trip to the No-Return Pass to stir things up and take back a few things while he was at it.
Yang Kai made his way through one Great Territory after another, dealing with any of the Black Ink Clan’s outposts that he stumbled across along the way. At last, after over a month of travelling, Yang Kai passed through the Territory Gate from the Shattered Heaven to the Barren Territory.
Similar to its name, the Barren Territory was empty and devoid of everything. All along, the Humans considered it an important battleground and prepared it appropriately. The leaders at the Supreme Headquarters had long since fleshed out the idea of besieging the No-Return Pass, and the moment they did, the Barren Territory would be where the ultimate battle was fought. The final confrontation between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan would take place here.
Millennia ago, the Human Race Army had achieved great results when the Black Ink Clan first invaded this place, and if it had not been for the Black Ink Giant Spirit God’s interference, breaking through the boundary wall between the Barren Territory and Wind Mist Territory, the Black Ink Clan would not have been able to invade the 3,000 Worlds so easily.
The bodies of countless Masters from both sides littered the battlefield back then. It was also the final resting place of many top Masters, including both Ninth-Order Old Ancestors and Royal Lords.
The moment Yang Kai stepped into the Barren Territory, he sensed alarming shockwaves coming from a place deep within the void. Though the waves were somewhat spaced out, each one was powerful enough to make his heart pound and the surrounding area shake.
He focused his sight and stared into the distance, only to find four towering silhouettes clashing in the depths of the void. The fight was intense and space itself was crumbling around them.
A fight between a Giant Spirit God and a Black Ink Giant Spirit God did not involve any kind of tactics or even any form of techniques. It was a completely physical fight with simple punches and slaps thrown around.
However, as both parties possessed Heaven-destroying and Earth-shattering strength, even such a simple physical battle was enough to cause terrifying impact and fallout.
It was not surprising that Mi Jing Lun said the battle in the Barren Territory resulted in needless losses for the Black Ink Clan. If the Black Ink Clan at the No-Return Pass wanted to send soldiers out as reinforcements to the various front lines, they would need to pass through the Barren Territory, and considering how strong the aftershocks of the fight were, weaker Black Ink Clansmen would not be able to survive unless they had powerful Masters protecting them.
This was an unexpected but pleasant surprise. When Yang Kai gave that World Bead to Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao, he had only done so as a means of countering the Black Ink Clan’s possible strategy. He did not expect it to result in such a boon for the Humans.
The four Giant Spirit Gods were split up onto two different battlefields. Yang Kai spotted Ah Da, who was bald, and Ah Er, who had a lock of hair.
As for the two Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods, Yang Kai had to spend some time figuring out which was which.
The one Ah Da was up against was most likely the one who was revived from the Late Ancient Era Battlefield, while the one fighting against Ah Er was the one from the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land. Though the two Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods looked similar at first glance, upon closer inspection, there were still minor differences that one could pick up on.
Initially, the Black Ink Clan had a third Black Ink Giant Spirit God, which was the one that escaped from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. Nevertheless, many Human Race Masters had joined forces and defeated that one in the Barren Territory, which was something to celebrate. Otherwise, if the Black Ink Clan had another Black Ink Giant Spirit God with them now, the Human Race would be in an extremely difficult predicament.
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Many thanks for the chapter, as always.