Martial Peak

Chapter 5595: Joint Pressure

Back then on the Black Ink Battlefield, Yang Kai and Bai Yi joined forces and killed a badly injured Zhu Feng, almost losing their lives in the process. Now, he had managed to kill several dozen Territory Lords and even a Royal Lord. Although the process was baffling, he had indeed ended a Royal Lord’s life.

While the Black Ink Clansmen were powerful, Yang Kai also gradually grew in strength. He had the confidence that there would come a day when he would be able to destroy any Innate Territory Lords as he pleased, so calming himself down, he began to recuperate in silence.

Yang Kai, who was supposedly in Profound Nether Territory, appeared in Twin Poles Territory all of a sudden and killed five Territory Lords. Even their Commander, the purple-haired Territory Lord, was gone for good, which resulted in the Black Ink Clan Army in Twin Poles Territory being routed. The advantage they had accumulated over the past several hundred years was lost in one go.

When word got out, many Black Ink Clan Masters from different Great Territories were astounded. While they were shocked by Yang Kai’s strength, they were also wary of his recklessness.

Since this Human was in charge of Profound Nether Territory, he wasn’t supposed to go anywhere else. It was unreasonable of him to appear in Twin Poles Territory and slaughter the Black Ink Clan Masters there.

One had to know that Yang Kai had been missing for 300 years before that. Such a period was neither long nor short; however, that was enough for his notoriety to fade somewhat. Still, he was able to shock the Black Ink Clan the moment he reappeared.

Rather than feeling astonished, the Black Ink Clan Masters were mostly anxious when they heard the news.

Yang Kai had appeared in Twin Poles Territory this time, but what about next time? Would he appear in Lang Ya Territory, Soul Shaking Territory, or some other Great Territory?

It was definitely easier to sneak into someone’s house than keep one’s guard up against a thief all the time. If Yang Kai was allowed to go wherever he pleased, it would pose a huge threat to the Black Ink Clan.

They were worried that when they were dealing with the Human Masters at any given time, Yang Kai would suddenly appear out of thin air.

Now, they could only try to restrict his movements. As such, all the Black Ink Clan Masters shifted their attention to Profound Nether Territory.

Since Yang Kai was from Profound Nether Territory, this issue certainly had to be handled by the Territory Lords from there.

Around 300 years ago, the Humans and Black Ink Clan arrived at a peace deal, which stated that the Eighth-Order Masters and Territory Lords had to abstain from taking part in the war. After that, the Humans built 10 forward outposts in Profound Nether Territory for the Humans below the Eighth Order to launch attacks from and recuperate when they were injured.

Similarly, the Black Ink Clan had built several forward outposts as well; however, every forward outpost built by the Humans was guarded by two to three Eighth-Order Masters to prevent any attacks. On the other hand, none of the Black Ink Clan’s forward outposts was guarded by any Territory Lords. That was because they didn’t dare to do so.

Simply put, if it was just three Territory Lords gathered in one spot, they wouldn’t feel secure. Rather than scattering around and letting Yang Kai have a chance to deal with them separately, they reckoned that they would be safer all huddling together.

Therefore, the Innate Territory Lords had either assembled in the Universe World where the Black Ink Clan’s main base was or recuperated in hidden locations, constantly keeping an eye on the Humans’ movements.

Over the years, the Profound Nether Army had broken up as the Human soldiers practically moved around in Squads or small groups as they roamed around the battlefield to battle the Black Ink Clansmen.

On the other hand, the Black Ink Clansmen used similar tactics to fight back. Both parties repeatedly launched sneak attacks and skirmishes against each other which often led to fierce but quick fights. Every breath of time there were countless battles taking place in this expansive Great Territory.

More and more Humans streamed into Profound Nether Territory because it was comparatively safer than the other Great Territories. Both parties wouldn’t fight each other in large Armies, and as such, the Human cultivators could put their innate advantages to good use.

The effects of 300 years of training were starting to show now. Many rising Stars had made a name for themselves. There were also veteran Sixth and Seventh-Order Masters who felt like fish in water as they continued to hone their strength in combat.

Inevitably, there were also some losses. Since the Humans had to train their soldiers in the fires of war, they couldn’t possibly do so without taking casualties. Regardless, the losses were still bearable.

More and more high-ranking officers realised the benefits of training the next generation in Profound Nether Territory; as such, the Juniors with excellent aptitudes, who were previously hidden from the public by the Cave Heavens and Paradises, were all sent to Profound Nether Territory. This allowed them to clash with the Black Ink Clan and experience life-and-death struggles which stimulated their growth.

All in all, even though there were countless battles in Profound Nether Territory, everything was well within the control of the Humans and Black Ink Clan.

For this reason, the Territory Lords in Profound Nether Territory could enjoy their lives with peace of mind for hundreds of years as they were no longer worried about Yang Kai launching a sneak attack on them.

However, their peaceful days had now come to an end. With those in Twin Poles Territory leading the way, the Territory Lords from a dozen or so Great Territories joined forces to pressure those from Profound Nether Territory, demanding they deal with Yang Kai.

In the Black Ink Clan’s main base in Profound Nether Territory, many Territory Lords had gathered together in the Main Conference Hall. The atmosphere was rather gloomy.

Six Arms was seated at the head of the hall as he swept a glance over them before solemnly declaring, “Let’s discuss how we should deal with this matter.”

However, no one said a word. With a grim expression, Six Arms snapped, “Are you all dumb!?”

Although they were all Innate Territory Lords, he was the Commander appointed by the Royal Lord; furthermore, he was also the strongest among them. Hence, the other Territory Lords were naturally afraid of him.

One of the Territory Lords spoke up, “Sir Six Arms, it’s not easy to handle this issue. The peace agreement we reached with Yang Kai only states that the Eighth-Order Masters and Territory Lords are not allowed to interfere in the war in the Profound Nether Territory. He hasn’t broken his promise, so what can we do?”

Another Territory Lord nodded in agreement and said, “He has a point. Over the past 300 years, the Eighth-Order Humans have never made a move. It is not an exaggeration to say they have rigidly stuck to the agreement. If we make a rash move, Yang Kai might retaliate by slaughtering us.”

Then, a snort was heard, “That’s what those blockheads from the other Great Territories are trying to achieve. Only when we make a move will Yang Kai be forced to return; that way, they’ll have no more worries while we will be the ones suffering.”

“A clever plot indeed. Just because they fear death, they want us to sacrifice ourselves in their stead?”

“Sir Six Arms, you can not agree to this. If a total war breaks out in Profound Nether Territory again, what happened 300 years ago will simply repeat itself.”

…..

The Territory Lords started talking incessantly as they cursed at the Territory Lords from the other Great Territories for being selfish, but as Six Arms listened to them bicker, he only felt dispirited.

Certainly, he knew what was on these Territory Lords’ minds. They were worried that if Yang Kai returned, they would be butchered by him. Although he was mad at these Territory Lords for being cowardly, he couldn’t really blame them.

Forget the other Territory Lords, even Six Arms himself was wary of Yang Kai.

Around 300 years ago, he was confident that even if he was ambushed by Yang Kai, he still stood a chance to escape. Nonetheless, after what happened to the purple-haired Territory Lord in Twin Poles Territory, his confidence had been smashed to pieces.

He knew the purple-haired Territory Lord was just as powerful as him, but even he was killed by Yang Kai. It was even reported that Yang Kai was extremely brutal in that fight as he literally smashed the other party’s head to pieces by repeatedly headbutting him. Six Arms would feel a chill running down his spine just by imagining this kind of savage fight.

At the same time, he was furious at the Territory Lords from the other Great Territories for being so indifferent. They wanted those in Profound Nether Territory to do something to lure Yang Kai back; however, if the Territory Lords in Profound Nether Territory really did that, they would suffer miserably.

The Territory Lords were still arguing and expressing their complaints when Six Arms raised his hand and turned to a particular person, “Mo Na Ye, what do you think?”

Among the Territory Lords, Mo Na Ye was undoubtedly the most meticulous. Although what happened in Acacia Territory back then was a huge failure and humiliation to him, it wasn’t really Mo Na Ye’s fault. In fact, up until this day, the Black Ink Clan still hadn’t figured out how Yang Kai managed to flee even though the Territory Gates had all been sealed off. 

Furthermore, he had even taken a large number of Human refugees away with him. It was an unresolved mystery.

Mo Na Ye had been silent all along, and it wasn’t until Six Arms called out to him that he stopped pondering and replied, “Sir Six Arms, have you ever thought about why Yang Kai headed to Twin Poles Territory to raise chaos after cultivating in seclusion for 300 years?”

Six Arms frowned, “Among all the Great Territories, the Humans in Twin Poles Territory were in the most perilous situation. It was said that Xiang Shan had assumed command of their forces there for the past 100 years, but it still wouldn’t take long before the Humans in Twin Poles Territory would be defeated.”

Mo Na Ye nodded, “I think that’s just one of the reasons.”

“Is there another?”

Mo Na Ye shook his head, “I have no idea. All I know is that Yang Kai only made a move in Twin Poles Territory at a critical moment. If he had wanted to lend a hand to the Humans in Twin Poles Territory, he would’ve done so a long time ago.”

“Wasn’t he cultivating in seclusion?”

“Humans can interrupt their cultivation fairly easily. Over the years, the Humans in Twin Poles Territory have increasingly been at a disadvantage, so I’m sure they asked for help on several occasions. If Yang Kai had received such a request, he would’ve made a move early on; however, he only headed to Twin Poles Territory recently.”

After giving it some thought, Six Arms realised Mo Na Ye was right. Still puzzled, however, he asked, “What does that have to do with what happened today?”

Mo Na Ye replied, “It has everything to do with it. First of all, we have to figure out Yang Kai’s intentions, or to be precise, the Humans’ intentions.”

The Territory Lords were perplexed.

Mo Na Ye went on to say with a smile, “300 years ago, Yang Kai acted extremely overbearing, like he couldn’t wait to slaughter us all, but then, all of a sudden, he came over on his own to propose a peace deal with us. There’s no denying it was good news to the Black Ink Clan, but what benefits would the Humans get out of it? Do you all remember what he said at that time?”

Many Territory Lords fell into their thoughts.

One of them eventually replied, “At that time, he said that he was worried the weaker Humans would be injured or killed from the fallout of the fights between Territory Lords and Eighth-Order Masters. Moreover, there were significantly more Territory Lords than the Eighth-Order Masters, so most of the time, without the Eighth-Order Masters’ restraint, the Territory Lords could butcher the Humans to their hearts’ content.”

Mo Na Ye nodded, “Yes, that was what he said.”

“Was that a mere deception?” Six Arms’ face fell.

“Not exactly,” Mo Na Ye shook his head, “However, over the past 300 years, I’ve been observing what’s going on in Profound Nether Territory, and I’ve noticed that even though the excuse Yang Kai gave us wasn’t a lie, he was still hiding his true motive. For the last 300 years, more and more Humans have appeared in Profound Nether Territory, especially Open Heaven Realm Masters in the Fifth Order and above. There have also been a lot of Seventh-Order Masters we have never seen before. Many of those newly appeared Open Heaven Realm Masters weren’t as powerful as the others in the same Order and did not have as stable foundations. It is likely that they only ascended to the Open Heaven Realm recently.”

Six Arms furrowed his brows, “So what?”

Mo Na Ye shook his head with a wry smile as he decided to cut to the chase, saying, “The reason Yang Kai wanted a peace deal with us back then was that he intended to train those soldiers!”