Martial Peak

The sounds of battle shook the Heavens. The seventeen people were now completely encircled, each of them guarding the backs of the others, and in that moment all of these various sects’ elite disciples were united as one.

Every now and then a Monster Beast would be killed, but these disciples’ True Qi consumption only became more intense.

With the spreading smell of blood, the remaining Monster Beasts became even fiercer, as if they had been driven mad with bloodlust and didn’t care about their own lives as they attacked. Having to deal with more than fifty Monster Beasts was more than enough, but when Yang Kai and Zi Mo joined them, bringing another fifty beasts with them, the pressure everyone felt was more than just double.

With a piercing cry, one of the disciples’ chests was struck by a Fifth-Order Monster Beast leaving a deep bloody gash. Though they weren’t dead, taking on such a strike meant that they instantly lost their ability to fight.

Understanding his situation, he quickly flew backwards into the centre of the crowd as he signaled for another to fill the gap that he had left.

“Can you control these Monster Beasts?” Yang Kai shouted towards Zi Mo while he fought back against a tiger shaped beast.

“I’m trying my best, but it’s not going well!” Zi Mo gritted her teeth as she ferociously struck out towards the surrounding beasts while simultaneously trying to plant her own Soul Controlling Insects, but all of the Monster Beasts around them were rioting about violently, which made it extremely difficult for her to succeed.

After a little more than a stick of incense, Zi Mo had only managed to control less than five Monster Beasts, and these five were all quickly turned into corpses by the never ending sea of rampaging beasts around them.

As more time passed and the group’s consumption of True Qi and injuries increased, the situation became increasingly perilous.

“What now?” Zi Mo said while dripping in sweat. After fighting for so long, they had only managed to kill about thirty Monster Beasts. Most of them were only Fourth-Order while the remaining Fifth-Order Monster Beasts were all existences that were life threatening to the group.

Yang Kai continued to hold his ground as his thoughts spun rapidly, but he was not worried about his side being broken through. At his full strength none of the surrounding Monster Beasts could pose a serious threat to him.

Assessing their situation for a short moment, he quickly shouted, “Everyone should retain a bit of their True Qi, if we’re really unable to hold, we can still fly away! But remember, we have to leave all at once, no one can abandon their position ahead of time!”

Han Xiao Qi loudly replied, “Good, you call the timing! We’ll follow your orders!”

Ye Han said somewhat worried, asked, “But what about you? You’re only a Separation and Reunion Boundary…”

Even if everyone else could fly, he couldn’t. Once that time came, he would surely be shredded by these Monstrous Beasts.

“I’ll take him!” Zi Mo said bluntly.

Many people quickly glanced towards her, surprised she would go to that extent.

However, this plan was not without its risks. A True Element Cultivator could fly, but their speed was by no means fast, and doing so would also consume True Qi. If the Monster Beasts doggedly pursued them, they would only fall into greater danger.

As the battle continued to rage, the number of those who received injuries and had to retreat into the circle grew, which caused the line of defence to tighten and the pressure to increase. On the other hand, the number of Monster Beasts which had fallen also steadily rose.

All of a sudden, just like a rising tide, the Monster Beast’s attacks strengthened significantly. This unexpected rush nearly overwhelmed the group, which was already exhausted.

In all this chaos, Yang Kai still remained calm, as he quietly observed the situation and weighed their options to try to determine the most appropriate time to sound a retreat.

But as he was thinking, a large group of Monster Beasts simultaneously attacked Zi Mo and Leng Shan who were standing nearby, which caused the two of them to fall into a dangerous situation as they desperately fought back. Unexpectedly, two Fifth-Order Monster Beasts leapt over their fellow beasts and flashed their fangs and claws mid-air as they aimed at the pair. A vicious light emitted from their eyes.

The two women’s expressions both changed rapidly and instantly became pale.

Right now they were struggling to push back against a concentrated rush, so how could they have any spare energy to deal with two more Fifth-Order Monster Beasts?

Expect help from the others? Impossible, everyone was busy dealing with the enemies in front of them, even Yang Kai! Once these two Fifth-Order Monster Beasts reached them, even if they didn’t die they would at least be seriously injured.

In that moment of despair, Yang Kai shifted his attention from the Monstrous Beasts he was fighting, which allowed one of them to pounce and bite down, causing him a burst of sharp pain. He grimaced and resisted the urge to scream, while he quickly shot out both his palms and ferociously pushed his Yuan Qi.

With The White Tiger Seal in his left and the Divine Ox Seal in his right, the two seals instantly fused together!

A faint glowing light rushed out.

[Beast Slave Seal!] Drilled directly into one of the Fifth-Order Monster Beast’s body.

Immediately, that Fifth-Order Monster Beast bared its fangs towards its former companion. With the two Monster Beasts now engaged into battle, Zi Mo and Leng Shan’s crisis was abruptly resolved.

With a look of lingering fear, the pair glanced towards Yang Kai, and both of their eyes flashing a trace of gratitude.

Previously, the two of them had each separately tried to enslave and kill Yang Kai, only to instead fall for his machinations and wind up being controlled by him.

Although these past days together, both Zi Mo and Leng Shan displayed a well behaved appearance on the surface, in their hearts they had never stopped wishing for Yang Kai to die so they could regain their freedom.

(Silavin: only natural. I can’t fault them for feeling this way.)

These thoughts had never weakened even for a moment.

But just now, it was undeniable that Yang Kai had disregarded his own safety in order to save their lives, which faintly touched Zi Mo and Leng Shan’s hearts. Compared to their former companions from their respective Sects, this youth who controlled them, tortured them, and even sexually harassed them, seemed to be more reliable.

“Gahh!” Yang Kai cursed, in just that brief moment the Monster Beast which had bitten into him had managed to tear off a chunk of his flesh. Although for him the injury wasn’t too serious, it still caused his blood to rush as he let out a savage roar, violently pushed his Yuan Qi, and released a deadly strike which instantly killed the offending party.

This situation seemed to affect the entire flow of the battle. After the sneak attack by the two Fifth-Order Monster Beasts failed, the remaining beasts seemed to lose their momentum, and after a brief moment some of them began to flee.

A half cup of tea later, all the remaining Monster Beasts had escaped. The only ones left were now corpses.

The disciples, who were still standing till now, suddenly collapsed panting for breath. All of them were bloodied and exhausted, as they looked around at the Monster Beast’s bodies and thought about how they had somehow survived.

No one knew who was the first to burst into laughter, but it was as if a big stone had been thrown into a calm lake as ripples of excitement and joy rapidly spread around.

The laughter continued on and on, and even the female disciples let out bright smiles and laughed heartily.

[We’re alive! We survived!] Although it was a desperate situation which could have very likely ended with their complete destruction, through their concerted efforts, everyone had managed to survive somehow! An hour or so ago, they had been enslaved by Yao He and Yao Xi, awaiting death, but right now no one was dead, and they were all free!

Their opportunity to live another day way all thanks to Yang Kai!

If he had not killed Yao He and, together with Zi Mo, dealt with Yao Xi, then everyone there would have inevitably been slaughtered by them.

“I owe you my life!” Zuo Fang of the Pure Heart Palace turned towards Yang Kai and sincerely thanked him.

Yang Kai simply nodded and smiled.

“We all owe you our lives!” Han Xiao Qi smiled sweetly.

Following this battle, everyone present needed to rest and recover. During the fight nearly eighty percent of them had sustained injuries, which left only a handful of them unscathed.

Fortunately, none of these injuries were fatal, and as long as they were treated properly, within half a month they would be completely restored.

In this situation, Yang Kai was not stingy and took out a bottle of healing pills from his Universe Bag and freely handed them out to the wounded, which garnered even more gratitude and respect from everyone present.

After the joy of surviving eventually began to settle, a certain gloom enshrouded the group.

The source of this being the two cultivators who had fallen before the desperate fight even began.

Before she had died, Yao Xi had ordered all of these disciples to kill Yang Kai and Zi Mo, but none of them had come to her aid, so in her anger she had imposed a harsh punishment in an attempt to force the others into action.

This punishment had landed on the heads of these unlucky two.

One of them was Li Xin Yuan of the Pure Heart Palace, the Senior Brother of Zuo Fang, while the other was the Junior Brother of Bi Xiu Ming, the one who had previously been insulting Yang Kai.

Everyone wore a frown as they gathered around them.

“How are they?” Yang Kai asked on behalf of the others.

Zuo Fang’s face filled with sadness and despair, “Senior Brother’s dantian was damaged by the insect.”

Yang Kai’s expression sank, and he hesitated before asking, “Then his cultivation…”

Zuo Fang slowly shook his head.

His dantian was broken, and his True Qi dispersed. Although there was no danger to his life, from now on he would be reduced to an ordinary person, unable cultivate, unless he could find a peerless medicine capable of repairing his dantian.

Unfortunately, such a pill only existed in legend. Where would one even begin to look for it?

Li Xin Yuan was an elite of the Pure Heart Palace, and just by the fact that he had come to this isolate world, his aptitude and strength were naturally quite good, but now because of a small insect, he had to face a fate worse than death.

(Silavin: Haha. This sounds funny but only till I realise that dengue exist in this world. D:)

Right now Li Xin Yuan’s face was hollow and stiff, like he had lost his soul. This kind of blow was not something anyone could easily endure.

Compared with his silence, the other victim’s reaction was more violent.

Bi Xiu Ming’s Junior Brother, along with Bi Xiu Ming, had twice before disparaged Yang Kai, and by some stroke of Heavenly karma, when Yao Xi randomly chose individuals to make an example of he ended up being one of them.

Clutching Bi Xiu Ming tightly with tears streaming down his face, he weakly murmured, “Senior Brother… I can still cultivate, can’t I? The damage to my dantian isn’t so serious right, right?”

Bi Xiu Ming’s face was grim, and his lips opened and closed a few times, but he simply couldn’t figure out how to console his Junior Brother.

The group around them remained silent with all showing a somber expression. Although none of them were particularly close to him, or even liked him given his previous attitude towards them and especially towards Yang Kai, but in the end he was still a fellow Great Han Dynasty cultivator.

“Senior Brother, tell me honestly, am I a waste now?” The youth finally couldn’t take it and cried out agitatedly.

Bi Xiu Ming stared at him for a moment before he gritted his teeth and nodded heavily.

“Impossible!” The youth’s face suddenly went grim, “It’s impossible! It’s just a trivial little bug. How could it have destroyed my dantian? I’m a rising star! I cultivated so hard, and in just ten years I reached the True Element Boundary Third Stage! I will definitely become an Immortal Ascension Boundary master, I will become one of the powerhouses of this realm, I …”

Roaring in despair, he suddenly seemed to think of something and stiffly turned his face towards Zi Mo, “That’s right. She’s one of those Tian Lang Dynasty cultivators! She must know the way to save me!”

Hearing these words the group’s faces suddenly brightened. Even the previously unresponsive Li Xin Yuan couldn’t help but look towards Zi Mo. Everyone’s eyes were filled with both hope and anxiety.

However, Zi Mo’s expression remained dull, and she slowly shook her head, “There’s nothing I can do!”

The light in Li Xin Yuan’s eyes instantly faded again while Bi Xiu Ming’s Junior Brother howled angrily, “Damn slut! You’re one of those Tian Lang people aren’t you!? You use those insects too, so how could you not be able to do anything!? You must know but simply don’t want to!”

Hearing him rant and rave at her, Zi Mo’s face gradually became cold, and she began to emit a murderous aura.

Simultaneously, Yang Kai also began to emit a ruthless air.

Aware that the situation was becoming delicate, Chen Xue Shu quickly interjected, “Wait a moment, don’t just accuse others randomly. Although she indeed carries the same insects with her, she wasn’t the one who attacked you, not to mention, your dantian is already broken, do you really believe there’s anything anyone could do about that now?”

Hearing this argument, the youth only sneered, “What did you say? She was one of the ones who attacked us and put us in this position in the first place but now you’re trying to defend her? Open your dog eyes! She’s nothing but a cheap Tian Lang Dynasty slut while I’m a glorious Great Han Dynasty man!”