Martial Peak

During the day, the heat that radiated from the sand was hard to endure, but when night fell, a deep chill filled the air, causing one to shiver unconsciously.

Beneath the full moon, burst of Cold Qi visible to the naked eye would occasionally leap from the sand, like ghosts.

Gazing around, it was as if the endless desert had been covered in a thin layer of ice that reflected the pale moonlight, creating a beautiful yet mysterious air.

At some indistinct location in this vast dessert, An Ling’er stared down at Yang Kai, her True Qi surging as she tried to warm his ice cold body.

Currently, Yang Kai seemed no different than a corpse. After escaping from the Mysterious Small World during the day, he hadn’t even opened his eyes. At the beginning, his body still had some warmth and his heart would beat occasionally, but as time passed, his body grew colder and colder as his vitality seemingly leaked out. He was like a candle in the wind, in danger of being snuffed out at any moment.

An Ling’er had guarded him carefully this whole time, never once leaving his side.

This was the future master of the Holy Land, even if he truly was dead, there was no way An Ling’er could allow any harm to come to him, a firm and resolute expression filling her face.

*Shashasha…*

Not far away, the sound of footsteps sounded, drawing An Ling’er’s attention. When she looked up, she saw Gou Che, who had left to scout the area earlier some time ago; even if he had great physical strength, he wasn’t able to resist the chill of the desert at night, shivering as he walked, his hair covered in frost.

An Ling’er’s eyes flashed as a vigilant look crept onto her face. Having spent so much time with Yang Kai, she had also had contact with Gou Che and knew that this Demon Race man was something of a lascivious delinquent. Now that it wasn’t certain Yang Kai was dead or alive, she felt she had to keep her guard up against Gou Che.

However, An Ling’er quickly relaxed when she remembered her opponent’s Demonic Qi and Spiritual Energy were still sealed.

“How is he?” Gou Che came over to An Ling’er and hurriedly asked.

An Ling’er simply shook her head slowly in response.

“So, in the end, he really can’t be saved.”

“You! You’re not allowed to say that! He’ll live!” An Ling’er immediately became angry, a sharp light flickering across her apricot coloured eyes.

“Good good good, just pretend I didn’t say anything. But you should still prepare yourself, nothing in this world is permanent, haa… Brother Yang’s fate is truly quite cruel,” Gou Che sighed. Seeing Yang Kai suffer such misfortune in order to help them escape, Gou Che’s manner towards him became much friendlier, “If he can survive, that would be for the best. This master wanted to bring him to Qing Liao City to offer some hospitality.”

Saying so, Gou Che sat down on the cold sand a short distance away, a slight grin suddenly forming on his face as he commented, “I found that this human kid is quite interesting. I’ve captured a number of humans before, but none of them were anywhere near as impressive as Brother Yang. All of them put up an ugly display, immediately kowtowing and begging for mercy the moment they found themselves in danger. Brother Yang on the other hand has some real backbone, his temperament really fits well with my Demon Race, preferring to die fighting than live as a coward, a real man.”

Gou Che rambled on for a while, but what attracted An Ling’er’s attention was something he had said close to the beginning, quietly asking, “Those humans you caught, what did you do with them?”

Gou Che swung his hand down in a chopping motion, causing An Ling’er’s pretty face to go somewhat black. She immediately decided not to talk to him more than absolutely necessary.

At night, the vast desert was incredibly quiet, only some scorpion like creatures moved about. Gou Che caught a few of them and ate them with great relish.

As he ate, he gave a running commentary about their taste as well.

As the night dragged on, the desert became colder and colder.

Yang Kai’s only remaining vitality also rapidly faded, a point that both An Ling’er and Gou Che noticing, both of them secretly growing nervous as they carefully watched over him.

A half hour after the middle of the night, this last bit of vitality suddenly vanished.

The light in An Ling’er’s beautiful eyes suddenly went out, her tender body shuddering uncontrollably.

Gou Che also let out a heavy sigh, feeling that the Heavens were unjust.

The two of them were only immersed in their sadness for a moment though before a pulse of vitality erupted from Yang Kai’s body. This burst of vitality soon transformed into a raging flame, quickly heating up Yang Kai’s near frozen body. At the same time, True Qi began flowing through his meridians so quickly and violently it could be heard.

*Hu…*

With a light puff, Yang Kai entire figure was engulfed in flames as a translucent layer of golden True Qi burst forth from his body, transforming the nearby sand in a sea of magma.

An Ling’er was shocked and hurriedly retreated, almost burning herself in the process.

Gou Che was also stunned by Yang Kai’s current appearance, the poisonous tail of a big scorpion he had been eating slipping out of his mouth as his jaw went slack.

Yang Kai suddenly coughed up a dark blood fog before taking back the True Qi which had leaked from his body, quickly jumping to his feet as he glanced around vigilantly, only calming down a moment later when he laid eyes on a dumbstruck An Ling’er and Gou Che nearby, breathing a long sigh of relief while taking back his Divine Sense.

Slowly sitting back down on the ground, Yang Kai adjusted his breathing as the scene before he fell into a coma flashed before across his mind, allowing him to quickly grasp his current situation.

There were no abnormalities in his physical body, but his Knowledge Sea was still in a state of turmoil, causing Yang Kai to moan in pain as he held his head and trembled lightly.

Even after somehow managing to stabilizing his condition, Yang Kai couldn’t reduce the dull ache he felt in his head.

“Where are we?” Yang Kai opened his eyes and quietly asked, his face distorting from the near unbearable pain.

“The Demon Land’s desert,” Gou Che replied somewhat mechanically before quickly coming to his sense and asking hurriedly, “Brother Yang, are you… dead or alive?”

Yang Kai raised his eyes and glanced over at him tiredly, “What do you think?”

“Haha!” Gou Che laughed raucously, “I knew you wouldn’t die so easily!”

“Who was it that said he couldn’t be saved?” An Ling’er shot him a cold glance.

Gou Che suddenly choked, unable to say anything in response.

“How do you feel?” An Ling’er turned her attention to Yang Kai and asked nervously.

“Terrible,” Yang Kai slowly shook his head, his Soul was currently in a state of turmoil and was somewhat unstable.

“Then you should quickly rest.”

Yang Kai nodded lightly, no longer speaking. Sitting cross-legged on the ground and trying to steady himself, he sent his Soul Avatar into his Knowledge Sea to more carefully examine it.

Looking around, Yang Kai saw that his entire Knowledge Sea was in a desolate state, the rich burning flames and endless ocean water had all but disappeared, a sign that his Spiritual Energy had been severely overdrawn.

His Knowledge Sea was also somewhat chaotic; at times, great winds would blow, while at others, thunder and lightning rained down, the entire world shaking unsteadily as if it would soon collapse.

The reason for all this was because Yang Kai had forcefully brought the Divine Tree into the Black Book space.

Never had he thought that this one, seemingly simple act would bring him so close to the gates of death.

The things he normally stored into the Black Book space were small, the biggest one not even one percent the size of the Divine Tree, so even if it consumed some of his Spiritual Energy, it had only been a trifling amount.

But this time, Yang Kai’s Spiritual Energy had been completely exhausted. Bringing the Divine Tree into the Black Book space had nearly caused his very Soul to collapse.

After all, the Divine Tree was very different from anything Yang Kai had stored in the Black Book space before, not only was it massive, it also contained an unimaginable amount of energy. It was understandable he had to pay such a price.

However, it was worth it!

Being able to take the Divine Tree away, Yang Kai felt that even if he had to pay such a steep price, it would be worth it. Now he didn’t have to worry about fulfilling his promise with the Divine Tree.

Yang Kai was a man of his word.

His lost Spiritual Energy could be re-cultivated and supplemented by the Six Coloured Soul Warming Lotus, so it wouldn’t take too long for his Spiritual Energy to return to its peak.

Moreover, this time, the Six Coloured Soul Warming Lotus had played a vital role. If it had not protected Yang Kai’s Soul at the last moment, it was likely he really would be dead right now.

Considering all this, Yang Kai quietly rejoiced.

Withdrawing his Soul Avatar from his Knowledge Sea, Yang Kai next inspected the Black Book space. Just after arriving though, Yang Kai’s Soul Avatar was embraced by a brilliant golden light.

The Divine Tree was now here, its golden roots and jade green leaves illuminating the once dull Black Book space.

Surrounded by this burning aura, the pain in Yang Kai’s Soul decreased noticeably and was replaced with a warm, comfortable sensation.

In response to Yang Kai’s arrival, the Divine Tree’s branches swayed back and forth, as if it was celebrating, a burst of eager calls emanating from its heart.

Yang Kai smiled as he sent his Soul Avatar into the heart of the Divine Tree, allowing the latter’s Soul to immediately wrap around him.

It was obviously aware that Yang Kai was currently in a very weak state and did not try to drag his Soul Avatar all over the place but instead carefully surrounded and comforted him.

The next moment, a powerful energy poured into Yang Kai’s Soul Avatar, quickly supplementing Yang Kai’s lost Spiritual Energy.

Yang Kai was pleasantly surprised and made no attempt to stop it, allowing the Divine Tree to display its capabilities.

After an hour or so, Yang Kai’s weakness had disappeared and he once again became energetic, his dried up Knowledge Sea reaching a state of saturation.

At the same time, all kinds of dark injuries Yang Kai had sustained were restored.

Yang Kai conversed with the Divine Tree for a while and explained that it might have to stay in this place for a while. After receiving a positive response, Yang Kai promised to come see it whenever he had time before taking back his consciousness.

Although the Divine Tree was reluctant to part, it didn’t try to stop him.

Opening his eyes again, Yang Kai discovered that the darkness of night was gradually receding, giving way to the morning sun.

Wrinkling his brow for a moment, Yang Kai let out a light sigh as he estimated he would at least need to break through to the Saint Realm if he wanted to take the Divine Tree out from the Black Book space. Only by reaching the Saint Realm would be able to do with while not harming himself.

However, he was not in a rush. Right now, he was still stuck in the Demon Land, even if Yang Kai could release the Divine Tree immediately, there was no place for it to settle.

It would be better to find a place for the Divine Tree to stay first, Soaring Heaven Sect’s Serene Resplendent Peak would be a good choice.

Seeing Yang Kai open his eyes, Gou Che and An Ling’er who had been monitoring him all night long finally relaxed.

“Brother, why does it seem like you’ve been completely restored already?” Gou Che asked curiously. An hour or so ago, Yang Kai was still in a state close to death, and even if his restorative abilities were better than most, this kind of recovery speed was too abnormal. On top of that, Gou Che didn’t see him take any kind of healing pill or medicine.

It was really inexplicable.