Martial Peak

Above the vast ocean, a massive iron boat sailed forward against the wind and waves, heading west at an extremely fast speed.

The ship was filled with cultivation resources and was crewed by disciples of Water Spirit Temple.

Yang Kai stood at the bow of the ship and stared west, his thought somewhat distracted. Since he had first become involved with Su Yan, they had never been separated for such a long time. The deep ache and longing for her he felt in his heart was like a fine wine, the longer it remained bottled up, the more potent it became.

After roughly half a month’s stay on Water Spirit Island, his opportunity finally came when this trade mission between Water Spirit Temple and Ice Sect came up, and Yang Kai didn’t hesitate to seize it.

Over the past half a month, Shui Ling had taken very good care of him and provided him with every kind of convenience he could want, making one more attempt to persuade Yang Kai to join the Water Spirit Temple. Unfortunately, Yang Kai ultimately refused.

When he finally left, Shui Ling threw something of a fit and didn’t even show up to say goodbye.

Taking advantage of this down time, with Shui Ling’s help, Yang Kai also managed to acquire a number of the herbs he needed to refine the Ancient Demon Clan’s Saint Pill.

Although these herbs could not be found in Blue Water City, for a great force like Water Spirit Temple, they weren’t too difficult to acquire.

Although the speed of the great ship was nowhere near what Yang Kai was capable of, it was definitely not slow. Obviously, it had been specially built by skilled masters and even had some characteristics in common with high grade artifacts. The several times it was attacked by Monster Beasts, it had easily shrugged them off.

The ship also had several Transcendent Realm masters aboard to prevent any accidents from happening.

He Pu of Dark Clouds Island was here too and was actually the one responsible for this trade mission with Ice Sect. Ice Sect was very powerful and had many high-level masters, each and every one of them possessing a frigid demeanor; however, because of this, they were very honest and upfront when it came to transactions. Water Spirit Temple had been cooperating with them for more than a few years now so there was a certain degree of trust built up between the two Sects. When Water Spirit Temple delivered Ice Sect various cultivation resources and supplies, they would receive a large amount of Ice Attribute spirit grasses and herbs in return.

Ice Sect was rich in Ice Attribute ores which were of great value to Water Spirit Temple.

“Young Master Yang,” He Pu smiled as he appeared next to Yang Kai, “After about half a month, we will arrive at the edge of a great glacier, from there, we have to disembark and fly the rest of the way. The people you’re looking for live in the depths of that glacial world.”

“What kind of Sect is Ice Sect?” Yang Kai turned around and asked.

“I don’t know much about them actually,” He Pu smiled awkwardly.

“You don’t know much about them? Don’t you trade with them quite often?”

“We indeed have an established relationship, but I have never been to Ice Sect itself. Every time we trade, we do so on one of the outer glaciers quite some distance from Ice Sect’s headquarters. Those Ice Sect people are really aloof and unreasonable though, every time we meet they stare at us with disgruntled expressions, as if we owe them an incredible amount of money. On top of that, they’re quite averse to outsiders; they consider Ice Sect to be a pure land and outsiders will only bring filth into their realm. If anyone dares to approach their territory, they will certainly not be polite.”

“So, what you mean to say is, you don’t actually know where Ice Sect is, do you?” Yang Kai knit his brow.

He Pu shook his head before coughing lightly, “Young Lady specifically instructed that if things did not go smoothly, Young Master Yang should return to Water Spirit Island where the Young Lady will be waiting to receive you.”

Yang Kai couldn’t help chuckling when he heard these words, “That little girl still has ideas about me.”

He Pu’s mouth twitched slightly. He had never heard anyone dare call the Young Lady ‘little girl’. The courage of this Young Master Yang was simply too big, but what was even more astonishing was his relationship with the Young Lady was good enough that she didn’t mind him speaking to her in such a manner.

“The wind outside is quite strong, let’s go inside,” He Pu quickly adjusted his expression and said with a smile, “My Junior Brothers have prepared some food and wine, I hope Young Master Yang will accept this invitation.”

“Good,” Yang Kai nodded and walked into the cabin with He Pu.

Although He Pu didn’t know the details about Yang Kai and Shui Ling’s relationship, he had a few guesses. At the very least, Shui Ling treated him differently than an ordinary guest, so naturally He Pu thought it was a good idea to make friends with him.

Yang Kai also didn’t have any kind of arrogance and soon mixed in the crew, laughing and drinking together with everyone harmoniously.

The days passed by and the air obviously became colder, it seemed like as the great boat sailed forward, it was gradually approaching a world of ice and snow.

The waves on the sea also became smaller and weaker than before, and around the ship, floating chunks of ice could be seen.

As time passed, this change in situation became even more obvious.

Yang Kai knew this meant he was getting closer and closer to the glacial world and his heart filled with endless expectation and excitement.

Half a month later, the great ship finally came to a stop as the sea in front of it was completely frozen over. Snowflakes the size of goose feathers fell from the sky and from just a quick look, it was obvious the ice on the water’s surface was several meters thick.

The ship couldn’t proceed any further.

He Pu skillfully commanded the crew to pack the ship’s supplies into a number of Universe Bags and prepare to land on the glaciers.

After a short hustle and bustle, everything was prepared.

Leaving a few people behind to look after the boat, the rest of the Water Spirit Temple team leapt off of the deck and, brazing the frigid wind and snow, continued heading west.

The temperature here is extremely low; even a cultivator like He Pu wore a lot of warm clothing, Yang Kai was the only one still a casual shirt and pants. Not only did he not feel cold, he even seemed to be enjoying the weather. This cause He Pu and the others to stare in amazement, wondering just what kind cultivation Yang Kai possessed that allowed him to treat this terrible environment as if it was nothing.

As far as the eye could see it was pure white, a frozen glacial world seemingly devoid of any impurities.

The team from Water Spirit Temple flew forward for several days before the Transcendent leading them suddenly made a gesture to stop.

The team all halted and stared towards their front.

Amidst this snowy world, there seemed to be a few vague figures dressed in pure white robes. Against the glacial background, these people were nearly impossible to detect.

Yang Kai had discovered these people’s auras some time ago, but had not said anything, choosing to sit back and observe first.

After searching the area in front of him for a while, the leader of Water Spirit Temple’s team finally confirmed his counterparts, smiled happily, and hurried forward.

A moment later, their team arrived in front of these half-hidden figures.

Obviously these people were disciples of Ice Sect. Sweeping his gaze over them quickly, Yang Kai could help narrowing his eyes.

Although these people’s expressions were aloof and indifferent, even somewhat disgruntled, giving them an unwelcoming and unreasonable aura, all of them had incredibly dense and pure True Qi, each of them giving off a chilling aura that was difficult to ignore.

The harsher the environment, the stronger the cultivator that could be honed, this was a well-known truth.

Living a life of isolation in this glacial world, Ice Sect’s disciples not being formidable would be strange.

It seemed like Treasurer Meng entrusting Su Yan to this place had by no means been out of simple convenience. With Su Yan’s temperament, this environment really was perfectly suited to her.

The two sides were obviously familiar with each other so the lead Ice Sect disciple, upon seeing the Water Spirit Temple delegation, didn’t refrain from showing some impatience as he indifferently asked, “How come you’re so late this time?”

He Pu quickly stepped forward and replied with a flattering smile, “Sorry, sorry, some matters delayed our trip here, causing us to arrive a bit later than expected.”

“It better not happen again,” The man was coldly snorted.

He Pu almost choked on his words, secretly rolling his eyes and no longer trying to exchange pleasantries, instead quickly getting his people to hand over their Universe Bags to the Ice Sect disciples so the latter could confirm the goods.

After a quick inspection, the leader of the Ice Sect group nodded, expressed his satisfaction with the materials sent by Water Spirit Temple, then handed over two Universe Bags from his sleeve to He Pu.

He Pu swiftly checked the contents of the Universe Bags before smiling and saying, “Good, this time’s exchange has been fruitful, I hope we can continue to cooperate in the future.”

Upon hearing this, without saying anything more, the Ice Sect delegation turned around and prepared to leave.

“Please wait a moment!” He Pu called out.

The lead Ice Sect disciple turned around and asked in an unhappy voice, “What?”

“Ahem, I’d like to ask you about someone,” Yang Kai stepped forward, cupped his fists, and said.

“Ask about someone? Who do you want to ask about?” The man frowned, his expression clearly impatient.

“A young woman named Su Yan, she should currently be residing in your Ice Sect.”

“Su Yan?”

“En, she should have entered your Ice Sect two years ago, if possible, I hope you can allow me to see her…”

“There’s no one with that name in my Ice Sect, you’ve come to the wrong place!” The man didn’t wait for Yang Kai to finish before waving his hand and gruffly cutting him off.

A tinge of anger welled up in Yang Kai’s heart but didn’t immediately act out, choosing instead to stand by and watch this group depart.

Soon, these people disappeared into the snowy world.

“Young Master Yang, this…” He Pu looked at Yang Kai somewhat sympathetically. Although he knew the people of Ice Sect were not easy to converse with, this group had simply been too cold, even refusing to give the other side a chance to speak.

“You go back first, give my thanks to Shui Ling for all her help and tell her I’ll come thank her in person when I get a chance.”

“But Young Lady said that if things don’t go well, we have to bring you back with us lest you suffer any injustice here,” He Pu hesitated.

“Her good intentions are something I’ll make a note of in my heart. When you go back, just tell her I insisted on staying,” Yang Kai smiled and patted He Pu’s shoulder, “This time you’ve worked hard.”

Being treated in such a friendly manner, He Pu immediately felt flattered and let out a laugh, “Young Master Yang is too polite, this Hu wishes Young Master Yang success in your coming venture. If things are truly impossible, please don’t hesitate to leave, these Ice Sect people really aren’t good to provoke.”

“En, I know, if there’s a chance, we’ll meet again in the future,” Yang Kai cupped his fists before quickly turning around and following after the Ice Sect disciples.

Looking at his disappearing back, He Pu sighed and shook his head before also turning around and leading his team back the way they came.

Yang Kai subtly released his Divine Sense and locked onto the group of Ice Sect disciples, following them from a safe distance.

He was certain this group of people knew Su Yan.

Although the man who spoke did not expose any flaws, the young woman standing behind him, trembled slightly as a look of surprise briefly appeared on her face when Yang Kai mentioned Su Yan’s name.

Although she had quickly regained her composure, Yang Kai had not missed this slight change.

Yang Kai didn’t know why they denied Su Yan’s existence, but he couldn’t feel at ease without seeing her for himself.

There was also a faint uneasiness in his heart, as if he knew something was wrong.

Su Yan had been entrusted to Ice Sect by Meng Wu Ya. Ice Sect’s Sect Master and Treasurer Meng seemed to have some kind of friendship, and that friendship definitely wasn’t shallow. If not, Meng Wu Ya would not have done this.

Yang Kai believed in Treasurer Meng!

Since that was the case, Su Yan shouldn’t have been wronged in Ice Sect, but the faint restlessness in Yang Kai’s heart still unsettled him and he vowed to find Su Yan and see for himself how she currently was.