“SIT DOWN AND TALK,” AS THE MASTER OF THIS PLACE, GU LING’ER CALLED OUT.
EVERYONE SAT DOWN AROUND A STONE TABLE, WHICH WAS ALREADY FILLED WITH SPIRIT FRUITS AND WINE.
YANG KAI HAD THOUGHT THAT THESE INK DISCIPLES WOULD GATHER HERE TO DISCUSS SOME SHADY BUSINESS, BUT REALITY PROVED OTHERWISE.
THESE PEOPLE GATHERED TOGETHER, AND JUST LIKE THE BANQUET YANG KAI HAD ATTENDED BEFORE, THEY TALKED ABOUT CULTIVATION MATTERS AND OCCASIONALLY TALKED ABOUT SOME INTERESTING STORIES. THE ATMOSPHERE WAS EXTREMELY HARMONIOUS.
YANG KAI COULDN’T HELP FEELING A STRANGE SENSATION. IF HE DIDN’T KNOW THAT THESE PEOPLE WERE ALL BLACK INK DISCIPLE, EVEN IF HE HAD SEEN THEM WITH HIS OWN EYES, HE WOULDN’T HAVE SUSPECTED ANYTHING.
THEY WERE NO DIFFERENT FROM ORDINARY PEOPLE.
ON THE OTHER SIDE, ZONG YUQUAN AND CHANG ANYI WERE DEBATING THE METHODS TO USE LANG YA’S SECRET TECHNIQUE, EACH OF THEM HAVING THEIR OWN OPINIONS. GU LING’ER SUDDENLY LEANED TOWARDS YANG KAI AND WHISPERED, “JUNIOR BROTHER YANG, YOU’VE JUST BECOME A BLACK INK DISCIPLE, IS THERE ANYTHING YOU’RE NOT USED TO?”
SHE HAD ORIGINALLY BEEN SITTING NEXT TO YANG KAI, BUT NOW THAT SHE HAD TAKEN THE INITIATIVE TO APPROACH HIM, HER BREATH WAS LIKE ORCHIDS AND SHE SEEMED QUITE INTIMATE.
GONG WENSHAN AND LIANG QIUHONG BOTH LOOKED OVER AND SMILED, KNOWING THAT YANG KAI’S PERFORMANCE IN THE TRIAL HAD CAUGHT GU LING’ER’S ATTENTION.
SHE IS PROBABLY TRYING TO SNATCH HER AWAY FROM GU PAN.
FOR SO MANY YEARS, GU LING’ER HAD NEVER CHOSEN A PARTNER FOR HERSELF. FIRSTLY, HER VISION WAS NOT LOW, AND VERY FEW OPEN HEAVEN STAGE CULTIVATORS OF THE SAME GRADE COULD ENTER HER EYES. SECONDLY, BECAUSE OF HER IDENTITY AS BLACK INK DISCIPLE, IF SHE REALLY ENDED UP SPENDING TIME WITH SOMEONE, IT WAS HIGHLY LIKELY SHE WOULD BE EXPOSED.
YANG KAI, ON THE OTHER HAND, WAS DIFFERENT. HIS STRENGTH COULD BE SAID TO BE AT THE PEAK OF THE SIXTH ORDER OPEN HEAVEN STAGE, AND HE IS ALSO A BLACK INK DISCIPLE, SO GU LING’ER DIDN’T NEED TO WORRY ABOUT HIM.
THE PATH OF CULTIVATION WAS EXTREMELY BORING, AND THE OPEN HEAVEN STAGE ALSO HAS A LONG LIFESPAN. IF SHE COULD OBTAIN THE COMPANIONSHIP OF A GOOD PERSON, IT WOULD BE A GOOD THING.
YANG KAI SMELLED HER BODY FRAGRANCE AND NODDED CALMLY, “I DO HAVE SOMETHING I WOULD LIKE TO ASK EVERYONE.”
CHANG ANYI AND ZONG YUQUAN, WHO WERE STILL ARGUING, ALSO STOPPED AND TURNED TO LOOK AT HIM.
GU LING’ER SMILED LIGHTLY, “JUNIOR BROTHER YANG, IF THERE’S ANYTHING YOU NEED, FEEL FREE TO ASK. WE, BLACK INK DISCIPLE, ARE ONE FAMILY, SO WE WON’T HIDE ANYTHING.”
YANG KAI ASKED, “HOW WILL BLACK INK DISCIPLE SMALL UNIVERSE'S BE AFFECTED BY THE INK, HOW WILL IT AFFECT THE FUTURE CULTIVATION?”
EVERYONE GLANCED AT EACH OTHER BEFORE ZONG YUQUAN SMILED AND SAID, “SO JUNIOR BROTHER YANG WAS WORRIED ABOUT THIS. EN, IF WE’RE TALKING ABOUT THE IMPACT, IT’S DEFINITELY THERE, BUT… IT’S GOOD!”
“OH?” YANG KAI WAS SURPRISED, “PLEASE ENLIGHTEN ME, SENIOR BROTHER ZONG!”
ZONG YUQUAN’S EXPRESSION WAS SOLEMN AS HE SAID, “THE POWER OF INK IS INCOMPARABLY PROFOUND, AND THE GREATEST BENEFIT IS IN THE ADVANCEMENT ASPECT. SENIOR BROTHER YUE MANG HAD PREVIOUSLY COMPREHENDED SOMETHING AND IS ABOUT TO ADVANCE TO THE SEVENTH ORDER, SO JUNIOR BROTHER YANG SHOULD HAVE SEEN IT.”
YANG KAI NODDED.
ZONG YUQUAN CONTINUED, “HOWEVER, EVEN THOUGH SENIOR BROTHER YUE MANG HAS ALREADY COMPREHENDED THE OPPORTUNITY TO BREAK THROUGH, IT’S NOT AN EASY TASK TO BREAK THROUGH. REACHING THE SEVENTH ORDER FROM THE SIXTH ORDER IS A THRESHOLD. IF YOU CAN’T CROSS IT, THE BEST OUTCOME IS TO REMAIN IN THE SIXTH ORDER FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. IF YOU’RE UNLUCKY, IT’S HIGHLY LIKELY THAT THE SMALL UNIVERSE WILL BECOME UNSTABLE AND HIS GRADE WILL DROP OR EVEN FALL. HOWEVER, WE, BLACK INK DISCIPLE, DON’T NEED TO WORRY ABOUT THIS. THE SMALL UNIVERSE IS PROTECTED BY THE POWER OF INK, SO IF WE CAN BREAK THROUGH TO THE SEVENTH ORDER, WE WILL HAVE NO WORRIES.”
YANG KAI WAS EXTREMELY SURPRISED, “THE POWER OF INK IS SO AMAZING!”
IF THAT WAS THE CASE, THIS INK FORCE WAS INDEED QUITE EXTRAORDINARY.
GU LING’ER SMILED AND SAID, “THIS IS ONLY ONE ASPECT. THE GREATEST BENEFIT IS THAT WE, BLACK INK DISCIPLE, HAVE ALREADY BROKEN FREE FROM THE SHACKLES OF OPEN HEAVEN STAGE!”
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN?” YANG KAI ASKED HUMBLY.
ZONG YUQUAN EXPLAINED, “I HEARD THAT WHEN JUNIOR BROTHER YANG BROKE THROUGH TO THE OPEN HEAVEN STAGE, HE ACHIEVED THE FIFTH ORDER OPEN HEAVEN STAGE?”
YANG KAI NODDED.
ZONG YUQUAN STRETCHED OUT HIS HAND AND POINTED AROUND, “I WON’T HIDE IT FROM JUNIOR BROTHER, ALL OF US ARE THE SAME. LOGICALLY SPEAKING, EVEN IF WE DIRECTLY BREAK THROUGH TO THE FIFTH ORDER, EVEN IF WE HAVE ABUNDANT CULTIVATION RESOURCES IN THE FUTURE, OUR LIMIT WILL ONLY BE SEVENTH ORDER. HOWEVER, THIS IS ONLY FOR OTHER OPEN HEAVEN STAGE CULTIVATORS, BUT FOR US BLACK INK DISCIPLE… HEHE.”
YANG KAI’S EXPRESSION IMMEDIATELY BECAME EXCITED, HIS BREATHING BECOMING SOMEWHAT RAGGED AS HE ASKED, “SENIOR BROTHER ZONG IS IMPLYING THAT MY BLACK INK DISCIPLE CAN AVOID THIS LIMIT?”
ZONG YUQUAN NODDED SLIGHTLY, “THAT’S RIGHT, AS LONG AS WE CONTINUE TO CULTIVATE DILIGENTLY, AS LONG AS WE DON’T FALL HALFWAY, WE CAN ALSO REACH THE SUPREME NINTH ORDER!”
“IS THIS TRUE?” YANG KAI ASKED HURRIEDLY, HIS EXPRESSION FILLED WITH BOTH EXCITEMENT AND DISBELIEF.
ZONG YUQUAN NODDED SERIOUSLY, “YES!”
“HAS SENIOR BROTHER ZONG MET ONE BEFORE?”
ZONG YUQUAN SMILED AWKWARDLY, “OF COURSE I HAVEN’T SEEN ONE BEFORE. WHAT KIND OF EXISTENCE IS A NINTH ORDER MASTER? HE’S NOT SOMEONE SMALL FRY LIKE US CAN SEE WHENEVER WE WANT TO, BUT IT’S TRUE.”
HE COULDN’T PRODUCE ANY EVIDENCE, BUT HE FIRMLY BELIEVED IN THIS MATTER. YANG KAI KNEW THAT THIS WAS SOMETHING A SEVENTH ORDER BLACK INK DISCIPLE LIKE SHI ZHENG HAD TOLD THEM.
YANG KAI COULDN’T DETERMINE WHETHER THIS WAS TRUE OR NOT, BUT IF IT WAS, THEN THE INK FORCE WAS SIMPLY TOO ATTRACTIVE. FOR OPEN HEAVEN STAGE CULTIVATOR, ONE OF THEIR BIGGEST PROBLEMS WAS THEIR OWN LIMITS.
THE WORLD FRUIT COULD BREAK THIS LIMIT, BUT IT COULD ONLY BE CONSUMED ONCE. WHAT’S MORE, HOW PRECIOUS WAS THE WORLD FRUIT? HOW COULD AN ORDINARY PERSON OBTAIN IT? [MSN: wtf? since when it could only be consumed once?]
BUT IF THE INK FORCE COULD BREAK THIS LIMIT, YANG KAI COULDN’T IMAGINE WHAT WOULD HAPPEN.
WOULD ANYONE TAKE THE INITIATIVE TO SEEK OUT THE INK FORCE? ALL THEY WANTED WAS TO REACH A HIGHER LEVEL OF ENLIGHTENMENT!
OF COURSE! WHO DIDN’T WANT TO BECOME STRONGER? WHO DIDN’T WANT TO BE HIGH AND MIGHTY IN THE FUTURE?
YANG KAI SUDDENLY REMEMBERED THAT THE HIGHER-UPS OF THE VARIOUS CAVE HEAVEN PARADISE ALL KNEW ABOUT THE BLACK INK CLAN. CORE DISCIPLES WOULD ALSO BE INFORMED BY THEIR MASTERS AFTER THEY ADVANCED TO OPEN HEAVEN, BUT OTHER THAN THAT, THE ENTIRE 3000 WORLDS AND EVEN THE ORDINARY DISCIPLES OF THE CAVE HEAVEN PARADISE HAD NEVER EVEN HEARD OF SUCH A THING.
SINCE ANCIENT TIMES, THE CAVE HEAVEN PARADISE HAD SEALED OFF ALL INFORMATION RELATED TO BLACK INK CLAN AND WAS ONLY RESTRICTED TO HIGH RANK OPEN HEAVEN, CAUSING THE HIGH RANK OPEN HEAVEN MASTERS HIDDEN IN SHATTERED HEAVEN TO NOT EVEN KNOW WHY THEY HAD BEEN TARGETED BY THE CAVE HEAVEN PARADISE.
YANG KAI STILL COULDN’T UNDERSTAND WHY THIS WAS THE CASE. SINCE THE INK FORCE WAS SO STRANGE, THEY SHOULD LET EVERYONE KNOW ABOUT IT AND TAKE PRECAUTIONS.
HOWEVER, IF THE INK FORCE COULD BREAK THROUGH THE LIMITS OF THE OPEN HEAVEN STAGE, YANG KAI WOULD BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND WHY THE CAVE HEAVEN PARADISE SEALED THIS INFORMATION!
THEY WERE AFRAID THAT SOMEONE WOULD BE UNABLE TO RESIST THE TEMPTATION OF THE INK FORCE…
[MSN: LMAO, then they proceed to suppress the talent that could breat through to high rank directly, if they were forced to break through below their aptitude, won't they hold grudge and welcome the black ink instead?]
THIS IS A PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE OF THE CAVE HEAVEN PARADISE.
WITH SUCH CONSIDERATIONS, YANG KAI SOMEWHAT BELIEVED THAT THE INK FORCE COULD BREAK THROUGH THE LIMITS OF THE OPEN HEAVEN STAGE.
“BUT… HOW COULD THIS BE?” YANG KAI STILL DIDN’T UNDERSTAND.
“HOW CAN THE POWER OF INK BE SOMETHING WE CAN CASUALLY SPECULATE ABOUT?” ZONG YUQUAN SAID MYSTERIOUSLY, HE PROBABLY DIDN'T UNDERSTAND HIMSELF.
YANG KAI LOWERED HIS HEAD, HIS BLACK HAIR FALLING OVER HIS FOREHEAD AS HE SUDDENLY LAUGHED.
GU LING’ER ASKED IN SHOCK, “JUNIOR BROTHER YANG, WHAT’S WRONG?”
“HAHAHAHAHA!” YANG KAI SUDDENLY BURST INTO LAUGHTER, HIS EXPRESSION BECOMING ARROGANT, “HEAVEN’S PITY! HEAVEN’S PITY!”
THE FEW OF THEM GLANCED AT EACH OTHER, NOT UNDERSTANDING WHAT YANG KAI WAS DOING.
ON THE OTHER HAND, GU LING’ER, WHO WAS BEAUTIFUL AND INTELLIGENT, PONDERED FOR A MOMENT BEFORE EXPLAINING, “JUNIOR BROTHER YANG HAD THE APTITUDE TO DIRECTLY ADVANCE TO THE SEVENTH ORDER, BUT THE SEVERAL CAVE HEAVEN PARADISE LED BY MYRIAD DEMONS HEAVEN WERE SOMEWHAT WARY OF HIM, SO THEY TRIED TO SUPPRESS HIM. I HEARD THAT IN SHATTERED HEAVEN, JUNIOR BROTHER YANG WAS FORCED TO ADVANCE TO FIFTH ORDER OPEN HEAVEN.”
NEARLY A HUNDRED YEARS AGO, YANG KAI’S INCIDENT HAD CAUSED QUITE A STIR, AND MANY DISCIPLES OF THE CAVE HEAVEN PARADISE HAD HEARD ABOUT IT.
GU LING’ER HAD INQUIRED ABOUT YANG KAI, SO SHE NATURALLY HAD SOME UNDERSTANDING OF HIM.
SHATTERED HEAVEN, OUTSIDE SHADOWLESS CAVE HEAVEN, YANG KAI’S BREAKTHROUGH TO THE FIFTH ORDER WAS NO SECRET, MANY PEOPLE HAD WITNESSED IT WITH THEIR OWN EYES.
HEARING GU LING’ER’S WORDS, EVERYONE IMMEDIATELY UNDERSTOOD.
ORIGINALLY, HE HAD THE QUALIFICATIONS TO DIRECTLY ADVANCE TO THE SEVENTH ORDER, BUT IN THE END, HE WAS FORCED TO ADVANCE TO THE FIFTH ORDER, A FULL TWO GRADE CULTIVATION LEVEL. WHAT A HUGE GAP! NOT TO MENTION, THE LIMIT OF THE SEVENTH ORDER WAS THE NINTH ORDER, WHILE THE LIMIT OF THE FIFTH ORDER WAS THE SEVENTH ORDER.
UNSURPRISINGLY, YANG KAI HAD BEEN FEELING AGGRIEVED AND ANGRY ALL THESE YEARS.
HIS GREAT FUTURE WAS RUINED JUST LIKE THAT, NO ONE WOULD BE ABLE TO ACCEPT IT.
BUT NOW, AFTER LEARNING THAT THE INK FORCE COULD ACTUALLY BREAK THROUGH THIS LIMIT, YANG KAI NATURALLY FELT A SENSE OF ENLIGHTENMENT.
EVERYONE COULD UNDERSTAND HIS ACTIONS.
ZONG YUQUAN PATTED YANG KAI’S SHOULDER AND SAID SINCERELY, “JUNIOR BROTHER YANG, THE ROAD AHEAD IS STILL LONG, LET’S TAKE IT SLOW. SOONER OR LATER, OUR BLACK INK DISCIPLE WILL BE ABLE TO STAND AT THE PEAK OF THESE 3000 WORLDS, AND EVERYONE BELOW US WILL BE LACKEYS!”
YANG KAI GRITTED HIS TEETH AND NODDED, “WHEN THAT TIME COMES, I WILL DEFINITELY RAZE THE SEVERAL CAVE HEAVEN PARADISE LED BY MYRIAD DEMONS HEAVEN TO THE GROUND. ONLY THEN WILL I BE ABLE TO APPEASE THE HATRED IN MY HEART!”
ZONG YUQUAN’S JAW DROPPED, “JUNIOR BROTHER IS TRULY AMBITIOUS!”
YANG KAI SAID, “IF I REALLY DO THAT, WILL IT BE A PROBLEM? WILL IT RUIN THE FUTURE?” AS HE SPOKE, HE POINTED TOWARDS THE SKY.
ZONG YUQUAN DIDN’T KNOW HOW TO ANSWER, HE DIDN’T KNOW WHAT THE HIGHER-UPS WERE PLOTTING.
HOWEVER, AT THIS MOMENT, A VOICE SUDDENLY RANG OUT, “WHEN THAT TIME COMES, THIS KING WILL ACCOMPANY YOU!”
EVERYONE QUICKLY STOOD UP.
YANG KAI ALSO STOOD UP AND LOOKED TOWARDS THE SOURCE OF THE SOUND.
“GREETINGS, MARTIAL UNCLE YUAN!” EVERYONE SALUTED.
“GREETINGS, SENIOR YUAN!” YANG KAI CUPPED HIS FISTS, HIS EXPRESSION CALM.
YUAN DU!
ONE OF LANG YA’S THREE VICE SECT MASTERS, WHEN YANG KAI FIRST CAME TO LANG YA PARADISE, GU PAN HAD BROUGHT HIM TO MEET LI YUAN WANG AND HAD MET HIM HALFWAY.
GU PAN HAD SAID THAT VICE SECT MASTER YUAN DU’S GREATEST HOBBY IN LIFE WAS TO LISTEN OTHERS FLATTER HIM. AT THAT TIME, YANG KAI HAD THOUGHT THAT THIS SEVENTH ORDER MASTER WAS VERY AMIABLE, BUT HE HAD NEVER IMAGINED THAT HE WAS ALSO A BLACK INK DISCIPLE!
AT THIS MOMENT, YUAN DU WAS STILL SMILING GENTLY AS HE LOOKED AT YANG KAI WITH A LOOK OF APPROVAL, LIKE AN ELDER LOOKING AT HIS OWN JUNIOR.
YANG KAI FELT A CHILL RUN DOWN HIS SPINE!
ALTHOUGH HE HAD LONG GUESSED THAT THERE WERE OTHER BLACK INK DISCIPLE AMONG LANG YA'S SEVENTH ORDER, THIS WAS ONE OF THE THREE VICE SECT MASTERS!
WHAT WAS LANG YA DOING? ONE OF THEIR FOUNDATIONS HAD BEEN CORRODED BY THE INK FORCE.
HOWEVER, AFTER THINKING ABOUT IT CAREFULLY, LI YUAN WANG HAD GIVEN HIM A LIST OF OPEN HEAVEN STAGE CULTIVATORS WHO WERE ON GOOD TERMS WITH SHI ZHENG AND ZONG YUQUAN.
YUAN DU WAS ONE OF THEM!
TO BE CONTINUED...
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