When Yang Kai brought up Tianyun City, Deng Ning clearly misread the situation, assuming he was a disciple of the Shadow Moon Hall. Yang Kai neither confirmed nor denied it.
After a bit of flattery, Deng Ning steered the conversation in a new direction. "Tianyun City is actually quite far from here. If we fly by Star Shuttle alone, it would take at least half a year to get there."
"That far!" Yang Kai frowned. He knew the Dark Star was a massive world — when his golden blood had first taken shape, he'd driven a single drop of it around the entire planet, and even at the golden blood's speed, the round trip had consumed a considerable amount of time. Spending half a year flying from here to Tianyun City was the last thing he wanted.
Half a year. He could accomplish a great many things in that time.
Seeing Yang Kai's expression, Deng Ning fell silent. After a moment, a flicker of internal conflict crossed his face, and gritting his teeth, he pressed on. "However, if you pass through the Spatial Array in Demonic Blood City — it's about ten thousand li from here — you could save a great deal of time. The Spatial Array in Demonic Blood City isn't directly linked to Tianyun City, but it can transport you to a place called Qingshi City, which is territory belonging to the Lihuo Sect. From Qingshi City, it only takes about a month to fly to Tianyun City. Of course, if Brother Yang could get to know a Core Disciple of the Lihuo Sect and find someone to vouch for you, you could use the Qingshi City Spatial Array to teleport straight to Tianyun City."
"The Spatial Array in Demonic Blood City is connected to Qingshi City?" Yang Kai raised an eyebrow.
"That's right. Our Demonic Blood Sect and the Lihuo Sect have extensive trade and cooperative dealings, so the disciples of both sides are quite close and often team up to go out on training expeditions," Deng Ning explained with a chuckle. Then, at just the right moment, he added, "If it's convenient, Brother Yang, why not head to Demonic Blood City with me? I'm considered a Core Disciple within the Demonic Blood Sect, so vouching for someone to use the Spatial Array shouldn't be a problem."
Hearing this, Yang Kai was delighted inwardly — keeping Deng Ning alive had proven useful after all — but he kept his composure on the surface. He asked calmly, "What's the cost of using your Spatial Array?"
Deng Ning waved his hands hastily. "Brother Yang, you jest. I owe you my life this time — I've been racking my brain trying to figure out how to repay you. Now that there's something I can do for you, I should be the one rejoicing. Why would I ask for payment? Besides, activating the Spatial Array only costs a few Sacred Crystals. It's nothing major. If you really plan to pass through Demonic Blood City, leave it all to me."
Deng Ning thumped his chest in assurance. It seemed Yang Kai's killing of An Zhiyong and helping him deal with Ye Yangrong had genuinely sparked a desire to befriend the man. His words came out without a trace of pretense, brimming with genuine magnanimity.
Yang Kai considered for a moment, knowing that for a sect disciple to use a Spatial Array without orders from a superior or an official mission, the cost was never just a few Sacred Crystals. There had to be other strings attached. But since Deng Ning was making such a favorable offer, there was no reason to refuse. He smiled and nodded. "Then I'll have to trouble Brother Deng."
"Not at all, not at all!" Deng Ning beamed when he noticed Yang Kai's attitude toward him soften. He secretly felt this deal was a winner — he'd repaid a favor and it even looked like he might come out ahead.
"Brother Yang, please wait a moment — I need to deal with that bastard's corpse," Deng Ning said, then darted off.
Destroying a body after killing someone was standard practice. Yang Kai had done this plenty of times himself and naturally had nothing to say. But after Deng Ning left, Yang Kai reached into his chest with a peculiar expression.
Inside his chest was the small Artifact Refining Furnace, and resting quietly within its once-empty chamber was a crimson pill radiating an overwhelming blood-aura.
It was the Blood Fusion Pill that Deng Ning had tossed into the Flowing Flame Sand Territory!
Yang Kai had been curious about this object — the thing that had driven three Saint King Realm senior brothers of the Demonic Blood Sect to turn on each other — so the moment Deng Ning threw the Blood Fusion Pill away, Yang Kai had sent the Artifact Spirit back to retrieve it, quietly wrapping the pill and smuggling it back.
Others couldn't enter the Flowing Flame Sand Territory, but that didn't mean the Artifact Spirit couldn't. The spirit had been born from the subterranean fire of an underground magma pool and had then been baked inside a stone chamber for tens of thousands of years — it was a fire-attribute Artifact Spirit and paid no mind to the scorching heat of the Flowing Flame Sand Territory.
The flash of flame that An Zhiyong had glimpsed shooting into Yang Kai's chest was the Artifact Spirit returning after completing its mission.
Although Yang Kai hadn't examined the pill closely, judging by the overwhelming blood-qi it contained, its refinement must have involved methods akin to blood sacrifice. Moreover, the pill harbored vast amounts of baleful and sinister energy — not something just anyone could consume. It would likely only be of use to disciples of the Demonic Blood Sect, for whom this baleful energy not only posed no harm but could actually accelerate their cultivation growth.
Yang Kai had sent the Artifact Spirit to retrieve it purely out of professional curiosity as an alchemist — he wanted to study it. He harbored no other intentions.
While Yang Kai was lost in thought, Deng Ning had already arrived before Ye Yangrong's corpse. Contrary to what one might expect, rather than simply destroying the body, Deng Ning sat cross-legged before it with a look of absolute satisfaction and began channeling some unknown secret technique. Soon, a chorus of wailing and howling rose from the spot, and the blood-aura surged violently, flooding the area with crimson light.
About half an hour later, Ye Yangrong's body had been reduced to a pile of dry bones. In Deng Ning's hand, however, was a crimson pill strikingly similar to the Blood Fusion Pill. He regarded it with a satisfied expression, then casually stored it in his spatial ring as though he'd harvested something of great value. Only then did he blast the dry bones to smithereens.