Though Yang Kai's combat strength now was such that he feared no cultivator in the Void Returning Realm, if the Demon Blood Sect Master had been determined to flee, there was little he could have done about it — unless he had sealed off all her escape routes beforehand.
Fortunately, her plans had not come to fruition.
A short while later, the Stone Puppet came scampering back and handed Yang Kai a spatial ring — clearly one that had belonged to the Demon Blood Sect Master. Yang Kai took it, swept it with a brief pulse of his divine sense, and stored it away with a satisfied look.
As the master of an entire sect, the beautiful woman's wealth had naturally been considerable. But Yang Kai had no time to go through it all now; he could set it aside and deal with it after leaving the Imperial Garden. Glancing around, he noticed that Jin Shi's spatial ring was nowhere to be found — presumably it had been accidentally banished into some void rift during the fight. Retrieving it was utterly impossible.
No great loss, really. The spoils from this battle were more than sufficient. At the very least, Yang Kai's original objective had been accomplished.
He waved a hand, sweeping the Stone Puppet into the Black Book's space, and said flatly, "Let's go."
"Mm." Biluo seemed somewhat dazed. After a soft nod, she let Yang Kai lead her toward the far end of the ice corridor, her expression strange the entire way.
She realized her previous assessment had been terribly wrong!
When she had first seen Yang Kai and noticed that his cultivation was at the same level as her own, Biluo had subconsciously felt he was unworthy of her Master. She had privately lamented his lack of progress — the years had only widened the gap between him and her Master. But after witnessing this battle, she understood that though Yang Kai's cultivation was two minor stages below her Master's, his actual combat strength was likely on par. If her Master had been the one handling that fight, the outcome might not have been as flawless as what Yang Kai had achieved.
Still, she had to admit that Yang Kai had relied too heavily on external aids. Though these could be considered part of his overall strength, they were far from ideal. One's own cultivation was the true foundation; external means would never be a reliable long-term path.
No one was perfect — even the finest jade had its flaws. All things considered, the gap between him and her Master wasn't that great. He was passably worthy.
With that thought, Biluo's mood lifted for reasons she couldn't quite explain.
With all danger cleared from the ice corridor, the journey onward was smooth and unimpeded. Before long, Yang Kai had brought Biluo back to the great hall he had visited the last time he was here. By now, he knew the route well.
But he was in no hurry to leave. Instead, he stood with a slight furrow of his brow, gazing back the way they had come.
A moment later, two figures flew in from the distance — the two women from Ice Heart Valley.
Having just emerged from the ice corridor, they were visibly startled to find Yang Kai already waiting for them there. Wariness flickered across their faces before the older of the two stepped forward and said, "Might I ask this young brother's honored name? I am Tan Tinghe of Ice Heart Valley on Red Surge Star. I wish to thank you, young brother, for saving our lives."
Yang Kai gave them a bland glance and replied, "If you chased after me just to say thank you, there's really no need. I had a grudge against those two to begin with — killing them had nothing to do with you."
Tan Tinghe gave a wry smile at his words. "That may be so, but those two were clearly up to no good. If you hadn't intervened, my junior sister and I would likely be beyond saving. So regardless, please do accept a bow of gratitude from both of us."
With that, she and the other woman dipped into a graceful curtsy.
Yang Kai's expression remained indifferent, and he couldn't be bothered to stop them. He hadn't exactly meant to play the hero, but it was a fact that they had survived because of his presence. Otherwise, given Jin Shi's character and methods, these two women would have met a fate far worse than death.
Accepting their bow was hardly unreasonable.
Once the thanks had been offered, the two women noticed Yang Kai's lukewarm response — his demeanor practically screaming "keep your distance." Their expressions turned somewhat awkward. They exchanged a glance, appearing to want to say something but holding back.
"Is there something else?" Yang Kai furrowed his brow, a hint of displeasure showing. Given their current condition, the best thing they could do was find a spot to sit down and recuperate. Why were they still lingering around him?
Could it be that they had seen his strength and wanted to team up with him? Or were they hoping to rely on him for protection? Yang Kai speculated inwardly. If that was the case, they had miscalculated badly.
They were decent-looking enough, but he wasn't so charitable that he would go out of his way to help strangers. Bringing along Biluo alone was already troublesome enough — he had no intention of saddling himself with two more wounded passengers.
"It's like this," Tan Tinghe said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She looked at Yang Kai with an eager expression and asked, "May I ask, young brother — that thing earlier that devoured the spiritual essence of heaven and earth… was it the legendary primordial sacred beast, the Ice Phoenix?"
Yang Kai's eyes narrowed. He fixed her with a cold stare, his expression turning dark.
Sensing his hostility, Tan Tinghe quickly waved her hands. "Please don't misunderstand, young brother. My junior sister and I have no intention of doing anything to you — and frankly, in our current state, we couldn't even if we wanted to. I'm simply asking."
"So what if it is? And so what if it isn't?" Yang Kai gave a cold snort. This woman was truly pushing her luck. What business was it of hers to pry into such matters? Didn't she know some things were best left unasked? If he had been the type with a shorter temper, that single question alone would have been enough reason to kill her.
Hearing his answer, Tan Tinghe's face brightened with delight. She hurriedly pressed on, "If it truly is the Ice Phoenix… would you be willing to transfer it to Ice Heart Valley? We can offer you anything you desire!"