Boom…
A thunderous explosion rang out as golden light scattered in every direction. At the same time, Yang Kai was sent hurtling backward, spitting out a mouthful of blood mid-air.
The Blood Shield woven from a hundred strands of Golden Blood that he had been so proud of had actually failed to fully block this single strike. The realization sent a chill down his spine.
But this brief exchange had at least allowed him to see clearly what had attacked him.
It was a spear — a spear roughly ten feet long, as thick as an infant's arm, its entire body coursing with radiant light and surging with extraordinarily powerful spiritual energy fluctuations.
A Void King grade Artifact!
Though the spear's physical form had been blocked by the Blood Shield, a wave of destructive force had pierced through and invaded Yang Kai's body. In an instant, it felt as though countless needles were piercing every meridian and fiber of his flesh. His face twisted in pain.
Given the cultivation of the attacker and the terrifying power behind that spear strike, any ordinary Return Void Third Stage cultivator would have been killed on the spot. But Yang Kai's foundations were deep, so he had only sustained minor injuries.
Since leaving Dark Star, this was the first time he had discovered a place with signs of human habitation — and he had been ambushed by a Void King realm expert wielding a Void King grade Artifact.
Rage roiled in Yang Kai's chest. He turned his head and glared at the meteorite field with the fury of a provoked beast, then shot off into the distance at full speed, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
The spear that had attacked Yang Kai, after delivering its single strike, flew back along its original path and landed in the hand of a middle-aged man standing atop a massive meteorite.
The man had a sinister, gaunt face and a tall, lean build. He wore a dark teal robe, and wherever he stood, an aura of cold malice radiated outward — no one within a hundred feet dared approach.
Clutching his Artifact, the sinister-faced middle-aged man showed a flicker of surprise on his face, as if he hadn't expected his strike to fail to kill Yang Kai.
"Interesting. Not only did he discover your hiding place in advance, but he also survived a blow from me without dying on the spot." The sinister-faced man let out a cold chuckle and cast a casual glance in the direction Yang Kai had fled. He asked, "Does anyone here recognize that man?"
Surrounding him stood at least twenty Return Void realm cultivators, every single one at the Second Stage or above — not a single First Stage among them. At his question, they exchanged glances and all shook their heads, indicating they did not recognize Yang Kai.
"Since none of you know him, he's not one of theirs. It seems he really was just a passerby." The sinister-faced man pondered for a moment. "But this matter is of the utmost importance, and we cannot afford the slightest mistake. Even if he was just passing through, we cannot let him go."
"My Lord, after taking your strike, could he possibly still be alive?" someone nearby asked.
They had all witnessed the sinister-faced man's attack. Not a single person present felt confident they could have survived such a blow unscathed. The intruder, whoever he was, had clearly been only a Return Void realm cultivator as well. There was no way he could be any different.
"It's better to be safe than sorry. Zhang Fu, Liu Dong — go bring me his corpse!" the sinister-faced man ordered. He was clearly certain Yang Kai was dead, and that any escape was merely a brief reprieve.
"Yes!" The two Third Stage Return Void cultivators who had been named responded immediately, summoning their Star Shuts and giving chase in the direction Yang Kai had fled.
Thirty thousand li from the spot where Yang Kai had been ambushed, he sat cross-legged on a meteorite. His gaze was fixed on the direction he had come from as he waited in silence.
He didn't know why that Void King realm expert had attacked him without provocation, but judging from how furtive those people had been, they were clearly lying in ambush for someone. He had simply passed through by chance and likely disrupted their plans.
That was why they had launched the attack — intending to silence any witness.
If that was the case, now that he had fled, they certainly wouldn't let the matter drop. Pursuers would come.
It was precisely with this judgment that Yang Kai had deliberately stopped. He was in no hurry to leave.
Having suffered such an inexplicable loss, how could Yang Kai simply let it go? The strike had been terrifying, but Yang Kai had detected that the attacker was merely a First Stage Void King.
He had slain Luo Hai himself — what did he have to fear from a First Stage Void King? True, he no longer had a Star Emperor Token to call upon, but even if he couldn't win in a fight, escaping was well within his abilities.
Back in the Star Territory, even Luo Hai had chased Yang Kai for months on end without success, growing ever more frustrated. Could some unknown First Stage be any more formidable than Luo Hai?
His guess proved correct. He had waited on the meteorite for less than half the time it took to finish a cup of tea before two streaks of light appeared on the distant horizon. Judging by the brightness and speed of those lights, the newcomers were both Third Stage Return Void cultivators.
A mocking smile tugged at the corner of Yang Kai's mouth. Only once they had drawn close enough did he pretend to be in a panic, leaping clumsily off the meteorite and summoning his Star Shuttle to continue fleeing.
But through deliberate effort, he kept his Star Shuttle flickering erratically, its speed painfully slow — the very picture of someone gravely wounded and running on his last dregs of strength.
The two warriors named Zhang Fu and Liu Dong took one look at this scene, exchanged a knowing grin, and trailed after him at an unhurried pace. They wore the smug air of cats toying with a mouse, showing no rush to close in for the kill.
As he fled, Yang Kai kept glancing back over his shoulder, as though terrified of being caught.
This only made Zhang Fu and Liu Dong grow bolder. They not only continued trailing behind Yang Kai but also began calling out threats.
After an hour, when he judged the distance to be sufficient, Yang Kai suddenly came to a stop and turned around, standing motionless in the void.