Zi Donglai's gaze had gone completely blank.
He stared foolishly at the space not far ahead, where Yang Kai fought with soaring spirit, unleashing killing move after killing move, while Kong Fa struggled to dodge in desperate straits, wretched beyond measure. In that instant, he simply could not accept the reality before him.
In a head-on battle, Yang Kai had Kong Fa completely suppressed!
They had exchanged blows for no more than thirty breaths, and Kong Fa was already reduced to pure defense, with not a shred of fighting spirit left.
He could see it clearly—Kong Fa's movements were sluggish, his Saint Yuan circulation was disrupted, all because of Yang Kai's Domain suppression. Though both of them stood at the peak of the first level of the Void King realm, inside Yang Kai's Domain, where strength waxed and waned in opposition, Kong Fa was no match at all. His defeat and death were simply a matter of time.
At the thought of this, Zi Donglai's heart lurched. A wave of foreboding washed over him.
Xu Wei was already dead. If Kong Fa fell as well, then Yang Kai's next target would be him.
Two Void King realm experts had proven unable to stop Yang Kai—how could he, a mere Return Void realm cultivator, hope to resist?
And his father was currently entangled with that eerie, ghost-like fellow, seemingly too preoccupied to lend a hand.
What to do? What could he possibly do? Zi Donglai's face was a mask of bewilderment. He had absolutely no idea how to handle this thorny predicament.
Just then, another figure stepped out of the spatial vortex from which Yang Kai had first appeared. The moment this person emerged, he burst into loud wailing and shouting: "Young hero, wait for me! I can't find my way—huh? I made it out? Hahahaha! I, Lü Guichen, have finally escaped! I never have to stay in that godforsaken place again!"
The fellow still seemed to have no grasp of the situation. The instant he walked out of the vortex, he erupted into wild laughter, utterly oblivious to anyone around him.
Who was this guy? Where had he come from? Zi Donglai stared in astonishment at the suddenly appeared Lü Guichen, vaguely feeling the man looked familiar, though he could not for the life of him remember where they had met.
No matter—capture him first. "If he came out with that bastard, he must be one of his people!" Zi Donglai's thoughts raced, and in a flicker he appeared before Lü Guichen. He seized the man by the throat and said in a cold voice: "Don't move. Take one step and I'll take your life!"
Lü Guichen was startled. Cold sweat drenched his entire body, and he dared not so much as twitch. He nodded frantically: "I won't move, I won't move! Sir, let's talk this through—please, no need for excitement…"
As he spoke, Lü Guichen cast a glance at Zi Donglai.
The instant he did, a burst of delight exploded in his eyes. He cried out: "Young Master? Are you the Young Master?"
"You're calling me Young Master?" Zi Donglai was taken aback. "Who are you?"
"Young Master!" Lü Guichen dropped to his knees in midair with a thud, wrapping both arms around Zi Donglai's leg as though he had reunited with his own flesh and blood. Tears and snot streamed down his face: "Young Master, this subordinate is Lü Guichen—from Purple Sand Star! Decades ago, this subordinate had the honor of meeting the Young Master once and even received your gracious guidance. Have you forgotten, Young Master?"
"Lü Guichen?" Zi Donglai furrowed his brow. The name rang a bell, but he could not quite place it. Still, the man's joy seemed far too genuine to be feigned, so he did not suspect deception. He frowned in thought for a moment, then suddenly clicked in recognition: "You're from the Lü family—Lü Li's descendant?"
"Yes, yes, yes—it's this subordinate!" Lü Guichen was overjoyed that the other had finally remembered him. "This subordinate thought he would never see anyone from our Purple Star again for the rest of his life. To think that the very moment I escape, I am blessed enough to behold the Young Master's heavenly visage! This is the greatest fortune of three lifetimes!"
"So it was you!" Zi Donglai now confirmed that the man truly was one of his Purple Star's people, and his expression softened somewhat. He nodded: "Get up and speak. Haven't you been dead for decades? How did you come out of that place?"
"Waaah…" Despite his considerable age, Lü Guichen wept without restraint, tears crisscrossing his face. "This… is a long story!"
"Keep it short." Zi Donglai was already consumed with anxiety over the present crisis and had no patience for rambling.
"Here's what happened…" Lü Guichen hurriedly recounted the important details.
"I see." After listening, Zi Donglai nodded. "These past decades must have been hard on you."
"Not hard at all, not at all! Being able to see the Young Master again makes it all worthwhile." Lü Guichen squeezed out a smile, speaking as though he had endured decades of bitter endurance and finally accomplished some monumental feat.
Zi Donglai seethed inwardly but had no time to waste on him. After all, the man's strength was only at the second level of the Saint King realm—he would be of absolutely no help.
"Oh, Young Master—the Origin Essence of that landmass was refined by a young man. If you could capture him…"
"What?" Zi Donglai's expression changed sharply. "That fellow refined an entire landmass's Origin Essence?"
"Yes… I didn't see it with my own eyes, but I'm certain of it. Ah—there he is, that young man…" Lü Guichen swept his gaze across the battlefield and immediately spotted Yang Kai locked in fierce combat with Kong Fa. He pointed in that direction.
The words had barely left his mouth before his jaw dropped wide open.
He could see Kong Fa barely holding on under Yang Kai's assault, his entire body bathed in blood.
Dozens of Golden Blood Threads danced around Yang Kai, darting through the void like living things, striking Kong Fa at every turn and inflicting wound after wound.
"Stop, young friend—I concede! Spare my life!" Kong Fa's face was ashen. He desperately blocked the Golden Blood Threads' attacks while bellowing at the top of his lungs.
"Concession is useful? Then why bother with Cultivation?" Yang Kai was unmoved. He swept his hand forward: "Moon Blade!"
Hisss…
A crescent blade a full zhang in length materialized in an instant, slashing vertically toward Kong Fa.
Kong Fa's face twisted in alarm. His hands flickered through a rapid sequence of seals, brilliant light surging across his body as an ancient bell-shaped Artifact flew forth, transforming into a dome of bell-shaped light that enveloped him.