Sha Hu and Yang Kai had met on the Ghost Spirit Island and shared a certain degree of friendship. Lie Kong had gotten to know Yang Kai through the trade agreement established with the Ling Xiao Sect. The last time Yang Kai had departed the ocean depths, the Sea Clan's little princess had even gifted him a Sea God Pearl, which contained an entire ocean's source—perfect for cultivating the Indestructible Five Elements Sword.
Upon seeing Yang Kai, both Sha Hu and Lie Kong were overjoyed yet consumed with anxiety.
Sha Hu urgently called out, "Yang Kai, leave this place immediately! That man is not someone you can handle!"
"Rest easy, Elder Sha." Yang Kai flashed him a smile. "I wouldn't have come without making preparations. Besides, he came here for me—it's you who've been dragged into this. Elder Sha and Palace Master Lie Kong, please withdraw."
As he spoke, he waved his hand.
An invisible force enveloped Sha Hu, and in the next instant, he found himself and the many Sea Hall experts teleported tens of thousands of kilometers away. The bubble of energy surrounding Lie Kong also burst apart under the same wave.
By the time Lie Kong regained his bearings, he had already returned safely to the Sea God Palace.
"Palace Master!" The numerous Sea Clan experts were overjoyed and rushed forward. Several Sea Clan elders hurriedly produced sovereign healing medicines from their spatial rings and administered them to Lie Kong.
"A Star Lord? You've also refined the Star Source of this cultivation star?" The middle-aged man's eyes lit up, regarding Yang Kai with surprise.
Had Yang Kai not been a Star Lord, it would have been absolutely impossible for someone at the Void King First Stage to perform the feat he had just accomplished. In the moment Yang Kai had waved his hand, the middle-aged man had clearly detected fluctuations of Law power.
"What? Sect Master Yang is the Star Lord of the Dark Star?" Though the people from the Sea Hall and Sea God Palace were watching from a great distance, they heard the middle-aged man's words crystal clear. Shock washed over their faces, which quickly gave way to expressions of elation.
Lie Kong and Sha Hu especially—their previously despairing eyes reignited with hope upon learning that Yang Kai was the Star Lord of the Dark Star.
If he was the Star Lord, then within this domain, he might actually stand a chance against this baffling enemy!
"Boy, I'm talking to you. Are you deaf?" The middle-aged man saw that Yang Kai had no intention of paying him any attention, and his expression darkened. He gritted his teeth and snarled.
Given his exalted status and formidable power, he had condescended to address a mere Void King First Stage brat, only to be completely ignored. It was enough to make his cheeks flush with anger.
Only then did Yang Kai finally turn his head to glance his way, casually picking at his ear. "What did you say just now? Sorry, the wind's strong out here on the sea. I didn't catch it. Say it again."
Sha Hu, Lie Kong, and the others had black lines drawn across their faces...
They were tens of thousands of kilometers away and had heard every word perfectly. How could Yang Kai, standing right next to the man, not have heard a thing? He was clearly looking down on his opponent.
They felt a secret thrill, thinking Yang Kai had given the Dark Star's warriors some face, while simultaneously growing worried on his behalf—was such provocation really wise?
"Insolent brat!" The middle-aged man let out a dark chuckle. "I should congratulate you—you've successfully enraged me. When the time comes, your death won't be so quick."
"Whether I die or not has nothing to do with you. You're the one who's about to die." Yang Kai grinned fearlessly, facing this enemy whose depth he couldn't so much as glimpse, yet remaining utterly unafraid.
"I admire your guts, boy, but guts alone without strength won't get you anywhere." The middle-aged man held up a finger and shook it gently before Yang Kai's face. "Boy, hand over the Seven-Colored Warming Soul Lotus and the Star Map obediently. If I'm in a good mood, I might even leave your corpse intact. Otherwise, I wouldn't mind making you experience every torture under the heavens."
"Want them? Come and take them yourself. If you've got the ability." Yang Kai's expression didn't change in the slightest.
"Stubborn fool!" The middle-aged man seemed to have little patience left. Seeing Yang Kai completely unmoved, he let out a soft snort, and a surge of pure, massive Divine Sense shot out from his sea of consciousness, flooding toward Yang Kai.
Whether it was the Seven-Colored Warming Soul Lotus or the Star Map, both resided within Yang Kai's sea of consciousness. If the middle-aged man wanted to seize them, his only option was to invade through that avenue.
Yang Kai's expression finally shifted. He felt his sea of consciousness shudder as though it had been violently struck by some immense force. In an instant, dizziness overwhelmed him, and a wave of nausea and heart-palpitating dread spread through his entire body. His face went noticeably pale.
Boom...
An invisible collision erupted as a sealing formation suddenly surfaced within Yang Kai's sea of consciousness. Accompanied by successive waves of prohibitive power of unfathomable might, it blocked the middle-aged man's Divine Sense outright.
"What?" The middle-aged man was visibly startled.
He had assumed that with his strength, infiltrating the boy's sea of consciousness and seizing the Seven-Colored Warming Soul Lotus and the Star Map would be effortless. Never had he expected to find within it a prohibitive force so formidable that even he felt a shudder of dread—keeping his probing firmly at bay.
"You've got quite a few secrets, boy!" The middle-aged man stared at Yang Kai with a shifting expression, a flash of viciousness crossing his features. "Fine. Once I capture you, I'll have plenty of time to study you!"
As he spoke, he suddenly reached out and grabbed toward Yang Kai.