"I was only passing through that area and didn't expect to stumble into something like that. At the time, my cultivation was only at the third layer of the Void King Realm. When gods and immortals clash, all I could do was watch from a distance, so I saw everything with my own eyes," Yang Kai added.
"What? You were at the third layer of the Void King Realm back then?" Gaoshan and Liushui froze for a moment upon hearing this, then seemed to realize something, and cried out in astonishment.
If what Yang Kai said was true, then two years ago he had been merely at the third layer of the Void King Realm. Yet here he was today, two years later, at the second layer of the Dao Source Realm. That was practically one minor realm per year—the speed of his advancement and growth was simply terrifying.
At this rate, wouldn't he reach the third layer of the Dao Source Realm next year, and become an Emperor Venerable the year after?
Of course, breaking through from the Dao Source Realm to the Emperor Venerable Realm wasn't that simple. But give Yang Kai ten or twenty years and he could surely accomplish it, right? What's more, Gaoshan and Liushui had heard that this kid had consumed a Grand Ascension Pill in the Four Seasons Land, meaning his chances of breaking through to the Emperor Venerable Realm were far, far higher than an ordinary person's.
The thought of how the two of them had spent most of their lives chasing after it without so much as touching the threshold of the Emperor position, while this young man already had the hope of a breakthrough at such a youthful age—both elders felt a complicated mix of emotions, a bitter, sweet, sour, and spicy storm churning in their hearts.
"So as you can see…" Yang Kai spread his hands. "Ning Yuancheng's death has nothing to do with me."
Ning Yuanshu frowned, unsure whether to believe his words. After a moment of silence, he suddenly snapped to attention: "Then what about my elder brother's belongings? I heard you previously used one of our Flying Sage Palace's tower ship artifacts. Where is that artifact? And… my elder brother also won a fire-attribute artifact spirit at that auction. Where is that spirit?"
"I have no idea what the Young Palace Master is talking about," Yang Kai said, glancing sidelong at Ning Yuanshu.
"Stop playing dumb!" Ning Yuanshu flew into a rage. "My brother is dead, fine, but his possessions still belong to our Flying Sage Palace. This young master intends to reclaim them."
Yang Kai scratched his face. "Come on now. The Flying Sage Palace is a vast and powerful organization—what are one or two tower ship artifacts in the grand scheme of things?"
"If they're nothing, then hand mine back!" Ning Yuanshu shouted.
"Sigh…" Yang Kai let out a long breath. "Fine. I'll tell you the truth, then. That tower ship artifact… has been destroyed."
"De… destroyed?" Ning Yuanshu's eyes went wide with shock. "Impossible! That was a Dao Source-grade tower ship—sturdy enough to withstand a sustained assault from anyone below the Emperor Venerable Realm. It couldn't possibly be destroyed so easily. Even our Flying Sage Palace has only a handful of ships like that."
Yang Kai replied solemnly: "It was destroyed by an Emperor Venerable Realm powerhouse."
The tower ship artifact truly was destroyed—shattered to pieces by a single strike from Aunt Feng, the woman who had taken away Mo Xiaoqi. Aunt Feng was a powerhouse on the level of the third layer of the Emperor Venerable Realm. What was destroying a tower ship to someone like her? To make up for Yang Kai's loss afterward, Aunt Feng had handed him a wooden boat artifact. It was nowhere near as grand and imposing as the tower ship, but it was compact and light, making it quite convenient to use.
Upon hearing this, Ning Yuanshu's lips twitched: "Just what kind of people did you go and provoke?!"
Gaoshan cried out in shock as well: "You crossed blades with an Emperor Venerable Realm powerhouse? And survived?!"
In that moment, the Flying Sage Palace members looked at Yang Kai as though he were something otherworldly.
"I wouldn't call it crossing blades," Yang Kai said, a faint blush rising to his cheeks. "I was more like being toyed with. Fortunately, that senior had no intention of killing me…" He paused, then continued: "Besides, after Ning Yuancheng died, that tower ship became a masterless item. Whoever picks it up owns it. I picked it up, so it's mine. What are you still harping on about?"
"Fine!" Ning Yuanshu growled. "Say the tower ship was destroyed—what about the fire-attribute artifact spirit? I heard that spirit had already developed its own spiritual intelligence!"
Yang Kai scoffed: "The Young Palace Master just said it himself—the spirit had already developed its own intelligence. So of course it ran off!"
"Ran off?"
"You've already seen for yourselves how powerful an artifact spirit with its own intelligence can be," Yang Kai said coldly. He was referring, of course, to the demonic war construct's artifact spirit.
At the mention of this, Ning Yuanshu's expression shifted noticeably, clearly recalling the scene of the artifact spirit going berserk. A trace of fear crept across his face.
"So what you're saying is… there's nothing left?" Gaoshan's brow furrowed.
"What else could there be? I've already given you an explanation, haven't I?" Yang Kai chuckled lightly. "As for the other powerhouse from your Flying Sage Palace, Fu Sitong… well, that man was incredibly strong. Even if I told you I killed him, you probably wouldn't believe me."
"As if you had the capability!" Ning Yuanshu sneered, his tone dripping with mockery. "As for Elder Fu's death, City Lord Duan has already explained that it was caused by contamination from demonic qi."
"Precisely." Yang Kai clapped his hands together, grinning. "Then I suppose our misunderstanding has been cleared up. From now on, don't come bothering me every time you get the chance, claiming I harmed people from your Flying Sage Palace or anything like that. Young Palace Master, I think you're a decent fellow. Let's get along well in the future—we can still be good friends!"
At the words "good friends," Ning Yuanshu couldn't help but reflexively glance left and right, fearing the demonic artifact spirit might charge in once more.
"That's not for you to decide!" Gaoshan said slowly, shaking his head.
"Oh? Then is it for you to decide?" Yang Kai's expression turned cold.
"Nor is it for us to decide," Liushui chimed in.
"Then who gets to decide?" Yang Kai's face darkened.
Gaoshan said: "If you truly have a clear conscience, then why not return to the Sacred Palace with us and explain the matter personally to the Palace Master? Let the Palace Master render the final judgment."