Staring at Yang Kai's icy expression and cold, resolute face, Yang Leshui felt a chill run through his body, vaguely realizing he had provoked some terrifying existence. Regret flooded his heart.
Even if he survived this encounter, the enormous losses would be impossible to explain to the Pavilion Master. He would inevitably face the Pavilion Master's wrath.
"Tell me, would you rather I kill you with one sword thrust, or one thrust at a time?" A wicked smile bloomed across Yang Kai's face.
Yang Leshui trembled all over and cried out in terror, "You can't kill me... I am the Vice Pavilion Master of Xuan Yun Pavilion! I am Lord Mi Tianxing's subordinate! If you kill me, he will absolutely not let you off!"
"Mi Tianxing?" Yang Kai said coldly. "That fellow at the first level of the Emperor Realm?"
"That's right! The Pavilion Master treats me very well!" Yang Leshui hurriedly said, thinking Yang Kai recognized Mi Tianxing's name.
To his surprise, Yang Kai showed a contemptuous expression and sneered, "The first level of the Emperor Realm is nothing. I've killed one before!"
Yang Leshui's first reaction was that this guy was bluffing! How could someone at the first level of the Emperor Realm be so easy to kill? And coming from a third-level Dao Source Realm cultivator, the claim sounded utterly absurd no matter how you looked at it.
But he didn't dare retort. All he could say was, "Let me go, and I can give you many benefits. If you kill me, you'll never be able to set foot on Tongtian Island without trouble!"
Yang Kai's expression turned cold. "Facing death, and you still dare threaten me?"
"I'm just telling the truth. Besides, with your current strength, killing me won't be easy either. Why fight to mutual destruction? Wouldn't it be better if we sat down and talked things over?"
Yang Kai sneered, "Negotiations require equal standing. I can take your life with a snap of my fingers. What right do you have to negotiate with me?"
"Don't look down on me! Even a wrecked ship has three pounds of nails!"
"You think too highly of yourself." Yang Kai snorted, and the Million Sword in his hand slashed straight down toward him.
Yang Leshui's face drained of color. He never expected that despite all his earnest persuasion, the other party would still attack. In that moment, his heart seethed with both fury and panic. Without any more hesitation, he summoned a shield Artifact and placed it before him.
Crack...
A crisp sound rang out. To his horror, Yang Leshui watched his shield Artifact shatter completely, failing to provide any protection at all—it crumbled the instant the sword struck. The might of the Emperor Artifact sliced straight through his body, splitting him in two.
*How could this guy even be human?* Even at the moment of death, Yang Leshui couldn't believe it. A third-level Dao Source Realm cultivator, casually obliterated. If he had known beforehand that the gap between them was this vast, he would never have stayed here—he would have fled, at least giving himself a slim chance of survival.
The deck quickly emptied. Besides corpses scattered everywhere, only Yang Kai remained—even Liu Xianyun had gone with Jiao Yi and the others to pursue the fleeing enemies.
Yang Kai reached out and pulled the Space Rings from the dead cultivators toward him with a wave of his hand. After a cursory inspection, he tossed them disdainfully to the ground.
These cultivators had clearly lived inside the Silent Void Secret Realm for a long time. Their rings were stuffed with a hodgepodge of items, but not a single one of real value. With Yang Kai's current wealth, he genuinely couldn't be bothered with any of it.
Yang Leshui's shield Artifact had actually been half-decent, but once the Million Sword cleaved it open, it was worthless.
Yang Kai paid no more attention to the cultivators' Space Rings and turned his gaze to the massive tower ship.
This tower ship had been sailed here by Yang Leshui and his men. Inside the Silent Void Secret Realm, this type of large-scale Artifact used for sea travel seemed quite common. Yang Kai figured he might need to set sail on the ocean himself someday, so he leaped across onto the tower ship, entered the cabin, located the control hub, and began refining it.
After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Ling Yinqin and the others returned from various directions. Not a single one of the dozen-plus crew members was missing. Apart from a few who had sustained minor injuries, everyone else was completely unharmed.
Once everyone gathered and reported their respective situations, Ling Yinqin let out a breath of relief.
None of the fleeing Xuan Yun Pavilion cultivators had escaped—they had all been hunted down and killed. There was no longer any worry about news of this incident reaching Tongtian Island.
Dangerous incidents occurred frequently on the Silent Void Sea, so the disappearance of Yang Leshui's entire crew wouldn't raise eyebrows. Xuan Yun Pavilion wouldn't necessarily suspect Ling Yinqin and her group, and even if they did, there would be no witnesses left to corroborate anything. She had nothing to worry about.
Only after composing herself did Ling Yinqin fully grasp the gravity of what had happened. A tremor ran through her, as if she had just walked through the gates of hell and back. She ordered the crew to clean the deck and push the corpses into the sea. Extending her spiritual sense, she detected Yang Kai refining the Xuan Yun Pavilion's tower ship and decided not to disturb him. Instead, she pulled Liu Xianyun aside and asked in a low voice, "Your Senior Brother—what exactly is going on with him?"
Without Yang Kai, they probably wouldn't have encountered this situation in the first place. But at the same time, without Yang Kai, they would have certainly walked away with nothing—all their spoils would have been seized by Yang Leshui.
So Ling Yinqin was genuinely grateful to Yang Kai. But what utterly baffled her was how he could unleash such terrifying combat power. Over thirty cultivators from Xuan Yun Pavilion—nearly all of them wiped out by his hand alone.
Such an unbelievable feat—only someone in the Emperor Realm could accomplish it, surely?
If such overwhelming power were ever turned against her and the others, who on this ship could possibly stand against it?