It wasn't until Yang Kai had stored the Sea-Cleaving Shuttle into his spatial ring that he finally stood up.
Liu Yan and Hua Qingsi had been waiting for quite some time. Yang Kai didn't bother asking about Sander's fate. The two women, accompanied by a Heavenly Puppet, had been the ones to hunt him down — if they'd somehow let him escape, that would have been the joke of the century.
In truth, Liu Yan and Hua Qingsi had needed only half a cup of tea's worth of time to finish Sander off. The remaining time, the two women had used to scout the small island, taking everything of even marginal value.
After recalling Liu Yan and Hua Qingsi into the Mysterious World Bead, Yang Kai left the underground chamber, summoned his wooden boat, and flew straight toward Heaven reach Island.
Anyone else in the Desolate Void Secret Realm wouldn't dare do something like this — flying burned through Source Energy at a tremendous rate, and replenishing it was exceedingly troublesome. So every warrior who ventured out to sea relied on tower ships. Tower ships moved at a respectable speed and conserved Source Energy.
Yang Kai had no such concerns. He had a near-limitless supply of Source Crystals, and the Mysterious World Bead to boot. Even if his Source Energy ran dry, all he had to do was retreat into the Bead and cultivate for a while to recover.
Now that the Sea-Cleaving Shuttle was in hand, his only option for learning the exit location was to seek out either the Ice Heart Pavilion Master or the Heaven reach Island Master. He'd rather not deal with the Heaven reach Island Master if he could help it. The Ice Heart Pavilion Master, on the other hand — there might be a chance. Yang Kai felt a small measure of relief; thank heavens he'd visited the Ice Heart Pavilion before coming to this island and applied as their alchemist. He now had a foothold, of sorts. Though the Ice Heart Pavilion Master was a third-order Emperor Realm powerhouse, and wasn't someone he could simply demand a meeting with. Even if he did meet her, cooperating with such a powerful figure to leave this place would require the utmost caution.
The journey was uneventful. In just three days, Yang Kai arrived back at the docks of Heaven reach Island.
Quite a few warriors on the dock noticed him flying in all by himself and couldn't help but stare in quiet astonishment. They had no idea what he'd encountered out at sea — he'd come back without a tower ship and without his companions.
Yang Kai ignored the curious looks and walked straight into Heaven reach City.
When he reached the cave dwelling he'd rented, Yang Kai produced his token and dispelled the restrictions. The moment his foot crossed the threshold, his body tensed instinctively. Something felt wrong. He struck out palm-first into the void, Source Energy surging violently through his meridians.
BOOM—
A deafening roar shook the cave dwelling, sending it shuddering several times. The glow of every restriction flared wildly in succession.
Under the assault of a tremendous force, Yang Kai was sent flying backward like a ragdoll. A mouthful of blood sprayed from his lips mid-air before he crashed heavily to the ground.
Emperor Realm!
Horror flickered through Yang Kai's eyes. He had never imagined that an Emperor Realm cultivator would be lying in ambush inside his own cave dwelling. The opponent was only a first-order Emperor Realm, and this strike hadn't even been delivered at full power — but Yang Kai had been caught completely off guard, and he'd paid a steep price for it.
He scrambled to his feet, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and glared furiously to the side.
There, a man stared back with a look of utter disbelief, seemingly having never expected his ambush to fail to subdue Yang Kai on the spot. Worse, Yang Kai had managed to slip free in the counterattack. For some reason, the man's face was rather pale — it was clear he'd already suffered a serious injury before this.
"Pang Guang!" The instant he recognized the man's face, Yang Kai's teeth clenched and he snarled through gritted teeth.
The one who'd been hiding in his cave dwelling to ambush him was none other than the City Lord of Gao City, Pang Guang — the very same person who had entered the secret realm alongside him!
Some days ago, before Yang Kai had left Heaven reach City, he'd run into Pang Guang on the street by pure chance. At the time, the two had simply passed each other without a word. He never would have guessed they'd cross paths again under circumstances like these.
His gaze shifted to the side, and Yang Kai's expression darkened. A thick killing intent churned and festered in his heart.
Because at this very moment, Pang Guang had one hand clamped over Liu Qianyun's head, a restrained force humming from his palm, ready to end her life at any instant!
How Pang Guang had ended up here, and how he'd managed to seize Liu Qianyun as a hostage, Yang Kai had no idea. But the situation left him in a agonizing bind.
Liu Qianyun's life was held in the balance. Her slender body trembled, her beautiful face drained of all color. Seeing Yang Kai wounded, she couldn't help but cry out, "Senior Brother…" Her lovely eyes brimmed with concern and fear, along with a deep sense of guilt and self-blame.
When Yang Kai had left Heaven reach City some days ago, he'd asked her whether she wanted to come along. Liu Qianyun had chosen to stay behind. Now she could see that decision had been a mistake. If she'd gone with Yang Kai, she wouldn't have been taken hostage to threaten him.
Two days ago, she'd simply stepped out for a brief errand — not even far, just a trip to the cave dwelling where Ling Yiqin and the others stayed to get her bearings. She'd figured that since they'd all be neighbors from now on, it would be good to visit more often.
On her way back, she'd been spotted by Pang Guang. The moment she entered the cave dwelling, she'd been subdued.
"I'm fine!" Yang Kai spat a mouthful of blood defiantly and looked at Liu Qianyun. "He didn't hurt you, did he?"
Liu Qianyun shook her head slowly. "No. He's been waiting for you to come back."
Yang Kai felt a measure of relief, but his gaze turned glacial as it settled on Pang Guang. He spoke in a low voice: "City Lord Pang, isn't this rather dishonorable of you?"