The tower ship sailed swiftly across the open sea, heading deeper into the unknown. Liu Xianyun and the others stood on the deck, gazing out at the horizon, every face etched with worry.
Suddenly, Ling Yinqin seemed to sense something. Her beautiful eyes brightened for an instant as she pointed in one direction. "Someone's coming."
At her words, Liu Xianyun, Fan Xin, and the rest perked up, looking toward where she pointed. Sure enough, a streak of light was hurtling toward them at tremendous speed.
"Prepare for the worst—be ready to fight at any moment!" Ling Yinqin called out sharply. At her command, everyone's expressions turned grim as they secretly circulated their Origin Force.
If the newcomer was Yang Kai, that would be the best possible outcome. But if it was Pang Guang, they would have to fight to the death.
Moments later, the light arrived not far from the ship. Liu Xianyun cried out in delight, "It's Senior Brother! It's Senior Brother!"
She had made out the figure concealed within the radiance—it was Yang Kai. A massive weight finally lifted from her heart, and she felt her entire body go light with relief.
When Yang Kai landed on the deck, everyone rushed forward with joyful faces, bombarding him with questions about whether he was hurt. Liu Xianyun in particular looked him over from head to toe, terrified that he might be missing an arm or a leg.
But after a thorough inspection, the group realized that not only was Yang Kai completely unharmed—he actually looked vibrant and full of energy. They were all baffled.
After all, Yang Kai had stayed behind to confront Pang Guang. Fighting an Emperor Sovereign Realm cultivator head-on—even if he had managed to retreat unscathed, his condition shouldn't be this good, should it?
"What about that Pang Guang fellow?" Ling Yinqin asked suspiciously, her gaze darting in the direction Yang Kai had come from, half-expecting Pang Guang to burst out at any moment.
"Dead. No need to worry," Yang Kai said with a grin.
"Dead?" Ling Yinqin's eyes widened. "How did he die?"
The moment the question left her mouth, she realized how foolish it was. Yang Kai had stayed behind to deal with Pang Guang. Now Yang Kai was back and Pang Guang was dead—what other explanation could there be? Obviously Yang Kai had killed him.
The realization shook Ling Yinqin to her core.
She had seen Yang Kai fight before—cutting down Dao Source Realm cultivators of the same level as easily as slicing melons—but she never imagined he could kill an Emperor Sovereign Realm expert too. What kind of heaven-defying techniques and secret arts did he practice? What kind of artifact was he wielding to accomplish something like this?
Yang Kai said, "That fellow was already gravely injured. His strength was severely diminished, yet he still acted as though he were some great power. So, he died."
Hearing this explanation, Ling Yinqin let out an involuntary breath of relief. So Pang Guang had been injured to begin with—that explained why Yang Kai had been able to kill him. If an Emperor Sovereign Realm cultivator at full strength still couldn't defeat Yang Kai, that would simply be too inconceivable.
Even so, Ling Yinqin could not deny Yang Kai's overwhelming power. An injured Emperor Sovereign Realm cultivator was still an Emperor Sovereign Realm cultivator. The old saying went that even a starving camel was bigger than a horse—yet Yang Kai had still managed to kill one. He was, without question, the most exceptional Dao Source Realm cultivator she had ever seen in her life.
"Master Yang, where is my master?" Fan Xin asked anxiously. "Did you see how things were on her end?"
Yang Kai glanced at her and said reassuringly, "There's no need to worry about Senior Bing Yun. She will certainly be perfectly safe. Let's keep moving—Senior Bing Yun will catch up to us."
Seeing his confidence, Fan Xin and the other Ice Heart Pavilion disciples felt a measure of reassurance settle over them. Surely their master would have no trouble dealing with Chi Ri.
Before long, everyone retreated into the ship's cabin, and the vessel continued its voyage.
The next several days passed in relative calm. Occasionally, a few short-sighted sea beasts would come to harass them, but under Yang Kai's leadership, the group easily drove them off or cut them down.
By now, they had no idea how far they were from Tongtian Island. They had long since reached the deepest reaches of the Silent Void Sea.
Yet after all these days, there was still no sign of Bing Yun!
This tormented Fan Xin and the others with worry. Had something happened to their master?
Yang Kai was equally puzzled. Logically speaking, Bing Yun had already recovered to her peak condition, and she carried several of his high-grade Hundred Revolutions Emperor Origin Pills. There was simply no way she should lose to Chi Ri.
He had expected Bing Yun to make Chi Ri retreat in short order and then come rejoin them. But it seemed things were not going as he had anticipated.
Chi Ri appeared to be more formidable than he had expected!
Yang Kai already knew the location of this Secret Realm's exit from Bing Yun, so even if she didn't return, he was capable of leading this ship's passengers out. However, Bing Yun was the founding ancestor of Ice Heart Valley, and she hailed from the same star domain as he did. There were ties of fate between them, and Yang Kai was unwilling to abandon her here. Deep down, he still hoped to see her return with them and make it back to the Star Realm.
For the past several days, he had remained on the deck—partly to guard against surprise attacks from sea beasts, and partly so he could be the first to spot Bing Yun's arrival.
Five full days passed, and Yang Kai's wish remained unfulfilled.
On this particular day, he was standing on the deck, scanning the distant horizon, when Fan Xin suddenly burst out of the cabin in a rush, her face stricken with urgency.
"Master Yang!"