Even though the Yellow Springs Sect disciples were none too happy about being ordered around by Ling'er, matters had already progressed to this point—they had no way to back out now.
Besides, they had come here specifically to kill Yang Kai.
"Go!" Yin Lesheng suddenly swept his hand forward and bellowed.
Swish swish swish…
Those twenty-something Yellow Springs Sect disciples shot out in unison, their figures flickering as they swiftly surrounded Yang Kai in a tight encirclement. Their positioning was clearly well-coordinated—above and below, left and right, front and back—leaving Yang Kai absolutely no avenue of escape.
Yin Lesheng watched with tense vigilance, terrified that Yang Kai would use his Spatial Divine Ability to flee at this critical moment.
If Yang Kai sensed danger and slipped away, then all their efforts would have been for nothing. The grand formation wasn't set up yet, the space wasn't sealed—they'd have no way to kill or capture him whatsoever.
But to his delight, Yang Kai seemed to have grown arrogant, paying no heed whatsoever to the twenty-odd Yellow Springs Sect disciples, simply standing there in silence.
Serves you right for being so full of yourself! Did you really think that once you advanced to the Emperor Realm and had a Spatial Divine Ability at your side, you were invincible? Today, I'll show you that there are always people better than you, and skies beyond the sky.
Yin Lesheng gloated inwardly while keeping his expression perfectly neutral, his spiritual sense locked firmly onto Yang Kai.
In the blink of an eye, those twenty-something Yellow Springs Sect disciples had all settled into their designated positions.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh…
After a string of sounds, the twenty-plus disciples simultaneously summoned their Artifacts. These Artifacts were all identical, as though forged by the same hand—each one a massive black banner that billowed in the wind, producing a snapping sound and radiating an intensely cold, sinister aura.
These banners were exactly the same as the Yellow Springs Purgatory Banner Yang Kai had previously obtained from Zhong Zhenyong in the Shattered Star Sea. They were clearly the same type of Artifact, apparently a favorite among the Yellow Springs Sect disciples.
However, the power fluctuating from these disciples' Yellow Springs Purgatory Banners seemed weaker than Zhong Zhenyong's, suggesting they hadn't yet fully refined them.
Men in position, banners deployed—all was ready, save the final spark!
The corner of Yin Lesheng's mouth curled upward in a sinister smile as he shouted once more, "Form the formation!"
Those twenty-plus Yellow Springs Sect disciples all murmured in unison, their hands weaving spiritual seals in a blur. In an instant, an extremely subtle connection seemed to emerge among the twenty of them—an invisible layer of binding force linking them all together, sealing heaven and earth. From the Yellow Springs Purgatory Banners, wisps of dark mist began to seep out and spread toward the center.
"A formation?" Yang Kai seemed to startle, his face showing a hint of panic as he cried out in alarm, "What formation?"
Yin Lesheng threw his head back and laughed, his voice booming with arrogance: "Naturally, one that will take your life!"
At this point, there was no need to worry any longer. The Heavenly Net Sealing Formation was already in place, and space was locked down. Even though Yang Kai was well-versed in the power of space, there was no way he could escape this expanse of heaven and earth—unless he had the ability to break the formation itself.
But could a first-level Emperor Realm cultivator possibly break a Heavenly Net Sealing Formation set up by over twenty Dao Source Realm disciples using their Yellow Springs Purgatory Banners?
Even a third-level Emperor Realm cultivator would be trapped for a time.
Yang Kai looked utterly horrified, his face pale as he stared at Yin Lesheng. Gulping, he said, "Brother Yin, what grudge or grievance could I possibly bear against you, for you to treat me like this? In the Shattered Star Sea, I actually let you go—do you have no regard for our old connection at all?"
Yin Lesheng felt a surge of pleasure and scoffed coldly: "Let me go? Don't put it so nobly. If it hadn't happened that I had the intelligence you wanted, would you have let me go? What old connection do I have with you, Yang Kai? Enough nonsense. Today, this place is where you'll be buried."
Yang Kai clutched his chest in anguish: "Brother Yin, so you're absolutely determined to kill me?"
Yin Lesheng tilted his head back slightly, his cold laughter unceasing: "What? At this point, you still want to live?"
Yang Kai forced a grin: "If I can live, who wants to die? Brother Yin, why don't you let me go today, and another day I'll come to your door to properly express my gratitude?"
"Do you take me for a three-year-old? You actually have the nerve to say that?"
Yang Kai sighed helplessly: "It seems Brother Yin has made up his mind to kill me. Nothing I say will make a difference, then?"
Yin Lesheng roared: "Even if your tongue were made of lotus blossoms, no one would listen."
Yang Kai couldn't help but sigh. He raised both hands to his temples, smoothed his hair back, and adopted a look of mournful resignation: "Brother Yin, I have one more request!"
"Hmph, what else could you possibly want to say?" A cold smile hung on Yin Lesheng's face, and he was utterly delighted inside. For some reason, seeing Yang Kai in this desperate, cornered state made him feel as though he had just ravished dozens of young maidens—his elation was almost unbearable.
"Please let me die in this most handsome pose!" Yang Kai turned his face to the side, gazing up at the sky at an angle, hands clasped behind his back, looking so dashing he practically glittered.
Ling'er's mouth twitched repeatedly as she whispered to Elder Fu: "This man really is ridiculously vain."
Elder Fu had absolutely no idea what to say.
But Yin Lesheng suddenly furrowed his brow and bellowed: "You've been playing me!"
In that instant, he abruptly realized that Yang Kai had been spouting all this nonsense not out of fear, nor out of some last-words-of-the-dying sense of goodwill—he had clearly just been toying with him all along.
Yang Kai burst into hearty laughter: "Just having a bit of fun, Brother Yin—why take it so seriously? Surely you didn't actually think I was afraid of you?"
His expression was full of mischievous mockery, and Yin Lesheng was so furious he nearly spat blood.
As the words fell, the laws of space surged, and Yang Kai's figure suddenly blurred.