Ancient trees soared into the sky, their canopies piercing the clouds. Thunder roared and lightning flashed overhead, bizarre phenomena filling the heavens. The void itself fractured, as though someone had torn a gaping rift in the fabric of space.
An aura of extreme danger radiated from that rift, as if the end of all things was at hand.
A demon commander with twin horns growing from his head crouched beneath a tree, trembling as he gazed upward.
Crack — a peal of thunder split the air, deafening in its intensity. The demon commander was so terrified that he plopped down on his rear, his face draining of color.
The sky full of wind, clouds, and lightning suddenly contracted, and in the blink of an eye the sky was washed clear and blue, not a cloud in sight for ten thousand li. The demon commander stared again and was startled to see that a figure had appeared in the sky at some indeterminate moment. His expression grew wary and uncertain.
This was demon territory. Few humans dared venture this deep — those who did were already dead. So he was deeply curious how this person had arrived. There had been nothing there a moment ago.
Looking more carefully, the figure seemed faintly familiar, as if he'd seen him somewhere before.
Before he could think it through, the figure's expression shifted. He closed his eyes, spread his arms wide, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth surged in a rolling torrent, converging upon his body from every direction.
Boom…
An invisible shockwave erupted, transforming into a visible ring of force that rippled outward for a hundred li in every direction. Trees swayed and rustled in its wake.
The demon commander's eyes went wide. Sensing the formidable aura radiating from that person, he hurriedly held his breath, quieted his presence, and began to retreat. He was nothing more than a demon commander — equivalent to a Dao Source Realm human at best. The human who had just appeared was an Emperor Realm expert, and judging by what had just happened, he'd apparently broken through as well. Whether it was the second or third layer of the Emperor Realm, he couldn't tell, but either way a mere demon commander was no match at all.
He needed to report this to the Great King immediately and let him decide what to do.
Though he couldn't understand one thing — why would this person come all the way out here to break through? Was he looking for death? The Emperor Realm was nothing to scoff at, but plenty of Great Kings in this region far surpassed it. Bump into the wrong one and he'd have your liver served up as a side dish for wine.
High above, Yang Kai felt refreshed and invigorated, sensing long-lost power coursing through his body. A mere lift of his hand or foot carried the force to move mountains and drain seas. Unable to contain his excitement, he let out a long, piercing howl.
Over ten years back in the Star Domain had nearly suffocated him. At first, to avoid the rejection of the world's laws, he'd had to seal his own cultivation. Later, even after becoming the lord of the Star Domain, he hadn't dared wield his power freely, afraid of causing some catastrophic damage.
Now, at last, those shackles were removed, and he could feel once more what it meant to taste freedom.
And just as he'd expected, his accumulation at the first layer of the Emperor Realm had been more than sufficient. The moment he'd returned to the Star Boundary, his strength had naturally broken through to the second layer. The rise in his realm and the surge in power filled him with a soaring sense of liberation — the sky was vast enough for birds to fly, and the ocean deep enough for fish to leap.
His howl gradually faded, and Yang Kai swept his divine sense outward, probing his surroundings.
Though he was certain he'd returned to the Star Boundary, the first thing he needed to establish was where exactly he was.
After bringing Su Yan back from Ice Soul Star, he'd spent half a year on the Dark Star. Once everything was in order, he'd moved everyone into the Small Mystic World and torn through the void to return to the Star Boundary.
The journey itself had been relatively smooth. With his abilities as lord of the Star Domain, finding a passage to the Star Boundary hadn't been difficult. He'd even left the passage open — in the future, anyone from the Heng Luo Star Domain powerful enough could use it to enter the Star Boundary.
In doing so, he'd effectively reconnected the Heng Luo Star Domain with the Star Boundary. Those in the Heng Luo Star Domain who attained sufficient strength would no longer be doomed to waste their years with nowhere to go.
Before him stretched nothing but colossal ancient trees, so massive that a dozen men linking arms couldn't encircle a single trunk. The landscape looked faintly familiar, and the surrounding environment exuded an aura of primeval wilderness. Yang Kai raised an eyebrow, wondering if it was possible — could he have arrived at that place?
When departing from the Star Domain for the Star Boundary, he hadn't been able to pinpoint his exact destination. The star passage he'd reopened with tremendous effort only connected to a rough area.
A hundred li away, a demon commander was sprinting through the trees, hurrying urgently toward some destination.
Yang Kai shifted, and in the next instant he was standing directly in the demon commander's path.
The horned demon commander skidded to a halt, his face alarmed as he eyed Yang Kai warily.
"Is this the Barbarian Wastes?" Yang Kai asked, studying him.
The demon commander couldn't tell what Yang Kai's intentions were, but knowing he was no match, he cooperated reasonably well. "That's right!" he answered. Internally, he found it bizarre — if this guy had come here, didn't he already know this was the Barbarian Wastes? Humans really were all witless creatures.
"Good," Yang Kai said with a grin. "Which Sacred Master do you serve under?"
The demon commander blinked in surprise. "You know the Sacred Masters?"
"Cut the chatter. Are you asking the questions, or am I?" Yang Kai reached out and flicked one of the long horns on the demon's head.