In the blink of an eye, Yang Kai returned to Wuhua Palace, but the scene that greeted his eyes made his own twitch involuntarily. The sect-protecting grand formation of Wuhua Palace had already been activated — a translucent barrier of light hung overhead like an inverted bowl, shielding the entire compound without a single gap.
Before he even reached the gate, screams reached his ears in waves. Clearly, many had already fallen victim to the massacre. His gaze snapped to a particular spot within the palace grounds, where columns of black energy surged skyward, demonic aura billowing in thick clusters.
Yang Kai's expression changed drastically. If his memory served, the source of that demonic energy was exactly where tonight's banquet was being held. Before he'd left, hundreds of Emperor Realm cultivators and tens of thousands of the Southern Region's finest disciples had been gathered there. Could they all have fallen?
No — that didn't add up. If that were truly the case, there would have been no reason for Wuhua Palace to lure him away. Hundreds of Emperor Realm cultivators, including several at the third level of the Emperor Realm — if they had all been overwhelmed and corrupted by demonic energy, there was no way he could have fought them off.
The real purpose of drawing him away was clearly that Wuhua Palace feared losing control of the situation and wanted to strike at him preemptively. His mastery of spatial abilities was no secret. If their first blow missed, they would never get another chance.
Which meant the situation, though dire, had not yet spiraled beyond recovery. Yang Kai estimated that Wen Zishan and the others had probably not fallen so easily to the demonic corruption — perhaps they were even now inside Wuhua Palace, fighting back.
His figure flickered and came to a halt before the grand formation. One sweeping glance, and his eyes nearly burst with rage. Within Wuhua Palace, countless warriors were scrambling to flee — they too had sensed something was wrong and were desperate to escape this vortex of carnage. But the sect-protecting formation blocked every path. Not a single one had made it out. Many had already been cut down by the demonic cultivators chasing them. Others, seeing escape was hopeless, hurriedly turned back to search for another way.
Screams, pleas for mercy, and anguished sobs reached his ears. People who had been alive and vibrant only moments ago had been reduced to bloody pulp in the blink of an eye. Fury roared through Yang Kai's veins. His gaze swept across the scene — and then froze, locking onto a spot several dozen zhang away.
Atop a small earthen mound lay a body. Familiar clothes. A familiar face. But a gaping hole had been punched clean through the chest, internal organs faintly visible within. Blood had soaked the mound beneath her, still wet. Her eyes were still open, her head tilted to one side, lying perfectly still. Those once-bright, radiant eyes were now dim and lifeless, all luster gone.
"Yu Zhuo…" Yang Kai's lips moved, whispering her name. No answer came.
Dead? The girl who had come to find him every few days over the past month — was she really dead? He could hardly believe his own eyes. Her clear, melodious voice still echoed in his ears. The image of her turning back to wave goodbye as she left was still vivid in his mind. He remembered how nervous she'd been bringing him freshly washed clothes as thanks, and the hint of anticipation that had shimmered in her eyes during their conversations.
He had once driven a famed horse drunk with a whip, terrified that his own fickle heart might lead a beauty astray. Yang Kai hadn't dared — hadn't wanted — to let things develop further, and so he had kept her at arm's length, treating it as a clean ending.
But that lively, vivacious figure now lay cold upon a barren mound. As if by some premonition, she had died with her eyes open, staring in this direction — staring at him, who had returned too late…
His blood turned to ice. Yang Kai averted his gaze from those empty, vacant eyes fixed unblinkingly on him. He couldn't bring himself to meet that stare. His head dropped low, bangs casting a shadow over his brow. Fists clenched until the knuckles cracked, he threw his head back and roared toward the heavens: "LEI GU!"
Dozens of li away, Lei Gu stood suspended in the void. He turned his head at the sound, a cold snort escaping his lips. "So he came back."
His eyes flashed, and he shot toward Yang Kai's position.
That furious roar had also been heard by many of the fleeing warriors. From every direction they now converged on his location, pressing against the other side of the sect-protecting formation and screaming: "Senior, please save us!"
Yang Kai swept his gaze across them, reading the terror on every face — then locked his eyes on a spot behind the crowd.
Lei Gu's massive figure materialized, hands clasped behind his back, hovering in midair with an expression of absolute indifference. His eyes had been entirely consumed by pitch-black darkness, demonic energy coiling around his body in writhing tendrils.
The instant he appeared, he gave a casual wave of his hand.
Yang Kai's pupils contracted. He barked at the warriors before him: "Run! Now!"
But there was nowhere to run. Lei Gu's cultivation had reached the third level of the Emperor Realm, and now, corrupted by demonic will, he was bloodthirsty and savage. An invisible cleaving arc swept forward and cut dozens of people clean in half. In an instant, blood flooded the ground within the sect-protecting formation. Wailing filled the air. Being sliced at the waist wouldn't kill immediately — instead it forced its victims to experience boundless terror in their final moments. Those screams and cries of anguish lent an unfathomable eeriness to the world between heaven and earth.
"You actually dared to come back!" Lei Gu regarded Yang Kai with cold contempt, sneering.
"So it really was you pulling the strings." Yang Kai's teeth ground together.
Lei Gu scoffed. "And what if it was? What can you do to me?"
Yang Kai glanced at the sect-protecting formation blocking his path. Boundless rage and guilt pressed down on him — and then, suddenly, he grew calm. "You think a single formation can hold me?"
Lei Gu replied, "Why don't you try and find out?"
Yang Kai pointed a finger at him. "I swear on my life — if I don't destroy Wuhua Palace, I'm no man!"
At that moment, a long shout rang out from within: "Yang Kai! Wuhua Palace has fallen to a demonic den! Go and summon reinforcements — quickly!"
Yang Kai started. He recognized that voice — Wen Zishan. There was no time to deal with Lei Gu. He shouted back at the top of his lungs: "Palace Master, how are things inside?!"
"We can hold a while longer! Hurry to the Star God Palace!"