The Eastern Sea harbored two islands — Dragon Island and Spirit Beast Island — both shrouded in mystery and impossible to find. Ordinary people, even if they spent a lifetime wandering the open seas, would never catch so much as a glimpse of either.
The world at large believed these two terrifying powers to be nothing more than islands, but Yang Kai knew that Dragon Island was in fact a small world, its entrance concealed beneath the ocean's surface. The last time he had visited, had it not been for Li Jiao leading the way, he probably would never have found the path.
His previous trip to Dragon Island had been fraught with peril, and Yang Kai had no idea what kind of reception awaited him upon a second visit. There was a good chance he'd be treated as an enemy, so he needed to make a stop at Spirit Beast Island first.
What left him somewhat exasperated was that after passing through several towns and making inquiries everywhere, not a single person knew where Spirit Beast Island actually was.
He journeyed eastward all the way to the coast, yet came up empty-handed.
There was a city along the shoreline, a grand fortress defending the vast frontier, its towering walls magnificent to behold. Warriors streamed in and out without cease, their flow as dense as a weaving shuttle.
Inside a wine house in the city, Yang Kai sat alone by a window on the third floor, drinking to himself. He couldn't help but feel troubled — he had no idea who he could turn to for information about Spirit Beast Island.
Suddenly, a fragrant breeze drifted over, and someone took a seat across from him.
Yang Kai furrowed his brow and turned to look. A smiling face filled his vision — blossoming like a flower, skin fair as snow, with exceptional beauty. It was a stunningly attractive woman dressed in blue garments that accentuated her graceful, slender figure, her full bosom heaving gently.
Their eyes met, and Yang Kai's gaze brightened. He broke into a smile. "You are…"
"Brother Yang, you really are a difficult man to find," the woman across from him said with a soft smile.
"Lan He!" Yang Kai finally recalled her name. A sudden surge of delight washed over him — the joy of meeting an old acquaintance in a strange land. "What are you doing here?"
The words had barely left his mouth before he smacked his own forehead in chagrin. "Right, you're originally from the Eastern Domain."
Lan He — had she not appeared before him so suddenly, Yang Kai might have almost forgotten about this woman. He didn't know many people in the Eastern Domain. Over the years, he had primarily operated in the Southern and Northern Domains, only crossing paths with the young prodigies of other regions during his time in the Shattered Star Sea.
He had met Lan He in the Shattered Star Sea as well. She hailed from the Heavenly Wolf Valley in the Eastern Domain. Back then, she had received some help from Yang Kai in the Shattered Star Sea, and the two had been swept together into a spatial rift. It was Yang Kai who had gotten her out — otherwise, with her cultivation level at the time, she would have been hopelessly lost within the rift forever. Later, Yang Kai had even asked her to help look into the whereabouts of another woman, and if possible, to lend her some assistance.
That woman was called Ling Yinqin, someone who had emerged from the Desolate Void Sea secret realm alongside Yang Kai.
The Desolate Void Sea secret realm was precisely the godforsaken place where Bing Yun had been trapped for years. Ling Yinqin had met a man in that realm — they had come to know each other, fallen in love, and stayed together. Tragically, her husband had perished in an accident. That man had hailed from the Heavenly Wolf Valley in the Eastern Domain — the same faction as Lan He. After escaping the Desolate Void Sea, Ling Yinqin had not accompanied Yang Kai and Bing Yun, but instead set off for the Heavenly Wolf Valley, determined to lay her husband's ashes to rest.
Those events felt like they had occurred a lifetime ago. Many of the details had grown hazy in Yang Kai's mind, but that Big Sister Ling Yinqin had been a warm-hearted soul. The first person Yang Kai and Liu Xianyun had encountered after being swept into the Desolate Void Sea secret realm was Ling Yinqin. Back then, she had gifted him an advanced Spirit Purification Formation — an extraordinarily generous gesture for someone of her means at the time.
After leaving the Desolate Void Sea, Yang Kai had never seen Ling Yinqin again. They lived too far apart. When he later encountered Lan He — who came from the Heavenly Wolf Valley — in the Shattered Star Sea, he had casually asked her to keep an eye out. Whether Ling Yinqin had actually made it to the Heavenly Wolf Valley, he still didn't know.
Yang Kai certainly hadn't expected that in such a vast world, he would have the chance to run into Lan He again. He smiled faintly. "What are the chances — running into an old friend at the ends of the earth. Miss Lan, it's been a long time."
But Lan He slowly shook her head. "I came here specifically to find you."
"Specifically?" Yang Kai raised an eyebrow, then looked stunned. "How did you know I was in the Eastern Domain?"
Lan He replied, "I happened to overhear some news. People mentioned your name, and I heard you'd been asking about Spirit Beast Island. I figured you'd make your way to the coast, so I came here to wait. Looks like my guess was right — you really did show up."
Yang Kai blinked. "You just 'happened' to overhear some news — with my name in it? Now that's interesting. Where exactly did you hear this, Miss Lan?" There was something in Lan He's words that Yang Kai couldn't ignore. He had come to the Eastern Domain, and someone was already asking about him?
Lan He looked at him with an exasperated expression. "Do you genuinely not know, or are you pretending not to know?"
Yang Kai chuckled. "If I already knew, why would I be asking you?"
Lan He looked him up and down, then nodded. "Then let me ask you — do you know that your situation right now is extremely dangerous?"
Yang Kai looked surprised. "My situation is dangerous? What do you mean by that?"