Early the next morning, Yang Kai set out with Xu Zhen, and everyone came to see them off.
Yue He was hiding at the back of the crowd, her expression rather ugly. According to Guo Ziyan, the woman had thrown a massive tantrum the previous night, smashing everything in her room to pieces, which had scared them all so badly they didn't even dare breathe loudly.
Yang Kai looked at Guo Ziyan and said, "This trip shouldn't take too long. While I'm gone, make sure to closely supervise their Cultivation. If you need any supplies, just ask Yue He for whatever you need."
Guo Ziyan answered promptly, "Understood."
From the back, Yue He curled her lips. "Heh…"
Yang Kai glanced at her and spoke. "Yue He, if you encounter any danger that can't be fought off, you know what to do."
Yue He turned her head to the other side. "Heh heh…"
Lu Xue felt uneasy under that laugh. She stepped forward and asked, "My lord, does this servant need to accompany you?"
"No need. Stay behind and help Yue He manage Star City." Yang Kai waved his hand.
Lu Xue had no choice but to withdraw. She sneaked a glance at Yue He and saw the woman gazing back at her with a radiant smile — a smile that sent a chill down her spine. She knew that if that misunderstanding wasn't cleared up, her days ahead would be miserable indeed.
"Everyone, head back. Brother Xu, let's go." Yang Kai called to Xu Zhen and shot up into the sky.
Xu Zhen followed close behind, propelling himself upward.
Once the two had departed, the smile on Yue He's face gradually faded. With a huff, she hiked up the hem of her skirt, turned, and swept back inside. Lu Xue hurried after her, sidling up and saying, "Sister Yue He, there's something I'd like to discuss with you."
Yue He immediately broke into a sweet, graceful smile. "What a coincidence — I actually have something to talk to you about as well. Let's go to my room." As she spoke, she linked her arm through Lu Xue's with warm familiarity, chatting and laughing as they walked away together.
Behind them, Guo Ziyan and the others couldn't help but shudder.
…
The Great Ruins had no sun, moon, or stars. There was no way to tell north from south, east from west. Yang Kai had no idea which direction he was flying in as he followed Xu Zhen, hurtling through the air for three full days. During that time, they passed numerous outposts belonging to other martial artists, each one a curiosity to Yang Kai.
These outposts varied greatly in size. Some were grand and imposing, while others were hidden away with extreme care. The largest could hold tens of thousands of people, and the smallest housed only a few hundred — all struggling to survive in this bizarre environment of the Great Ruins.
There were also ruined outposts that had clearly been devastated by beast tides. Rotting corpses lay strewn about, a gruesome and pitiable sight.
When the Great Ruins first opened, an entire Star City had been swallowed whole, dragging at least several hundred thousand — perhaps a million — people inside. Now, after several years, those still alive were probably less than half the original number.
In the Star City belonging to Sword Pavilion alone, tens of thousands had perished. One could only imagine how terrifying the attrition rate had been for everyone who had entered the Great Ruins during this period.
After three days, the distant sound of crashing waves reached their ears, and a salty, briny scent carried through the air.
Yang Kai was slightly startled. "The Great Ruins has an ocean?"
Xu Zhen replied gravely, "The Great Ruins is boundlessly vast. What we know of it is merely a drop in the ocean. Would it be strange for there to be a sea here?"
A moment later, a churning ocean indeed came into view, waves battering the shores and surging dozens of zhang high, their roar immense.
Yang Kai understood — Xu Zhen had said they were heading out to seek a seventh-grade Water-attribute treasure. With the ocean brimming with the power of water, it would be perfectly natural for a seventh-grade Water-attribute treasure to be born here.
They plunged over the ocean and flew for another three hours before Xu Zhen suddenly announced, "We've arrived."
At the same moment, Yang Kai sensed several unfamiliar auras. He looked toward the source and saw a small island spanning only a few miles, with several figures scattered across its surface.
One of them stood on the beach with his hands clasped behind his back, a towering figure in black robes. He lifted his gaze to meet them, his eyes sharp as a hawk's, piercing straight to the heart.
Not far away, a young woman sat upon a rock, her head bowed over some task he couldn't discern. Her hair cascaded over her slender shoulders, hiding her face from view.
Another young man sat cross-legged on a treetop a hundred zhang behind her, silently circulating a mysterious technique. His body swayed with the wind in an unpredictable rhythm, his aura profound and enigmatic.
Yang Kai's heart tightened slightly. Though none of the three were in the Open Heaven Realm, each one gave him an unmistakable sense that they were not to be trifled with. These were the friends Xu Zhen had spoken of? He wondered which Blessed Land or Great Cave Heaven they hailed from — every one of them carried extraordinary depth.
Yang Kai and Xu Zhen landed. The black-robed youth standing with his hands behind his back spoke in a cold tone, "Fatty, you're late."
Xu Zhen grinned cheerfully. "Not late, not late — there's still more than a day before the deadline." He paused, then added, "Oh, and one more thing, Brother Lin Feng — stop calling me Fatty. I might just get offended, you know."
Even as he said this, he kept grinning, without the slightest trace of anger. Lin Feng gave a cold snort and turned his gaze to Yang Kai, tilting his chin upward. "You made us wait all this time for this guy? Which Blessed Land or Great Cave Heaven is he from? I've never seen him before."
Xu Zhen replied, "That, I actually never asked." He turned to look at Yang Kai. "Brother Yang, where are you from?"
Yang Kai chuckled. "Neither a Blessed Land nor a Great Cave Heaven. A nobody from the grass roots — nothing worth mentioning."
Xu Zhen stared, taken aback.