"That's exactly what I wanted to ask you," Yang Kai said with a cold snort.
Looking more closely, he realized that Black Crow Divine Lord's Yuan Qi had been severely depleted. His entire body was streaked with blood, as though he had endured tremendous pressure not long ago.
So even though this fellow knew the workings of that Void Formation, escaping from it must have cost him no small amount of effort. After all, he had seized Zhou Yi's body, and Zhou Yi had only been a Disciple of the Great Thousand Blood Lands, condensing fifth-grade power — quite a gap compared to Yang Kai. The injuries covering his body must all have been sustained while passing through the Void Formation.
A thought struck him, and Yang Kai's expression steadied. What was there to fear from this man? Within the Blood Demon Divine Palace, he was bound by the Blood Oath he had sworn. As long as Yang Kai didn't provoke him, Black Crow could never make a move against him. He flipped his wrist and put away the Divine Ability Pearl the proprietress had given him, then said in a cold voice, "Black Crow, where are the others?"
Black Crow Divine Lord chuckled. "You already know the answer. They're wherever you came from, naturally."
So that was it! Yang Kai had suspected that everyone who entered through the gates of the Blood Demon Divine Palace would fall into that white void. Now, with Black Crow's confirmation, he realized his guess had been right.
This realization made his teeth itch with fury. That Void Formation was utterly bizarre and fraught with danger — falling into it could easily cost someone their life.
In truth, everyone had been played by Black Crow. They had expended their effort for nothing, helping him open the Blood Demon Divine Palace only to be trapped in the Void Formation.
Yang Kai wished nothing more than to summon the Azure Dragon Spear and run this bastard through.
"I must say, I'm genuinely surprised you managed to escape in such a short time. Truly extraordinary." Black Crow Divine Lord gazed at Yang Kai with admiration. He had been able to reach this place because he understood the workings of the Void Formation, but Yang Kai had clearly been completely ignorant of it — and yet he had still made it here. That aptitude and comprehension was nothing short of terrifying.
Yang Kai ground his teeth. "All I want to know right now is how to get them out."
Black Crow Divine Lord grinned. "You want to save them? Simple — just refine the Blood Demon Divine Palace. Once you've refined it, forget about rescuing a few people; even seizing control of the entire Blood Demon Cave Heaven wouldn't be difficult."
Yang Kai's body jolted. "So that's your aim — to seize the Blood Demon Cave Heaven?" From the way the old dog kept talking, it was clear he intended to refine the Blood Demon Divine Palace and claim dominion over the entire Blood Demon Cave Heaven.
How could Yang Kai tolerate that? If Black Crow Divine Lord succeeded, every living being in the Blood Demon Cave Heaven would be under his control!
"What else did you think I went to all this trouble for?" Black Crow looked Yang Kai up and down and said in a low voice, "Young man, you're a prodigy of considerable talent. Given time, your achievements will be limitless. If you're willing to submit to me, a share of the Blood Demon Cave Heaven will be yours. What do you say?"
"Sure!" Yang Kai agreed readily. "Just tell me how to refine the Blood Demon Divine Palace first."
Black Crow sneered. "The opportunity is right in front of you, and you don't even know how to seize it. Short-sighted fool — you'll meet a miserable end sooner or later!" With that, his figure surged and transformed into a cloud of blood, shooting straight toward the rear of the hall.
Yang Kai bellowed, "Where do you think you're going!"
He could no longer worry about the Blood Oath. He immediately activated the Laws of Space, attempting to lock down this stretch of heaven and earth. But the blood cloud suddenly burst apart, splitting into dozens of streams that shot off in every direction.
Though Yang Kai managed to immobilize most of the blood light, a few slipped through.
Whoosh… Those streams of blood light dissolved into pools of blood that flowed across the hall floor, but Black Crow Divine Lord himself had vanished without a trace.
Yang Kai clenched his jaw, knowing that Black Crow hadn't fled out of fear of him. The old dog was in a rush to refine the Blood Demon Divine Palace and had no interest in wasting time on a fight. How could Yang Kai let that happen? He immediately gave chase.
Right now, the only two beings capable of moving freely within the entire Blood Demon Divine Palace were Black Crow Divine Lord and himself. If he couldn't stop him, the moment Black Crow finished refining the palace and took complete control of the Blood Demon Cave Heaven, everyone would be enslaved — their lives worse than death.
But Yang Kai had no idea which direction Black Crow had fled. The hall branched off in every direction, with corridors leading every which way. He could only pick one and hope for the best.
Bursting out of the hall, Yang Kai found himself before a long corridor lined with rooms on either side.
Frowning slightly, he approached one of the rooms and probed it with his spiritual sense. Confirming that no danger lurked within, he pushed the door open.
What he saw made him pause. This appeared to be a woman's boudoir — he couldn't tell whose. Everything inside bore the unmistakable air of a lady's private chambers. But after so much time had passed, everything within had long since rotted away. The gentle draft from his opening the door stirred the air, and many of the objects crumbled instantly into dust, sending motes swirling.
Yang Kai swept his gaze around, confirmed that nothing of value remained, and saw no sign of Black Crow Divine Lord. He immediately withdrew.
He pushed open another door and found it much the same as the first.
Room after room yielded nothing. They all seemed to be women's boudoirs. Yang Kai silently surmised that this must have been the harem quarters of the Blood Demon Divine Lord during his lifetime.