Although Li Luoshui had fled, the battle hadn't been without its gains. At the very least, his fight with her had given Yang Kai a clear understanding of where his current limits lay.
Against a Seventh-Order cultivator — even one who had just recently advanced to that rank — he still had a considerable gap to bridge. After all, when facing Li Luoshui, he'd had to team up with six other Sixth-Order cultivators just to barely hold his own. Each of her ferocious attacks carried a terrifying force that sent his blood roiling and his mind trembling upon every impact.
And after Li Luoshui had activated the Green Void Body Infusion Art, in terms of raw strength alone, she absolutely had the power to kill every last one of them.
It was only the backlash of the forbidden technique that forced Li Luoshui to retreat. Otherwise, the entire group would have suffered devastating casualties.
Yang Kai felt a lingering sense of dread. Things really had unfolded just as the Boss Lady had warned — even a second-rate power like Golden Rainbow Province, which had been in decline for untold years, could still hide formidable strength within its ranks.
The Senluo Altar had been like that, and Golden Rainbow Province was no different. What about the other powers? He couldn't probe them all, but he was certain that any number of old monsters lurked undetected within those forces.
If he ever encountered a situation like this again in the future, he'd need to be far more careful. He couldn't afford to capsize in a ditch.
……
On Void Land's highest spirit peak, within a grand palace, dozens of disciples sat cross-legged, each with a silver platter before them. The platters shimmered with rippling light, reflecting images of the surrounding boundless void.
The Void Reflection Art wasn't exactly a profound secret technique, but it was an excellent means of monitoring the surrounding area. Golden Rainbow Province had used it previously to detect Yang Kai and his companions' arrival well in advance, allowing them to prepare their defenses.
After Void Land had undergone rapid expansion and growth, it had gradually stabilized. Having once suffered at the hands of the Hundred Sect Alliance's invasion, Bian Yuqing had overseen the construction of this Celestial Monitoring Hall. Its primary purpose was to guard against powerful enemies, enabling early detection of any approaching threats.
At all hours, dozens of disciples were stationed inside the Celestial Monitoring Hall, monitoring movements in every direction to ward off any troublemakers. Should anything abnormal be detected, they could immediately relay a message to the Elder Hall.
And at this moment, the hall was guarded not only by those dozens of disciples, but also by Yue He, a Sixth-Order Open Heaven cultivator.
In Broken Sky, Yang Kai had advanced to Fifth-Order Open Heaven and ventured alone deep into the Shadowless Grotto-heaven. Once its entrance had closed, neither Yue He nor Old Bai could have followed him inside even if they'd wanted to.
Left with no other option, the two had returned to Void Land.
From the moment she'd come back, Yue He had remained in the Celestial Monitoring Hall without leaving, waiting to be the first to receive word of Yang Kai's return.
She'd been on edge the entire time — the Shadowless Grotto-heaven had a fearsome reputation, after all. It was a cosmos grotto-heaven from which one could enter but never leave. Even with Yang Kai's mastery of the spatial laws, whether he could escape was anyone's guess.
But that anxiety had vanished over half a year ago, when a piece of news reached Void Land's Star Market, confirming that Yang Kai was safe and sound and had already returned.
Also stationed in the Celestial Monitoring Hall alongside Yue He was Old Bai.
At one point, a disciple responsible for monitoring a particular direction suddenly rubbed his eyes, leaned closer to examine his silver platter, and called out in a low voice, "He's here! A tower ship is approaching!"
With two quick swishes, Yue He and Old Bai materialized behind the disciple, straining their eyes to gaze at the platter. Sure enough, the reflection showed a tower ship heading straight toward Void Land.
Void Land and the Star Market were situated close to one another, practically neighbors. Under normal circumstances, even if outsiders came, they'd be headed for the Star Market. Only their own people would fly directly toward Void Land's main stronghold.
And since no one from Void Land had been away recently, the arrival of a tower ship made it overwhelmingly likely that this was Yang Kai's return.
Yue He's hands moved through a series of seals, sending a stream of light into the silver platter. Instantly, the image within zoomed in rapidly, and before long, the scene on the tower ship's deck came into sharp focus.
There, standing on that deck, was a familiar figure. Yue He let out a soft gasp, her hand flying to her crimson lips.
Old Bai's spirits surged. "He's really back!"
Before his words had even faded, Yue He was already running out, hiking up her skirts as she went. Old Bai followed close behind. Moments later, two streaks of light shot skyward, and the great array rumbled to life, splitting open a gap.
The array's roar drew Bian Yuqing out from her office, where she'd been handling administrative matters. She looked up and saw Yue He and Old Bai speeding away. Her mind stirred, and she immediately sent a message to the Celestial Monitoring Hall.
The reply came swiftly: the Sect Master had returned.
Bian Yuqing let out a long, deep breath, her heaving chest rising and falling as the weight of a great stone finally lifted from her heart. Void Land had been founded by Yang Kai single-handedly. Its membership wasn't overly complex — it primarily came from two sources. The first was the martial artists native to the Star Realm, numbering over six hundred thousand, all of whom Yang Kai had brought back during his last visit. Though numerous, their strength was low — not a single one had yet reached the Open Heaven Realm.
The second group comprised the residents of Dingfeng City from the Blood Demon Grotto-heaven. Far fewer in number — only a few thousand — they nonetheless accounted for almost every Open Heaven cultivator in all of Void Land.
But regardless of which group, the linchpin that held everything together was Yang Kai. If anything had happened to him, Bian Yuqing truly didn't know where Void Land would have gone from here.
Thankfully, the Sect Master had finally returned safe and sound.