How could an ordinary Sixth-Order Open Heaven cultivator be this ferocious? Feng Ying had witnessed it firsthand now, and she couldn't help but suspect that Yang Kai had already reached the peak of the Sixth Order and was on the verge of breaking through to the Seventh. Otherwise, there was no way he could be this powerful.
Her thoughts were racing, but her hands never stopped. She was already charging toward the two Ink Clan that Yang Kai had gravely wounded. Her long sword swept out, its light splitting apart—one slash, one kill—cutting them down as easily as chopping melons and vegetables.
These two had already been battered half to death by Yang Kai's spear. How could they possibly withstand Feng Ying's decisive and ruthless assault?
In the blink of an eye, two Lords and six High-Order Ink Clan lay dead. Though this was the first time the two of them had fought together, they moved as if they had been partners for ages. With their seamless division of labor, there wasn't a single moment of hesitation or a gap to exploit.
It was only at this point that the five Ink Disciples finally reacted.
Seeing the Ink Clan slaughtered around them, all five flew into a fury. They instantly summoned their Artifacts and unleashed wave after wave of divine abilities and secret techniques at Yang Kai and Feng Ying.
Against them, Yang Kai and Feng Ying couldn't be quite so reckless. The whole point of this operation was to rescue them, so they naturally couldn't harm or kill any of them. They were completely restricted.
Yang Kai twisted hastily, dodging a divine ability aimed at him, then sheathed the Azure Dragon Spear and threw himself bodily at the nearest Ink Disciple.
Seeing this, Feng Ying didn't need to exchange a single word with Yang Kai. Her sword pivoted, its light cascading like a waterfall, enveloping the remaining four and pinning down their movements and attention.
Yellow and blue light blazed, quickly transforming into pure white radiance that surged toward the Ink Disciple. The white light bloomed, engulfing him entirely.
The light was immaculate and pure, without the faintest impurity. The dark taint of Ink Force was driven out from within the Ink Disciple's body, shifting his expression from agony to peace. His frantic resistance slowly ceased.
He still seemed somewhat dazed. During all the years since his corruption into an Ink Disciple, he had never lost his consciousness—he had remembered his condition and everything that had happened to him. But looking back now, the notion of regarding the Ink Clan as supremely noble seemed laughable and foolish. It was nothing less than welcoming a thief as one's father.
Yang Kai had no time to explain anything in detail. He merely gave the man a slight nod, then flickered toward Feng Ying's position.
Seeing that Yang Kai had resolved one Ink Disciple so quickly, Feng Ying immediately retracted her sword light and released another one.
Following the same procedure, the two worked in perfect tandem, one after another, and before long the Ink Force within all five Ink Disciples had been purged.
None among the five were High-Order Open Heaven cultivators. Three were Sixth-Order and two were Fifth-Order—which was the key reason Yang Kai had been able to resolve them so rapidly.
All five stared at Yang Kai with expressions of shock and disbelief, as though they were trying to find a flower blooming on his face.
Feng Ying had certainly demonstrated formidable strength before, but they had each come from different Paradigm Worlds. Their own sects were brimming with powerhouses, so a strong individual alone couldn't have made them this invested.
What truly captivated them was the method Yang Kai had just employed—turning an Ink Disciple back into a normal person. Having experienced this transformation firsthand, the five felt the power of that pure light more deeply than anyone.
The human race actually possessed such a technique now? All five felt genuinely happy from the bottom of their hearts. Since ancient times, any fellow cultivator corrupted by Ink Force had inevitably become an enemy of the human race—an implacable foe with no possibility of redemption.
But with this method, if someone were corrupted in the future, there would be no need to painfully sever them from the fold. With the chance, they could still be saved.
This was absolutely a technique that could reshape the balance of power.
Though they had many questions, they also knew this was no place for lengthy conversation. They simply clasped their fists in silence, expressing their gratitude to Yang Kai and Feng Ying.
"This is no place to linger. Everyone, enter my Small World!" Feng Ying called out, then proactively opened the gateway to her Small Universe.
She was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven cultivator. Warriors below the Seventh Order could naturally enter her Small World—unlike Yang Kai, who could only take in those below the Sixth Order.
The five nodded without hesitation and charged through the gateway into Feng Ying's Small Universe, each settling in to recover and rest.
"Let's go!" Feng Ying called, taking the lead as she shot off in a chosen direction. Yang Kai followed close behind.
If they were looking for reinforcements, then the more the merrier. Yang Kai didn't know what lay ahead, but Feng Ying had said the Ink Clan army was gathering at the front line, which meant it certainly wouldn't be easy to break through. Only by assembling enough manpower would they have a chance to carve a path through the Ink Clan army and reach the stronghold held by the human race.
Half a day later, the two employed the same stratagem once more, hiding within a mass of Ink Cloud and preparing to lie in wait.
They had barely been concealed for the time it takes an incense stick to burn when a massive group of Ink Clan swept past nearby—a tremendous number, nearly a thousand strong. The leading presence emanated a deep, profound aura, quite possibly that of a Domain Lord.
Yang Kai and Feng Ying remained perfectly still within the Ink Cloud, suppressing their auras to the absolute minimum. Against such a formidable enemy, if they were discovered, things would go very badly.
Fortunately, their luck held. Although this Ink Clan army passed right by them, it didn't bother searching the Ink Cloud's interior. For the Ink Clan, Ink Clouds were far too common to warrant a thorough search—and no one would have thought that two audacious humans were hiding within, able to withstand the Ink Cloud's corrosive erosion for an extended period.
Only after the Ink Clan army had vanished from sight did Yang Kai and Feng Ying finally allow themselves a small breath of relief.