The Ink Battlefield's attitude toward the Ink Clan had always been singular and absolute: kill them.
This wasn't heartlessness on the part of the race—there was simply no other choice. Ink Disciples, once corrupted by the Ink Force, held only the Ink supreme in their hearts and stood firmly on the opposite side of humanity. If you didn't kill the Ink Disciples, they would kill you.
Over the countless years, the number of Ink Disciples transformed by the Ink Clan's Ink Force was beyond reckoning, and the number who had fallen at human hands was equally impossible to tally. Every single one of them had once belonged to one of the great Paradises or Blessed Lands, and every one of them had been an elite Disciple.
This was a loss for humanity. But against this reality, there was nothing anyone could do. The best they could manage was to avoid being corrupted in the first place. The price of doing so was to voluntarily sever part of one's own Small Universe, resulting in a decline in cultivation, a fall in rank, and an eternal halt on the path of martial cultivation.
Across all of humanity's strongholds, no matter what order of Open Heaven a cultivator held, at least twenty to thirty percent of the warriors there possessed incomplete Small Universes.
Those damaged Small Universes were the clearest proof of their life-or-death struggle against the Ink Clan.
And among the various human strongholds, there were now quite a few Fifth-Order Open Heaven cultivators. Where had these Fifth-Order cultivators come from? Every one of them had fallen from the Sixth Order.
Year after year, the great Paradises and Blessed Lands had always sent personnel to the Ink Battlefield at a minimum rank of the Sixth Order. They would never send Fifth-Order cultivators.
The reason was simple: when it came to fighting the Ink Clan, Fifth-Order Open Heaven cultivators were of extremely limited use.
The cream of humanity's accumulated strength across countless ages—easily eighty to ninety percent of it—was concentrated here on the Ink Battlefield. This was also the reason why, when Yang Kai had visited Langya Blessed Land, he'd felt that the overall strength there was vastly different from what he'd expected.
What he'd seen hadn't been all of Langya Blessed Land's true reserves.
Now, the existence of the Purification Light had solved a problem that had plagued humanity for ages. Naturally, everyone was overjoyed and elated.
One could imagine that once this news spread, it would be a tremendous boost to morale. Morale was something intangible and invisible, but in a war between two races, it played a massive role.
Yang Kai reminded them, "I should let all the Elders know that my ability is not without cost. As I mentioned earlier, this technique is rooted in two marks on my person, powered by the combined strength of the Radiance and Obscurity as its source. The marks were bestowed by the Radiance and Obscurity themselves, so there's no need to worry about that. However, they do consume a certain amount of resources. I have some resources on hand, but they are far from inexhaustible. So I would ask all the Elders to pass along the message: wherever corruption can still be avoided, please continue to avoid it."
Lu An nodded. "That goes without saying. After years of fighting, it's become second nature. Even if this news spreads, the people below won't let themselves be corrupted lightly."
Zhong Liang looked at Yang Kai. "Do you have anything else to add?"
Yang Kai shook his head. "No."
"Good." Zhong Liang turned to address the others. "The Ink Clan is still besieging Biluo Pass. None of you should linger here—best to return and deal with the battle."
Someone asked, "Where do you plan to station Yang Kai?"
Zhong Liang had already mentioned earlier that he would designate an area within the Pass where Yang Kai could set up and purify the Ink Force for the Disciples. The exact location naturally needed to be clarified.
Zhong Liang considered for a moment and said, "How about the central training ground? It can serve all sides equally well."
Everyone nodded. "Excellent."
With the matter settled, the group departed swiftly. Every one of them was in charge of a different defensive line—there was no way they could afford to linger here any longer. Before leaving, Lu An pulled Yang Kai aside for a few private words. He didn't say much, just told him that if he had any needs, to notify him immediately. After all, they were of the same side, and where he could offer help, he certainly would.
Lu An even left Yang Kai his contact method.
Yang Kai was deeply grateful.
After the others had gone, Zhong Liang called out to Yang Kai. "Come with me."
The two of them stepped out of the great hall, where Feng Ying was still waiting. Their figures shifted, and all three shot off in a single direction.
Moments later, they arrived above a vast training ground. They descended directly, and Zhong Liang said, "During the fighting, you'll hold your position here. There will likely be a steady stream of corrupted Disciples coming to seek your help. When that time comes, it'll be up to you."
Yang Kai cupped his fists. "Rest assured, Elder Zhong. Any corruption caused by the Ink Force—I can handle it."
Zhong Liang nodded with satisfaction, then turned to Feng Ying. "Your task from now on is to protect him. Don't let anyone hurt him. If you need more people, I'm authorizing you to mobilize personnel within the Pass!"
"Disciple obeys!" Feng Ying cupped her fists in salute.
After watching Zhong Liang depart, Yang Kai looked at Feng Ying. "I'll be troubling you from now on, Senior Feng."
Feng Ying shook her head. "It's nothing. But you—treat your injuries first. You haven't had a moment to recover after all that running around, and you'll likely be busy before long."
During the earlier battle against the Ink Clan army, Yang Kai had transformed into a giant dragon and used his own body to shield the others, taking countless blows from the Ink Clan. Once he'd made it inside the Pass, Zhong Liang had dragged him around everywhere, and he truly hadn't had time to tend to his wounds. He still looked rather worse for wear—covered in blood and filth.
The injuries weren't serious, but the energy expenditure had been considerable. Yang Kai needed some time to recover.
"That sounds good. Then I'll trouble Senior Feng to keep watch," Yang Kai nodded. He sat down cross-legged, popped a restorative spirit pill into his mouth, and began slowly refining it.
From within the Pass, he could faintly hear the sounds of combat raging beyond its walls. The occasional tremor of dispersed energy reached them as well, testament to the ferocity of the battle.
Outside, life and death hung in the balance. Here in their corner, however, Yang Kai and Feng Ying sat in perfect calm. They waited for more than half a day, and still no one came.