Ambushing a Domain Lord was no small risk, but success would deal a devastating blow to the high-end forces of the Ink Clan across this entire warzone. The rewards were too great to ignore.
Speed was the key to victory. Yang Kai had no time to seek out additional help, and for something like this, fewer people meant fewer complications.
Several days later, mostly recovered, Yang Kai and Bai Yi shot into the sky. Under her lead, they streaked toward a specific direction.
The delay of several days couldn't be helped, but it wouldn't affect the larger situation. The Zhufeng Domain Lord had been severely wounded by Xu Boliang — injuries that clearly struck at his very foundation. He would need a great deal of time to recuperate, and a mere handful of days would accomplish little.
As they traveled, the two discussed their plan en route, going over every detail with painstaking caution. They eventually settled on a rough scheme. Of course, once they actually put it into action, there would inevitably be unforeseen variables, but that would come down to their ability to adapt on the fly.
For Yang Kai, agreeing to take this risk with Bai Yi came down to three reasons. First, the opportunity was truly rare. Second, Bai Yi had served alongside the Zhufeng Domain Lord for years and knew his habits inside and out. Third, Yang Kai himself was a master of the Space Laws — even if things went sideways, he could find an opening and escape.
A Domain Lord nursing grievous injuries shouldn't find it easy to keep him pinned down.
As Bai Yi led the way, everything went smoothly. They didn't encounter a single Ink Clan patrol.
This wasn't because the Ink Clan had withdrawn from this warzone. Rather, Bai Yi had carefully charted a course to avoid all Ink Clan forces, steering clear of any encounters.
Their target was the Zhufeng Domain Lord alone. Killing a Domain Lord would yield far greater rewards than slaughtering a bunch of expendable foot soldiers.
Yang Kai occasionally glanced over and noticed strange light flickering through Bai Yi's eyes — a clear sign that she had cultivated some extremely profound eye technique.
He had eye techniques of his own, but the two great techniques passed down from the Myriad Demons Heaven were each specialized in different ways — one excelled at piercing through illusion, the other at devastating offensive power. Neither compared to Bai Yi's technique in terms of reconnaissance and surveillance capabilities.
In comparison, each had its own strengths and weaknesses.
They flew straight ahead for a full two days. As they passed a fragment of a shattered World, Bai Yi's figure flickered and she dove toward it.
Yang Kai followed close behind.
"We're almost there," Bai Yi said.
Yang Kai nodded. "Then let's begin."
As he spoke, he took a deep breath. His Small Universe trembled violently. He grunted, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. At the same time, his aura suppressed itself layer by layer until it became utterly feeble.
If someone unfamiliar with the situation saw him in this state, they would assume he was gravely wounded. To ambush the Zhufeng Domain Lord, they had to feign weakness first — lull him into complacency.
"I'm sorry about this, Senior Brother," Bai Yi said. Her hands wove through a series of seals, and she unleashed a secret technique at Yang Kai. In the next instant, golden chains materialized around his body, binding him tight.
Yang Kai tested them with a brief struggle and found the sealing technique to be extraordinarily firm. Even with his strength, if he were truly caught by such a technique, breaking free would be extremely difficult. In the heat of battle, anyone hit by this would essentially just be waiting to die.
"Let's go." Yang Kai nodded at Bai Yi, signaling that everything was ready.
Bai Yi dipped her chin in acknowledgment, seized his arm, and rocketed skyward. The scene looked for all the world as though Bai Yi had captured Yang Kai.
According to her explanation, the Zhufeng Domain Lord had been so badly injured this time that he absolutely could not return to his own territory. If he did, his injuries would become impossible to conceal. His subordinates would lose morale, and ambitious underlings might start scheming.
Therefore, he could only be recuperating in his hidden lair. And since Bai Yi had followed him for years as one of his Ink Servants, she knew the location of that secret base down to the last detail.
What remained uncertain was whether the Zhufeng Domain Lord was actually at that lair. If he was, they could proceed with the plan. If not, they would have to abandon it entirely.
That came down to luck. Even Bai Yi couldn't guarantee her deductions were correct.
In truth, virtually every Domain Lord — and even every Lord — maintained a secret lair precisely for the purpose of having a place to recuperate when seriously wounded.
The Zhufeng Domain Lord's lair was situated within a Secret Realm.
The Ink Battlefield contained countless Secret Realms. No one knew how they came into being, but new entrance points were discovered from time to time, and both humans and the Ink Clan had reaped considerable rewards from exploring them.
Bai Yi didn't know when the Zhufeng Domain Lord had first set up his lair in this particular Secret Realm. She had once accompanied him in and out of it decades ago, which was how she knew its exact location.
Half a day later, deep in the void, Bai Yi halted abruptly.
On the surface, this stretch of void appeared entirely ordinary, but Yang Kai could just barely sense faint fluctuations in the Space Laws throughout the surrounding space.
In other words, this was where the entrance to the Secret Realm lay.
Bound as he was by Bai Yi's technique, his perception was somewhat dulled, so he couldn't pinpoint the exact location of the entrance.
Bai Yi, however, confirmed the position, then produced her longbow and lightly plucked the bowstring three times with her finger.