Da Yan had only a few dozen Eighth-Order cultivators in total, and Yang Kai naturally knew every one of them. The fact that this particular one had been the first to rush to his aid only deepened his gratitude.
Even if he hadn't arrived in time.
The Eighth-Order surnamed Liu smiled and said, "You don't know what you've done?"
Yang Kai thought to himself that of course he knew—he just hadn't known immediately after throwing that punch. He'd thought he was dead for certain. Yet somehow he'd survived. What surprised him even more was what the Old Ancestor had said.
His mouth went dry. "Elder Liu, I really killed that Ninth-Order?"
Elder Liu chuckled warmly. "With a feat of arms like that, would the Old Ancestor joke? Yes, that Ninth-Order Ink Slave—killed by your punch!"
Yang Kai swallowed hard…
A single punch killed a Ninth-Order!
Never mind whether that Ninth-Order was an Ink Slave, never mind that he'd been heavily wounded beforehand—that was still a Ninth-Order!
He had actually killed a Ninth-Order?
Since coming to the Ink Battlefield, he'd slain quite a few Domain Lords, but the supreme combatants at the Royal Lord and Ninth-Order level were entirely beyond his ability to fight. Yet now, today, a Ninth-Order had actually died at his hands.
Yang Kai's mouth split into a grin. He wanted to laugh out loud, but the movement aggravated his injuries, and golden blood sprayed from his wounds.
Elder Liu glanced at the gash. "Return to Da Yan and recuperate properly. This wound of yours… is rather troublesome."
It was, after all, a strike from a Ninth-Order Open Heaven. Yang Kai's injury ran from his shoulder blade all the way down to his lower abdomen—a massive, cleaving wound with flesh curled back, revealing the golden bone beneath.
Sinister sword energy lingered around the wound, ceaselessly corroding his flesh and blood.
Even his seven-thousand-zhang ancient dragon body's regenerative ability struggled to close it.
That was only the visible damage. There were internal injuries no one could see, too. Honestly, the fact that Yang Kai had survived that strike at all was quite surprising to Elder Liu.
As they spoke, Elder Liu had already brought Yang Kai back to Da Yan. The barrier parted, and under the reverent gazes of the Da Yan soldiers, the elder settled him on the city wall with a smile. "Rest well. Watch how our human army annihilates every last one of these foul creatures."
The young man had already contributed more than enough. It was time for the older generation to hold up their end.
With that, Elder Liu vanished back into the battlefield.
Yang Kai didn't resist. In truth, he had no strength left to fight. Remaining on the battlefield would only be a burden.
Though it was a pity he couldn't see this battle through to the very end, the achievement of cutting down a Ninth-Order Ink Slave more than offset the disappointment.
Sensing the awestruck gazes directed his way from all around, the corner of Yang Kai's mouth curled upward.
Stay humble, stay humble—don't be too showy. Killing that Ninth-Order Ink Slave had been pure coincidence, not proof of any real ability on his part. Yang Kai admonished himself silently.
But… it really did feel wonderful!
In the span of a few moments, he'd more or less figured out how that Ninth-Order Ink Slave had died. The poor bastard's luck had simply run out. If he was going to flee, he should have fled—but no, he had to come looking for Yang Kai specifically. He could have stumbled upon any other Eighth-Order and perhaps scored a kill instead.
Yang Kai turned his head and smiled at the Eighth-Order sitting beside him, offering a reserved nod. "Commander Cha."
Seated next to him was none other than Cha Pu.
The Gen Ding Garrison Commander's mouth twitched at Yang Kai's expression. "If you want to laugh, just laugh. Don't hold it in and hurt yourself."
Yang Kai was basking in the monumental achievement of felling a Ninth-Order, riding high on triumph—while the Gen Ding Garrison Commander was thoroughly miserable.
There was no other reason. In this final battle, his participation had been pitifully minimal.
As a veteran Eighth-Order, he should have been sweeping across the battlefield, slaying Mo Clan by the dozen. Instead, he'd been holed up in Da Yan, healing his wounds and watching from the sidelines.
But there was nothing he could do about it. Like Yang Kai, he'd been drained of all fighting strength.
When the Eighth-Orders had unleashed their Evil-Slaying Divine Lances for the general assault, he'd launched his own lance as well—only to reap nothing. The opponent he'd been facing turned out to be that very Ninth-Order Ink Slave.
At the time, he'd only thought something was odd about the fellow; even the Evil-Slaying Divine Lance hadn't been able to touch him. He hadn't thought much of it until the man erupted with Ninth-Order aura, at which point he understood why he'd gotten that strange feeling.
Fortunately, the Ninth-Order Ink Slave's target had been Ancestor Xiao Xiao. At the moment of his explosion, most of his power had been directed at the Ancestor. Even so, a single slash from the man had nearly killed Cha Pu then and there.
It was Yang Kai who had arrived just in time to drag him from the chaos of battle and send him back to Da Yan.
Later, in order to ambush Che Kong, he'd forced himself to fight through his injuries one more time, only to be battered by Che Kong until his wounds compounded. Afterward, Che Kong had been slain by Yang Kai, but all Cha Pu could do was drag his broken body back to Da Yan for treatment.
In other words, across the entirety of this grand battle, he hadn't killed a single Mo Clan powerhouse!
He was an Eighth-Order—one of the most celebrated veteran Eighth-Orders at that. In every major battle he'd fought, his exploits had been legendary. Yet this time, the results fell far short.
Without a point of comparison, it might not have mattered. But now that Yang Kai existed as that comparison, Cha Pu's stomach churned with bitterness.
He would rather have died on the battlefield than sit here doing nothing.
"Commander Cha…"
"Shut up!"
Yang Kai: "…"
This Garrison Commander Cha seemed to be in rather poor spirits. Yang Kai had originally wanted to ask about his injuries, but seeing the state of him, he could only clamp his mouth shut.