Chen Tianfei was actually quite satisfied with his current situation.
Back in the day, when he had been the second-in-command of Red Star, he was nothing more than the leader of a minor power. No matter how hard he worked, he could never get his hands on much in the way of cultivation resources.
But after following Yang Kai, cultivation resources had flowed endlessly, inexhaustible—so much so that he had broken through two full ranks in just over a thousand years, rising from Fourth-Order Open Heaven to the Sixth Order.
If he were still that old second-in-command of Red Star, how could he have ended up like this?
Every time he thought back to that day's decision, Chen Tianfei felt he had been brilliantly shrewd. If he hadn't been quick-witted enough to present the Oath of Loyalty and proactively offer himself as a servant before Yang Kai struck him down, there would be nothing left of him but withered grass on a grave by now.
And over the years, Yang Kai had treated him rather well—never harshly scolding or mistreating him, never truly treating him as some disposable servant. It was more like the relationship between a superior and a subordinate.
To have such a master in this lifetime was itself a stroke of fortune.
So when Yang Kai teased him, Chen Tianfei responded with an ingratiating smile, bowing repeatedly: "It is entirely thanks to the Sect Master's nurturing that your subordinate is where he is today. I would smash my body to pieces and wade through boiling waters to repay the Sect Master's great kindness."
Yang Kai chuckled, not taking it seriously at all. This fellow A-Fei was hopelessly greedy for life and terrified of death—whether he could be relied upon in a real crisis was anyone's guess. Best to just listen and let it go.
He said nothing more to him and strode downward. Chen Tianfei followed respectfully behind Yang Kai, playing the part of the loyal subordinate to the hilt.
Two streaks of light were already shooting up from below—one red, one black.
As they drew near, the two lights retracted, transforming into a boy and a girl dressed in black and red robes.
"Master!" the girl cried, her face brimming with excitement.
The boy wanted to call out too, but as soon as he opened his mouth, a string of drool spilled down his chin.
Yang Kai sighed in exasperation: "After all these years, you still haven't gotten rid of that habit?"
The boy and girl before him were none other than Earth Dragon and Scarlet Jiao, whom he had brought out of the Grand Void Realm long ago. Both carried traces of dragon bloodline. When they had first been brought out of the Grand Void Realm, they had still been in their beast forms—massive in size. It was only after arriving at Void Land and receiving Bixi's guidance in cultivation that they had taken human shape.
However, little Black, born from the Earth Dragon, still had some bad habits.
Little Black just grinned sheepishly, clearly overjoyed to see Yang Kai again.
"You've all gotten stronger," Yang Kai remarked, extending his spiritual sense. He could feel that Little Red and Little Black were now incomparably more powerful than they had been back then, both approaching the strength of Sixth-Order Open Heaven cultivators. He couldn't help but feel wistful—time truly flew.
He reached out and ruffled the heads of both of them, then led them down to the mountain peak below, arriving before the old man. He bowed respectfully: "Elder!"
"Eight-Order!" Bixi narrowed his eyes slightly. "The Sect Master's cultivation speed is truly remarkable!"
Chen Tianfei's strength was a bit lacking—he hadn't been able to perceive Yang Kai's true power. But Bixi was an ancient Sacred Spirit who had long since matched the Eighth Order in Open Heaven cultivation. One glance told him Yang Kai's true strength, and inwardly he was shocked. When Yang Kai had last left the Three Thousand Worlds, he had been only Sixth Order.
In just a thousand years, he had already reached the Eighth Order.
In his long life, Bixi had seen no shortage of young prodigies, yet none could rival Yang Kai's cultivation speed.
"I encountered some fortuitous opportunities," Yang Kai said casually, without going into detail.
Behind him, Chen Tianfei's fat body quivered with excitement. The Sect Master had actually reached Eighth-Order Open Heaven! In any of the great Cave Heavens or Blessed Lands, that would make him an existence on the level of a Supreme Elder. A sense of pride swelled within him—the honor of belonging to the same faction.
They had only exchanged a few words before two more streaks of light swept in from the left and right, landing nearby. They were Lu Xue and Mo Mei.
Lu Xue had also followed Yang Kai out of the Grand Void Realm, arriving even earlier than Chen Tianfei. Years ago, Yang Kai had bestowed upon her a mid-grade World Fruit to elevate her rank.
Mo Mei had been the city lord of Dingfeng City in the Blood Demon Grotto-heaven. The warriors of Dingfeng City had, for generations, been affected by the forbidden technique of the Great Extension Indestructible Blood Reflection Scripture, making it nearly impossible for them to leave the Blood Demon Grotto-heaven. It was Yang Kai who had used the Great Extension Indestructible Blood Reflection Scripture to break their bloodline restriction, allowing him to bring them all out. From then on, they had become part of Void Land.
When Yang Kai had departed years ago, Lu Xue had been Fifth-Order and Mo Mei Sixth-Order.
Now, Lu Xue had reached Sixth-Order, and Mo Mei had ascended to Seventh-Order Open Heaven!
But like Chen Tianfei, they had both reached the limits of their potential—there was no further possibility of advancement in rank.
The reason the two of them had come was that they had sensed the disturbance of the Nine-Layered Heaven formation being activated.
Upon seeing Yang Kai here, both were overjoyed and bowed in greeting.
Yang Kai nodded: "Have you been the only ones left to guard the sect?"
He had more or less anticipated this situation.
The great Cave Heavens and Blessed Lands had been drawing Fifth and Sixth-Order Open Heaven cultivators from subordinate forces to join the war, and Void Land was naturally no exception. He had just swept the area with his divine sense and hadn't detected many powerful auras within Void Land. The people before him were the strongest ones left behind.
Mo Mei, who was in charge of managing Void Land, replied: "In accordance with the mobilization order from Xuanyuan Grotto-heaven, over the past century, all Void Land cultivators of Fifth-Order and above have gradually made their way to the Domain of the Void battlefield. Only we few remain in the sect to hold the fort."
Yang Kai nodded.
He had sensed Su Yan's aura on the Domain of the Void battlefield and had already guessed as much.
Even Su Yan had gone to the front lines—Void Land certainly wouldn't have kept many people behind.
"You came back from over there, Sect Master?" Mo Mei asked.