Zhujian seemed somewhat reluctant. Three thousand years was not a short time, even for a Holy Spirit.
But before it could speak, Yang Kai said, "If you cannot even guarantee three thousand years, then there's no point discussing this further."
Seeing that there was clearly no room to haggle, Zhujian let out a resigned sigh. "Three thousand years, then."
Only then did Yang Kai release it and put away the Golden Crow True Fire. Both parties then swore Origin Great Oaths—Yang Kai would take Zhujian out of the Taixu Realm, Zhujian would serve Yang Kai for three thousand years, and afterward it would be free.
"Take me to the dwelling places of the other Holy Spirits," Yang Kai ordered.
Zhujian understood immediately. Yang Kai intended to do far more than just subdue it—the Holy Spirits of the Taixu Realm, every last one of them, were going to fall under his command, and not a single one would be spared.
But this was not necessarily a bad thing for the Holy Spirits of the Taixu Realm. For countless years they had been unable to break free of this place. Now that such an opportunity had presented itself, no one would want to let it pass.
Having grasped this point, Zhujian wasted no more words and immediately led Yang Kai toward the nearest Holy Spirit's lair.
After roughly an hour, Yang Kai stood waiting outside a mountain cave while Zhujian entered to negotiate with the spirit inside. After a short while, a colossal serpent with three heads and a body a thousand zhang long slithered out of the cave, raising its heads high to peer down at Yang Kai from above.
Yang Kai recognized it at a glance—the Feiyi. It was the very one that Qu Huashang had once been chosen as its vessel.
The three heads of the Feiyi flicked their tongues, and the central one spoke in human tongue: "You claim you have the ability to lead us out of the Taixu Realm?"
Yang Kai replied, "Under the Origin Great Oath, no one speaks falsely."
The Feiyi nodded. "If that is the case, serving you for three thousand years would be acceptable."
With Zhujian acting as intermediary, much of the effort was spared for Yang Kai. The two parties swore a Bloodline Great Oath, identical in form to the one Zhujian had taken before.
Over half a month, Yang Kai traversed the Taixu Realm, meeting Holy Spirit after Holy Spirit. With the previously subdued spirits serving as advocates, each subsequent negotiation grew easier and easier.
Because Zhujian had been the first to submit to Yang Kai, it played a crucial role in the process of subduing the others. As a result, the creature began to develop a vague sense of leadership among the gathered spirits.
By the time Yang Kai returned to the World Tree's location once more, over a hundred Holy Spirits of all shapes and sizes trailed behind him. They varied greatly in form and magnitude, and their rankings on the Holy Spirit register were equally diverse. But there was no denying that each one among them was at least comparable to a Seventh-Order Open Heaven human cultivator.
Over a hundred of them—this was by no means a negligible force.
Wu Kuang remained frozen in place, unable to move. Seeing Yang Kai return, he was so furious that his features twisted in rage. Had he been able to speak, he would undoubtedly have launched into a furious tirade.
Yang Kai approached the World Tree and bowed respectfully. "Tree Elder, I wish to send them to the Star Boundary. Please lend me your aid."
Tree Elder's face emerged from the trunk of the World Tree. "Do as you see fit."
Yang Kai nodded and connected his consciousness to the world fruit on the World Tree that corresponded to the Star Boundary. Channeling the Laws of Space, a void portal materialized in an instant.
He turned to face the assembled Holy Spirits behind him. "Pass through this portal and you will enter the Three Thousand Worlds. War currently ravages them, and your strength is needed to repel the enemy. The moment you arrive on the other side, proceed to Lingxiao Palace in the Star Boundary and seek a woman named Hua Qingsi. Tell her I sent you to join the fight. While I am absent, you are to follow her commands without question. Should anyone commit crimes or defy orders, I will deal with them accordingly."
The Holy Spirits sensed the unfamiliar aura emanating from the void portal, and excitement surged through them all. Though Yang Kai had repeatedly assured them he could lead them out of the Taixu Realm, seeing was believing. Now that they had witnessed his abilities with their own eyes, they knew he had not deceived them.
Through this portal, they would shed the shackles of the Taixu Realm and finally recover the full power that Holy Spirits were meant to possess.
Zhujian cupped its fists. "Rest assured, my lord. Having sworn the Bloodline Great Oath, we would not dare show any defiance."
Yang Kai nodded and raised a hand. "Go, all of you."
Zhujian was the first to charge toward the portal. Following close behind, the rest of the Holy Spirits contracted their forms to sizes small enough to pass through, disappearing one by one.
Once the hundred Holy Spirits had all gone through, Yang Kai sealed the portal.
Setting aside for the moment what impact the sudden appearance of a hundred Holy Spirits outside the Star Boundary would have on its human inhabitants, Yang Kai seized Wu Kuang and addressed the World Tree. "Tree Elder, I need passage through the Black Domain. Please show me the way."
Each fruit on the World Tree corresponded to a world whose Grand Dao had not collapsed. These worlds were scattered across the various Great Domains, but none of them included the Black Domain.
The entire Black Domain was a dead zone—devoid of worlds within, consisting only of empty void.
Just as Yang Kai had been unable to travel directly to the Ink Battlefield, he could not enter the Black Domain directly either. The best approach was to travel to a neighboring Great Domain and then pass into the Black Domain from there.
But he had no idea which world fruit corresponded to a suitable world, so he could only consult Tree Elder. The world fruits were bound to him, yet Tree Elder, who had grown them, knew better than anyone which fruit corresponded to which world.