After much persuading, Yang Kai finally managed to shake off Wei Junyang's persistence.
He knew Wei Junyang spoke the truth, but the administrative duties of an entire army were far too tedious, and he had no desire to involve himself. The Xuanming Army had functioned perfectly well without him before, so there was no reason he had to step in and take charge now that he'd arrived.
By and large, this army commander role had been thrust upon him against his will. In his heart, he would rather be like Ouyang Lie—a fierce general who charged the front lines rather than one burdened with the hopes and lives of hundreds of thousands, even millions of soldiers. That kind of responsibility was simply too heavy.
When he arrived outside the palatial estate, he spotted a large group of figures waiting in the distance, every one of them drenched in blood, their killing intent piercing the sky. By the looks of it, they had only just withdrawn from the battlefield. Once Yang Kai made out exactly who these people were, he immediately understood why they were waiting here.
Upon seeing his approach, Zhujian, who stood at the forefront, hurried forward with an ingratiating expression and clasped his fists. "Lord."
The numerous Divine Spirits bowed in unison, their expressions conflicted.
Over these past days, they had been waiting in the Xuanming Domain. When a great battle erupted here, swept up by the tide of events, they had participated in the fighting and contributed no small amount of effort. After all, several dozen Divine Spirits were a formidable force in any location.
They had sensed the successive falls of five Domain Lords along the auxiliary battlefront and had initially been unclear about what exactly had happened—how the human race could be so overwhelmingly dominant. But once they learned that the events were connected to Yang Kai, every one of them had come to understand. After all, the memory of the arrogant and untamable Taowu being slain with a single blow mere months ago was still vivid in their minds.
"What is it?" Yang Kai regarded them, not having expected these Divine Spirits to still be waiting here.
Zhujian replied, "Lord, you previously commanded us to slay two Domain Lords within three months to atone for our misdeeds. We fought through blood and slaughter, and fortunately did not fail in our task. We have come to report the completion of our mission."
As he spoke, Zhujian produced two corpses from his spatial ring.
They were the corpses of two Domain Lords, battered and tattered beyond recognition—clearly, both had endured brutal combat before their deaths.
In truth, these Divine Spirits had arrived at the Xuanming Domain some time ago. By that point, Yang Kai had already departed, and with no other option, they had been forced to wait here for his return. One day had led to the next, and here they still were.
Yang Kai probed the corpses briefly with his divine sense and gave a slight nod. "You've worked hard. Don't let it happen again."
The Divine Spirits brought out of the Great Ruins Boundary had been rather disobedient in the past, mainly because Yang Kai wasn't around. Now, with the demonstrated power of having slain Taowu and the Bloodline Oath constraining them, he believed these Divine Spirits would not dare cause trouble again.
Regardless of everything, these Divine Spirits were an indispensable asset to the human race. Yang Kai could kill one to establish his authority, but he had no intention of souring their relationship beyond repair.
Hearing his words, Zhujian and the others visibly relaxed. The matter was settled.
"Does the Lord have any further instructions?" Zhujian asked carefully.
"Return to the General Headquarters and await deployment orders there." Yang Kai waved a dismissive hand.
With him stationed in the Xuanming Domain, the Ink Clan would hardly dare act up again. Meanwhile, the battles across the other great domains remained as intense as ever—these Divine Spirits could prove invaluable there.
The Divine Spirits departed as if granted an imperial pardon, bidding farewell before swiftly taking their leave.
Since ancient times, Divine Spirits had always held themselves in high regard, looking down upon other beings. These particular Divine Spirits, who had emerged from the Great Ruins Boundary, had rarely had contact with the outside world, which was precisely why they had been so resistant to the orders of the General Headquarters.
However, while they could look down on other human powerhouses, they could not afford to disregard Yang Kai. This man was someone who genuinely killed without hesitation—Taowu was living proof of that, or rather, a cautionary tale of the dead.
Moreover, Yang Kai was not even of the human race, but of the Dragon Clan. Among the Divine Spirits, Dragons and Phoenixes held supreme status. Their pitiful pride meant very little before a true-blooded Dragon.
Yu Rumeng's squad returned soon after. The ten-member team was battered and disheveled, but all were essentially unharmed.
Very few human squads survived so many battles without suffering a single casualty. Even the Dawn Squad that Yang Kai had once led had lost Ning Qizhi and Qi Taichu, who died fighting at his side.
Yu Rumeng's squad had managed this for two reasons. First, while the current battles were fierce, the squad members themselves were all extraordinarily powerful. Every single one of them was Seventh-Order at minimum, and among them were Dragon and Phoenix Clansmen—even encountering a Domain Lord, they could hold their own.
An entire squad composed entirely of Seventh-Order cultivators was unique across every major battlefield. Ordinary squads typically had only one or two Seventh-Order members at most. The high command of the Xuanming Army knew these were Yang Kai's close relatives, which was why they allowed such latitude. Otherwise, no ordinary squad could boast such an extravagant lineup.
Second, their warship had been modified from a Bixi clone, giving it defensive capabilities far surpassing those of ordinary warships. One could say that to kill them, one would first have to destroy the Bixi clone.
But was a Bixi clone so easily destroyed?
Against a squad like this, it would take at least two Domain Lords to have any chance.
Everyone's injuries varied, and all required healing—especially Yang Kai. The pain of having his soul torn apart was truly more than any ordinary person could bear.
After exchanging a few words with Yu Rumeng, Yang Kai immediately entered seclusion to recuperate.
The great battle in the Xuanming Domain had caused losses to both the human and Ink Clan sides, though relatively speaking, the Ink Clan's losses were greater. Not only had they lost five Domain Lords, but a defensive line they had spent decades constructing had also been taken. This left Six-Arms, who was stationed here, utterly humiliated and flying into a rage.
According to the intelligence gathered, the slain Domain Lords and the lost defensive line were very likely connected to the Xuanming Army's commander.
But Six-Arms had no way to confirm whether this intelligence was accurate. Many returning Lords had sworn they had seen Yang Kai's figure—but did seeing necessarily mean it was real?
The Xiangsi Domain had even sent word claiming that Yang Kai was nothing more than a turtle in a jar.