After nearly two thousand years, Yang Kai—the human race's greatest menace—emerged from seclusion. The moment he appeared, he instantaneously slew three Postnatal Domain Lords in the Qingyang Domain.
When word spread, the Ink Clan was horrified.
Postnatal Domain Lords were Domain Lords all the same. They might not have been as powerful as Natal Domain Lords, and might not even measure up to ordinary Eighth-Order human cultivators, but that did not mean just anyone could slaughter them at will.
Word had it that those three Domain Lords had provoked him first, and within three breaths, all of them had perished.
Fortunately, he had not embarked on a massacre. He hadn't even shown any intention of tearing up the agreement from years past. He had simply taken a circuit through the Qingyang Domain and then departed of his own accord.
In an instant, across every battlefield in the Great Domains, Ink Clan powerhouses retreated into their shells and spared no effort in trying to determine Yang Kai's intentions.
Soon, reports trickled in from all sides. Yang Kai had appeared at battlefield after battlefield across the Great Domains, but he showed no inclination to fight. He simply walked and observed, as though searching for something.
No one knew what he was looking for.
On many occasions, he even approached the perimeter of Ink Clan encampments, leaving the assembled Domain Lords torn between the urge to strike and paralyzing dread.
The urge came from the possibility that if they mobilized the full might of a Domain's Ink Clan forces, they might just be able to pin him down. The dread came from the knowledge that if a battle erupted, who knew how many Domain Lords would die—and there was no guarantee they could hold him even then.
It was only after Yang Kai had departed entirely that the Ink Clan finally breathed easy.
But another piece of news quickly spread. In the Qingyang Domain, three of Yang Kai's Personal Disciples had been spotted, and numerous Ink Clan powerhouses were plotting to ambush and kill them. This prospect excited not a few members of the Ink Clan.
Yang Kai's shadow was destined to loom over them for the rest of their lives. This human's strength and dominance were something no member of the Ink Clan dared to defy lightly. They could do nothing about Yang Kai, but dealing with his three Personal Disciples—that was another matter.
Moreover, it was Yang Kai himself who had publicly revealed this master-disciple relationship before leaving the Qingyang Domain. He had even declared that even if the Ink Clan killed those three disciples, he would not seek vengeance.
Just as countless Ink Clan powerhouses fixed their gaze on the Qingyang Domain, yet more reports came pouring in from other Great Domains.
Yang Xiao and Yang Xue, who had made quite a name for themselves in recent years, turned out to be Yang Kai's adopted son and younger sister.
And some recently promoted female Eighth-Order cultivators were Yang Kai's wives…
In a matter of moments, everyone closely connected to Yang Kai had become targets for the Ink Clan. The Ink Clan swiftly drew up numerous ambush and assassination plans. They wouldn't dare simply kill these people outright—Yang Kai's words about not seeking revenge were just that, words. But who truly believed them?
However, if they could capture some of them and convert them into Ink Servants, that would surely give Yang Kai pause.
Across battlefield after battlefield, dark currents surged. The human race and the Ink Clan clashed again and again over those cultivators close to Yang Kai, fighting without cease, throwing the situation into utter chaos.
All the while, Yang Kai had long since moved on. Holding a Universe Map, he traversed one Great Domain after another.
To annihilate the Ink completely, he had to find the First Light of the world. He had ventured to the Chaotic Death Domain to seek intelligence from Brother Huang and Sister Lan, but what little they had proved useless. Regarding that First Light, he remained utterly without clues, with no notion of how to go about searching for it.
All he could do was resort to this brute-force method, hoping for some breakthrough.
Cang had once said that when the First Light came into being in this world, darkness came with it. Light and dark were two sides of the same coin, inextricably linked. Now that darkness had become the Ink that devoured all creation, the light had vanished without a trace.
That First Light might not actually exist in the form of literal light. Just as darkness had become the Ink, the light could be a blade of grass, a tree, a beast, a person—indeed, any thing under heaven.
Yang Kai did not know whether he could find it. All he could do was try his best and leave the rest to fate.
Moreover, his cultivation had already reached its natural limit. He had not yet attained the peak of the Eighth Order, but the foundation of his Small Universe was still growing on its own. He no longer needed to cultivate through arduous effort to progress.
He had pursued the martial path his entire life, and now he stood at its very end—yet he felt not the slightest joy. He knew full well that this was nowhere near the pinnacle of the martial way. For a warrior, that was an immense sorrow.
He didn't need to cultivate, and he couldn't exactly wade into battle on a whim. He couldn't simply sit idle. If he were a mortal, he might enjoy the comfort of family and live out his days in peace. But he was not.
If he found the First Light, all the better. If not, he would treat this as a long journey—a pilgrimage of the heart and mind.
His spiritual sense radiated outward ceaselessly like the tide, sparing no corner. After passing through each Great Domain, he would take out the Universe Map and mark an X over the corresponding location with his spiritual sense.
The Three Thousand Worlds and their many Great Domains were now entirely under Ink Clan occupation. World after world that had once thrived with vitality had died as the power of heaven and earth drained away and the Great Dao collapsed. Countless Ink Clan members drifted through the void, and Ink Nests stood upon those dead worlds.
Back when the Ink Clan had first invaded the Three Thousand Worlds, Yang Kai had also traversed many Great Domains. But at that time, his purpose had been to refine the World Pillows and save as many living beings as possible across the myriad worlds.
That journey had been hurried—a passing glance from horseback.
This time, he was far more meticulous. He inspected virtually every corner of every Great Domain, leaving nothing overlooked. Not even the shattered fragments of worlds and floating continents escaped his scrutiny.
Compared to those days, every Great Domain was now far more deathly still. Even the void itself was permeated with that vile, nauseating aura of Ink power.