"Does my lord still remember the Silver Sacred Dragon from a thousand years ago?" Manayu offered a gentle reminder.
The Ink Clan Royal Lord's expression turned contemplative, and a flicker of realization crossed his face. "You mean…"
Manayu spoke with gravity. "If I'm not mistaken, their destination should be the Source Land!"
"The audacity!" The Ink Clan Royal Lord erupted in fury, slamming his fist down on the Bone Throne beneath him. The power of Ink immediately surged like a tsunami.
A thousand years ago, a Silver Sacred Dragon had passed through a Domain Gate, traveled through the Return Pass, and ventured deep into the Ink Battlefield, never to be heard from again. Despite the passage of so many years, the Ink Clan Royal Lord still remembered the overwhelming dragon might he had felt that day. Even a Royal Lord like himself had been unwilling to provoke a conflict with a Sacred Dragon, and so, though bitter with frustration, he had been forced to watch as the Silver Sacred Dragon strode through the Return Pass and departed with great arrogance.
Fortunately, the dragon had no intention of causing trouble for the Ink Clan — it was merely passing through.
At the time, he hadn't understood what the Silver Sacred Dragon was after. It was only later that he had realized — the only thing in the Ink Battlefield that could possibly concern a Sacred Dragon was the Primordial Heaven Great Restriction.
That Sacred Dragon had most likely been heading there to monitor the situation.
The Ink Clan had been powerless to do anything about it and could only let it be.
Now, a thousand years later, Yang Kai was leading several hundred Eighth-Order Humans aboard a Purification Ship, arriving in grand force. The Ink Clan Royal Lord had assumed Yang Kai was coming to cause trouble at the Return Pass, but Manayu had seen through his intentions at a glance.
They, too, were heading for the Primordial Heaven Great Restriction.
The Mother Nest was the foundation of the Ink Clan and the place the humans feared most — how could they not pay close attention?
When the Sacred Dragon wanted to go to the Primordial Heaven Great Restriction, no one in the Ink Clan could stop it. But when Yang Kai and those Eighth-Order Humans wanted to go, how could the Ink Clan Royal Lord possibly permit it? If they harbored some malicious intent toward the Mother Nest, the consequences for the Ink Clan could be catastrophic.
He immediately roared, "Manayu! Recall every Domain Lord who can fight! I want those humans to come and never return!"
Manayu quickly said, "My lord, please calm yourself. It is already too late to recall the Domain Lords from outside." That Purification Ship should have already reached the Empty Domain and would soon arrive at the Return Pass — there was no time left to recall the Domain Lords stationed elsewhere.
The Royal Lord rose to his feet and paced back and forth a few steps, his expression hardening with resolve. "In that case, we will marshal every force here and wage a full-scale war against the humans!"
Manayu cried out in alarm, "We cannot!"
The Royal Lord whipped his head around, glaring furiously at Manayu, clearly displeased that his subordinate had dared to oppose his order. His oppressive aura bore down, and Manayu involuntarily lowered his head. He said earnestly, "My lord, if we wage battle here at the Return Pass — setting aside the question of who wins or loses — how many Ink Nests would we be able to protect?"
Over a hundred Domain Lords were stationed at the Return Pass year-round, or recovering from their wounds inside their Ink Nests. Together with one true Royal Lord and one False Royal Lord, relying on the geographic advantage and the enormous Ink Clan army, they were not without the qualifications to fight the humans head-on. But just as Manayu had said, once fighting broke out, only the Ink Clan would suffer. Setting everything else aside, the Ink Nests themselves would certainly sustain devastating damage. And those were the very foundation upon which the Ink Clan currently depended to sustain the war.
These words were like a bucket of cold water, dousing the Royal Lord's rage completely. His brows furrowed. After a long moment, he slumped back onto the Bone Throne in defeat. "Yes," he said with a trace of desolation, "the Ink Nests must be protected. You are right, Manayu."
Seeing the Royal Lord in this state, a wave of sorrow welled up in Manayu's heart. The truth was, if not for the need to remain at the Return Pass guarding these Ink Nests, the Royal Lord — with his strength — would never have been trapped here, unable to move for thousands of years. The Ink Nests were both the foundation of the Ink Clan and an invisible set of chains, binding the Ink Clan's only Royal Lord tightly in place.
Tracing the cause back to its origin, one could only lament the courage and ferocity of those Ninth-Order Humans in the battle of the Empty Domain. In that battle, nearly all of the Ninth-Order Humans had perished, including both the Dragon Emperor and the Phoenix Empress, who fell in the Empty Domain. The results of their sacrifice were extraordinary — they had slaughtered every last one of the Ink Clan's Royal Lords and gravely wounded the Ink-coloured Giant Spirit.
The great battle from over three thousand years ago continued to exert a profound influence on both races to this day, and would certainly continue to do so in the future. Perhaps only when Ninth-Order Humans and Royal Lords once again rose to prominence on both sides would these effects gradually fade.
After a moment's deliberation, Manayu spoke up. "My lord… is there any news from the Mother Nest?"
The Royal Lord slowly shook his head. "Ever since the Supreme fell dormant, no news has come. It seems the time for awakening has not yet arrived."
Manayu nodded slightly and continued, "In truth, my lord need not worry too much about the Mother Nest and the Supreme. After so many years, things there have always been this way. They are unlikely to change anytime soon. Even if a Sacred Dragon went to keep watch, could it possibly threaten the Supreme?"
The Royal Lord let out a cold snort. "What of a Sacred Dragon? If it dares venture deep into the Primordial Heaven Great Restriction, it will simply become a fresh addition to our Ink Clan's fighting force!" An ordinary Ink Clan member — even he himself — could do little against a Sacred Dragon. But the Supreme was different. If the Supreme acted personally, even a Sacred Dragon could be corrupted into Ink. If the Sacred Dragon was wise enough to keep to the outer periphery to observe, that would be one thing. But if it dared venture deep into the Primordial Heaven Great Restriction, it would be asking for nothing but humiliation.
"Precisely!" Manayu agreed. "The same applies to Yang Kai and his people, does it not?"