So Monaye spoke the words he had prepared: "My Lord, the humans are coming in full force this time, certain to commit the entirety of their race to battle. And from what I know of the humans, No-Return Pass is not their true objective. If they take No-Return Pass, they will next march on the Progenitor's Great Seal."
"The Progenitor's Great Seal!" Mo Yu's face darkened upon hearing this. Where the Supreme resided was the true root of the Ink Race. The humans coming to attack No-Return Pass was reasonable enough—it had always been human territory, merely occupied by the Ink Race for several thousand years. But for the humans to harbor delusions of using No-Return Pass as a springboard for a distant expedition to the Progenitor's Great Seal—that enraged him. "The humans are far too arrogant. Right now our race has numerous Pseudo-King Lords, and we can hold the pass with ease. Furthermore, with two Supreme avatars to assist, it will not be easy for the humans to take No-Return Pass."
Monaye said, "Ordinary humans need not concern us greatly, but my lord must not forget Yang Kai. We may indeed have many Pseudo-King Lords now, but the battlefield is ever-changing. Should Yang Kai find an opening, no Pseudo-King Lord can guarantee their own safety against his sneak attacks."
Hearing that name, Mo Yu's expression grew even darker, dredging up memories of the war from several thousand years ago.
Back then, the Ink Race had invaded the Three Thousand Worlds, forcing humans to hold out in over a dozen Great Domain battlefields. Under that overwhelming momentum, it seemed that just one more push would utterly destroy the human race.
That era had been defined by the clash between the Ink Race's Innate Domain Lords and the humans' Eighth-Order Open Heaven cultivators!
But then Yang Kai burst onto the scene. Using a bizarre method that harmed both himself and his enemies, he slaughtered the Innate Domain Lords across every battlefield until they lived in terror. In the end, the Ink Race was forced to make concessions, with Yang Kai ceasing his attacks as the condition for signing a series of ceasefire agreements that gave humanity breathing room.
Now, that man who had once changed the course of a war between two races single-handedly had advanced to the Ninth Order. Although the Ink Race currently had numerous Pseudo-King Lords, judging from his previous battle record, the Pseudo-King Lords truly could not withstand his sneak attacks.
One need only consider that because of his intervention, a single battlefield—the Wu Wu Domain—had cost the Ink Race eight Pseudo-King Lords.
It could be said that the current situation was even worse than before. Back then, Yang Kai's self-harming technique required one to two hundred years of recovery after each use. But now, he had no such reservations.
"The humans' goal has never been No-Return Pass. Since they have already mobilized, they are certain of taking it. To break this situation, we must shift from defense to offense—strike like thunder while the human army is still on the march and has not yet formed their formations. Otherwise, once they arrive outside No-Return Pass and set up in battle array, they will be even harder to deal with."
Mo Yu fell into deep thought.
Monaye couldn't help but press, "My Lord, opportunity knocks but once!"
After a long while, Mo Yu looked up at him. "How do we deal with Yang Kai?"
Monaye said, "I alone am certainly no match for him, but bringing along several Pseudo-King Lords to pin him down should be possible." He turned to the King Lord who had been sitting nearby in silence the entire time. "Diablo can hide in the shadows and seize an opportunity to ambush him—perhaps we can deal him a devastating blow!"
Diablo nodded slightly. "If the opportunity arises, I will hold nothing back."
Monaye said, "The humans don't know of your existence, which makes you our trump card against Yang Kai this time. Unless you are absolutely certain of success, do not reveal yourself."
"I understand."
Mo Yu asked again, "What about the Supreme's avatars? Should they be deployed?"
Monaye shook his head. "The Supreme's avatars cannot move. Those two Giant Spirit Gods are still watching from the Void Domain, and we don't know if the humans have other arrangements there. If the Supreme's avatars leave No-Return Pass, there will be nothing to restrain those two Giant Spirit Gods. Should they charge into No-Return Pass, the consequences would be catastrophic."
Mo Yu frowned in thought. Though he felt Monaye had a point, he still could not make up his mind.
Seeing this, Monaye advised earnestly, "My Lord, the worst possible scenario is the human army laying siege to No-Return Pass, continuously eroding our forces—just as we did when we attacked No-Return Pass all those years ago. A preemptive strike may at least offer a sliver of hope for victory."
With that, he fixed his gaze on Mo Yu. He had said everything there was to say. What decision Mo Yu made was up to him. If Mo Yu refused to send troops to intercept the human army, Monaye had no other recourse. Though he had painted the situation in dire terms, it was not truly that desperate.
Even if the humans besieged No-Return Pass, the Ink Race was not without the power to fight. Over the years, the Ink Race had made extensive preparations at No-Return Pass precisely for this day.
It was simply that, relatively speaking, Monaye would prefer to seize the initiative with a preemptive strike.
After a long while, Mo Yu gave a slight nod. "I hope you are right."
Monaye was overjoyed and was about to rise to make arrangements when a Domain Lord rushed in from outside, his expression panicked.
Mo Yu frowned at the Domain Lord and asked displeasedly, "What is it!"
The Domain Lord hastily presented a jade slip. "My lords, the scouts at the front lines have made a discovery."
Mo Yu reached out and seized the jade slip, immersing his divine sense within to examine it. His expression changed almost at once.
Monaye's heart sank at the sight. He immediately sensed something was wrong. Though he did not know what information the jade slip contained, Mo Yu's face alone told him the news was extremely unfavorable for the Ink Race.