The gap in the Primal Heaven Great Seal couldn't be sealed again, but Wu Kuang could still do his utmost to shrink it. This way, any Ink Clan forces trying to charge through would face even greater restrictions. In the past, a King-Lord might have been able to force their way out, but with Wu Kuang's growing strength and tighter control over the Great Seal, no Ink Clan King-Lord could accomplish such a feat anymore.
Without King-Lords, it didn't matter how many other Ink Clan creatures charged out—they would be nothing more than lambs to the slaughter before the formidable Ink Expulsion Army.
The Ink Expulsion Army wasn't large in number, only several thousand strong, but their overall strength was tremendous. They could be considered the most elite force the Human Race currently possessed.
When Yang Kai and Mi Jinglun had first established the Ink Expulsion Army, the minimum standard had been Sixth-Order Opening Heaven. In other words, anyone whose cultivation hadn't reached the Sixth-Order wasn't qualified to be selected.
Moreover, this Sixth-Order cultivation wasn't the ceiling for the army's members—they still had room to grow. After so many years, most of those who had originally been at the Sixth-Order of Opening Heaven had already advanced to the Seventh-Order.
Throughout the entire Ink Expulsion Army, those still lingering at the Sixth-Order were vanishingly few. The handful that remained had all reached their personal limits and could advance at any moment.
It could be said that the current Ink Expulsion Army, excluding those few remaining Sixth-Orders, was virtually composed entirely of Upper-Order Opening Heaven cultivators.
When the Ink Expulsion Army had first been established, there had been merely four hundred Eighth-Orders. Now there were nearly a thousand! The extras had all broken through and advanced over the years of ceaseless battle. Pushing past their limits and ascending to new realms amid the crucible of bloody combat—such things were no great difficulty for these chosen geniuses.
Additionally, there were over a hundred powerful Sacred Spirits, along with the Sacred Dragon Fu Guang. Yang Xue had also advanced to Ninth-Order Opening Heaven within the World within the Furnace.
Zhao Yebai, Zhao Ya, and Xu Yi even had hopes of breaking through their limits in the near future and ascending to the Ninth-Order realm!
The three of them were Yang Kai's Personal Disciples, each having inherited the mantle of one of Yang Kai's primary cultivation Daos. Yang Kai had placed great hopes upon them.
In terms of age and seniority, they weren't much different from Shi Dazhuang, who had already advanced to the Ninth-Order. Perhaps the third disciple, Xu Yi, had cultivated for slightly fewer years, having joined a bit later, but in the grand span of their cultivation lifespans, that small difference was negligible.
Shi Dazhuang had already advanced to the Ninth-Order. Among the younger generation, Tang Tao had also ascended to the Ninth-Order, so naturally it was nearly time for Zhao Yebai and the others to follow.
The accumulated efforts of several thousand years would surely allow the Human Race to continuously produce more Ninth-Order cultivators in the future.
With such a lineup, the Ink Expulsion Army was unquestionably the most elite force the Human Race possessed. That was why, despite their limited numbers, they had more than enough capital to stand guard outside the Primal Heaven Great Seal.
Since the battle seven hundred years ago when the Cosmos Furnace first appeared, the Primal Heaven Great Seal had seen no further disturbances.
As a result, over these seven hundred years, the thousands of Ink Expulsion Army members had found themselves with little to do. They had no choice but to take turns cultivating. Fortunately, when the army had first come here, they'd brought ample supplies. Though most had been used up, there was still a small surplus to draw upon.
Atop the Ink Expulsion Platform, Fu Guang, his silver hair gleaming, gazed toward the gap in the darkness ahead and sent out a soul transmission: "Wu Kuang, how's the situation?"
It wasn't that he'd noticed anything unusual—this was merely a routine inquiry, conducted once every month. It spoke to Fu Guang's character that he was an extremely cautious and meticulous individual.
As always, Wu Kuang's lazy voice echoed through Fu Guang's mind: "There are some small fry peering through the gap, but they probably don't dare to charge out."
He had already constricted the gap to its minimum. If a King-Lord tried to force their way through, they would most likely perish along the way. Even if they survived, they would be gravely wounded at the very least.
Under those circumstances, no King-Lord would be foolish enough to attempt breaching the gap of the Primal Heaven Great Seal.
Without a King-Lord to contend with Fu Guang, how would the Ink Clan sealed within the Great Seal dare to provoke the authority of the Ink Expulsion Army? Though they had been shut inside the Great Seal, they were far from ignorant of the world beyond. Years of battle had thoroughly impressed upon them the might of the Ink Expulsion Army.
"Stay alert!" Fu Guang offered his usual cautionary reminder.
Wu Kuang replied: "I know, you just—hm?"
He had cut off mid-sentence, suddenly letting out a surprised exclamation.
Fu Guang's expression sharpened. "What's wrong?"
But he waited a moment and received no response from Wu Kuang. This had never happened before. Fu Guang's heart lurched as an overwhelming sense of crisis suddenly enveloped him. He immediately cast his gaze toward the Primal Heaven Great Seal.
The entire Great Seal resembled some dark, primordial beast crouching across the void, blanketing a vast expanse of territory that stretched beyond the edge of sight.
All that darkness was shrouded in the power of Ink. Without the containment of the Primal Heaven Great Seal, one could hardly imagine how far that boundless darkness might have spread.
In Fu Guang's field of vision, the Great Seal showed no visible changes, yet the unease within him only intensified.
He knew something unexpected had occurred—otherwise Wu Kuang would never have gone silent.
Without hesitation, he barked a command: "Battle stations!"
In the next instant, every member of the Ink Expulsion Army—whether cultivating or on duty—moved as one. Formation after formation blazed to life, and at every Artifact, soldiers took their positions. Several thousand members of the Ink Expulsion Army readied themselves for a great battle in mere breaths.
A storm was coming!
Yang Xue flickered to Fu Guang's side, her expression grave: "Senior, what's happened?"