Martial Peak

On top of the throne of bones, the Royal Lord gently tapped his fingers, seemingly hesitant about something. After a long time, he finally opened his eyes and looked down at the Territory Lords, “Di Wu, you go.”

That order was directed at the first Territory Lord that had volunteered. 

Di Wu was pleased and grateful for the Royal Lord’s favour, so he cupped his fist and quickly said, “I won’t disappoint you, Sir!”

Turning around determinedly, he strode out of the Main Hall.

The rest of the Territory Lords looked at each other before smiling bitterly because they couldn’t stop Di Wu, nor did they dare to blame the Royal Lord for being biased. 

Since Di Wu was the first to stand up and volunteer when the Royal Lord asked who was willing to perform the Source Fusion with the Black Ink Nest, he had shown that he was braver than the other Territory Lords. The Royal Lord naturally appreciated and favoured such a Territory Lord. In addition, it was obvious that the Royal Lord had chosen Di Wu to receive the benefits in the end, all along.

The previous Territory Lords who went to perform the Source Fusion Technique were all sacrifices to pave the way for Di Wu.

Now that the Royal Lord had instructed Di Wu to head over, it undoubtedly meant that the Royal Lord also felt that success was at hand. If Di Wu didn’t move now, he might not get a chance to.

Several Divine Senses were probing at what was happening inside the High-Rank Black Ink Nest as Di Wu entered and quickly performed the Source Fusion Technique, letting the Black Ink Nest Devour his body while leaving behind his aura. 

This time, his aura endured for a long time without weakening, constantly resisting the Black Ink Nest’s devouring. His aura stayed longer than any of the previous Territory Lords.

Meanwhile, the other Territory Lords had complicated feelings as they continued to sense what was happening. They both anticipated Di Wu’s success, but also hoped he would fail.

If he succeeded, he would be the first Pseudo-Royal Lord that emerged from using the Source Fusion Technique, a momentous occasion for the Black Ink Clan. But if he failed, the other Territory Lords present would have a chance to obtain that glory for themselves.

Several days later, the long battle between auras suddenly quieted down, and the Royal Lord sitting on the throne relaxed his furrowed brow before grinning, “Success!”

The Territory Lords below hurriedly offered congratulations. 

It was indeed a success. Di Wu had undoubtedly devoured the High-Rank Black Ink Nest and even absorbed part of the strength from the 13 Territory Lords before him. In short order, he would break through the Innate Territory Lord’s restrictions and become a Pseudo-Royal Lord.

That time wouldn’t be too long either. 

No one in the Black Ink Clan was sure whether their decision to sacrifice a High-Rank Black Ink Nest and 13 Innate Territory Lords in exchange for a single Pseudo-Royal Lord was worth it. Still, if they could use this newly acquired strength to kill Yang Kai, it would be a huge strategic win for them.

Now that everything was prepared, it was time to start planning their attack.

The Royal Lord released a burst with his Divine Sense, and several Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples soon came to the Main Hall before bowing down.

While leaning forward to look at an old man among the Black Ink Disciples, the Royal Lord asked, “How is your research progressing? Is your Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array usable yet?”

That old man replied, “Reporting to Sir Royal Lord, we have already perfected it long ago and have refined many Array Boards and Banners.” Then, the old man’s expression became serious, “My Lord, are you planning on using this Array?”

In recent years, quite a lot of Humans were corrupted by Black Ink Strength and turned into Black Ink Disciples, but very few were proficient in the Dao of Spirit Arrays. The few standing before the Royal Lord were the Array Masters among the Black Ink Disciples that had high attainments in the Dao of Spirit Arrays.

More than 2,000 years ago, the Royal Lord began gathering these specialists in the No-Return Pass, providing them with protection and any materials or resources they required while giving them a single order, to develop a Heaven Sealing Earth Locking Grand Array that they could use when needed.

Although the Royal Lord didn’t specify who they would use that Spirit Array on, the Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples weren’t fools.

It wasn’t enough to just deduce a Heaven Sealing Earth Locking Grand Array however, refining Array Boards and Banners had also cost numerous resources, and powerful Masters were also needed to set up and maintain the Grand Array.

Considering the massive investment, the Royal Lord must want to use this Grand Array for a special purpose. That target must be a tricky enemy who was great at escaping.

Among all the Eighth-Order Masters in the Human Race, there was only one who the Black Ink Clan would take so seriously.

However, such a huge Array wasn’t easy to arrange. The person they were trying to trap could easily escape if they alerted him and he found out about the Grand Array before it was fully activated.

That was why they hadn’t used this Grand Array despite it already being ready to deploy.

They didn’t expect the Royal Lord would gather them here today.

After listening to the old man’s answer, the Royal Lord nodded calmly, “Very good. Yang Kai has trapped himself inside the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land and seems to be immersed in cultivating. This is a perfect chance to deal with him.”

“The Divine Spirit Ancestral Land!” That old man seemed surprised, “Sir, are you going to use this Grand Array to seal that place?”

“Can it be done?” The Royal Lord looked at that old man with a serious expression.

How could that old man dare to say no? Judging by the Royal Lord’s behaviour, he might perish on the spot if he said no.

So, the old man quickly replied, “Yes. If Yang Kai is indeed immersed in cultivation, there is a high chance for success. But the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land is an incredibly vast place, and this Old Master doesn’t have enough strength to seal it entirely. I must trouble Sir to allocate some Territory Lords to cooperate with me.”

“How many do you need?”

“Eight. No, 10 Territory Lords!”  

The Royal Lord replied flatly, “I will give you 20 Innate Territory Lords. This plan can only succeed and not fail!”

When the old man heard this, he was taken aback. It was no small deal using 20 Innate Territory Lords to deal with one Human, but it also showed how cautious the Black Ink Clan was of that Human.

He had also heard of Yang Kai’s reputation, but no matter how strong Yang Kai was, he would not be able to escape after being trapped inside this Grand Array. Therefore, the old man accepted the order, “Yes, Sir!”

Afterwards, the Royal Lord called out 20 Territory Lords and gave them an order, “You will accompany them and offer whatever assistance they require to set up the Grand Array. However, don’t act recklessly before Di Wu arrives. Once Di Wu arrives, he will take charge.”

All the Territory Lords accepted their orders, “Yes, Sir!”

“Go,” With a wave of the Royal Lord’s hand, the 20 Territory Lords and several Seventh-Order Array Masters immediately left the Main Hall and flew away.

Looking outside the Main Hall, the Royal Lord appeared gloomy. Although he couldn’t personally kill Yang Kai to vent his rage, this small displeasure was nothing before the Black Ink Clan’s plans for total conquest.ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novelenglish.net . Firᴇ(.)nᴇt

In fact, if they hadn’t lost more than a dozen Territory Lords to the Source Fusion Technique already, he wouldn’t have only sent 20 Territory Lords but 30!

When dealing with someone like Yang Kai, there were only two options before them, leaving him alone, or attacking him with overwhelming force to ensure he died.

Once this battle was over, the Black Ink Clan would no longer have any worries, and that agreement between the two Races would become meaningless.

The Black Ink Clan Masters immediately left the No-Return Pass, but soon after, a Black Ink Clan Army consisting of a million troops followed behind under the leadership of many Feudal Lords. 

They were also heading for the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land, but weren’t in a rush to get there, so the Territory Lords departed before them. After all, no one knew how long Yang Kai would remain in the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land. It would be a total waste of effort if they arrived too late and Yang Kai had already left.

As they were moving quickly, it only took the group of Masters 20 days to pass through the Divine Ability Sea and arrive at the outskirts of the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land.

Even though they had the advantage in numbers, they didn’t dare to expose their whereabouts and auras lest Yang Kai notice them. 

Next, they let a Territory Lord who was skilled in concealment go forward to scout the place.

Soon, that Territory Lord returned and told the others what he discovered. Strange things were happening inside the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land. The wind and clouds constantly churned, causing a huge commotion, but Yang Kai was obviously still immersed in his cultivation and unaware of his surroundings.

That news made the other Territory Lords feel relieved.

In the meantime, that Seventh-Order old man laughed mockingly, “That fool is courting death by creating such a huge commotion while cultivating, but the commotion gives us cover while we prepare.”

“Enough nonsense. Hurry up and tell us what we have to do,” one of the Territory Lords asked impatiently.

Black Ink Disciples never had much of a status among the Black Ink Clan; therefore, the group consisting of only Innate Territory Lords naturally would look down on them. However, the Territory Lords didn’t act outrageously because they still needed these Black Ink Disciples to arrange the Grand Array. 

That was because the Black Ink Clan had little to no aptitude in the Dao of Spirit Arrays.

“Yes, Sir.” That Seventh-Order Old man nodded and bowed before instructing them politely, “Please, come with me.”

While saying so, he took the lead and flew away. 

He had already told the Territory Lords the basics of the Grand Array and even gave them a jade slip each to let them better understand it. These Territory Lords might be powerful, but it was difficult for them to understand anything about Spirit Arrays. That was why these Territory Lords still didn’t know much about the Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array, despite having 20 days to study it already.

If possible, that old man would rather work with the other six Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples to set up the Grand Array, not these Innate Territory Lords; however, he needed these powerful Territory Lords to enhance the Spirit Array’s power, so he was stumped.

For now, his only choice was to teach them while hoping these Territory Lords wouldn’t be too ill-tempered.

Under the Seventh-Order old man’s guidance and directions, the Territory Lords stood in pre-arranged positions while holding an Array Banner each. Then, the old man followed down the line and placed several Array Boards before arranging for the other Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples to stand in the critical Nodes.

This arrangement took them more than 10 days. The old man was tuckered out and secretly grateful to the Royal Lord for sending 20 Territory Lords over.

At first, he thought they would only need a few Territory Lords for this Spirit Array, but after arriving here, he discovered that he had greatly underestimated how vast the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land was.

In the end, they used 12 Innate Territory Lords and every Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciple to seal this place up.

Luckily for them, Yang Kai, who was cultivating in the Ancestral Land, had no idea of the changes being made outside and was still immersed in his cultivation.

Once everything was ready, the old man secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He went over and stood at one of the critical Nodes of the Grand Array and with a serious expression, pulled out an Array Banner and channelled his strength into it.

Instantly, World Force surged. 

Around the Void, the Grand Array’s Nodes and Array Boards hummed simultaneously while the anxious Territory Lords also inserted their strength into their Array Banners.