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Translator: Silavin & Tia
Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun
Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys
The emergence of the Universe Furnace’s projection triggered various changes among the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan.
The biggest change was that both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan recalled all their forces. Although there were no large-scale battles in any of the Great Territory Battlefields, there were many small skirmishes throughout the lands; after all, the newly advanced rising stars of the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan were constantly seeking out strong enemies to challenge and improve themselves.
Be that as it may, more than a dozen Great Territory Battlefields instantly became calm and peaceful soon after the Universe Furnace’s projection appeared in the world. Both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan withdrew all their outside forces. Nobody dared to make any rash moves before they figured out the mysteries and details of the Universe Furnace.
At the end of the day, the Human Race had a slightly better understanding of the Universe Furnace. They had various sources such as the records written in the ancient books of the Cave Heavens and Paradises, the stories narrated by the Elders who lived long enough to hear about the previous opening, the teachings from the Elders of the Dragon and Phoenix Clans, and the information obtained from Blood Crow’s personal experience…
On the other hand, the Black Ink Clan did not have such rich sources of information…
Throughout history, the projections of the Universe Furnace would almost always appear on the Black Ink Battlefield whenever it manifested. There were occasional appearances in the 3,000 Worlds, but those incidents were very rare.
In the past, the Black Ink Clan had some understanding of the Universe Furnace too, but the Black Ink Clansmen who were active on the Black Ink Battlefield previously had been annihilated during the Human Race Army’s crusade. Even the Royal Lords had been slaughtered to the last, so how could the information be handed down to the current Black Ink Clan?
The current Black Ink Clan consisted only of members who recently emerged from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, so they had never experienced the emergence of the Universe Furnace before. All they could do was respond according to the small amount of information provided by the Black Ink Disciples and the reactions of the Human Race.
Under Mo Na Ye’s orders, countless Innate Territory Lords across the Great Territory Battlefields were transferred back to the No-Return Pass to await further orders, news that was quickly relayed to the Human Race.
The mobilisation of so many Innate Territory Lords was bound to result in a disparity in the balance of power between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan. In the past, this would have been a good chance for the Human Race to make an aggressive counterattack.
However, the Human Race did not make any moves against the Black Ink Clan and simply focused on preparing for the upcoming emergence of the Universe Furnace. Compared to the gains and losses that could be obtained on the Great Territory Battlefields, the Universe Furnace which represented the greatest opportunity in the world was undoubtedly what the Human Race valued more at the moment.
As time passed, numerous armies led by many Masters travelled to the periphery of the void where the Universe Furnace’s projections were located under the orders of the higher-ups of both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan. Both parties faced off against each other across the void shrouded by the illusory phantoms.
The Black Ink Clan was acting as though they were determined to prevent the Human Race from seizing the opportunities in the Universe Furnace at all costs. Naturally, the Human Race would never back down. Nevertheless, it was foreseeable that a massive war between the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race would break out once the Universe Furnace fully emerged.
There were more than a dozen projections scattered across the Great Territory Battlefields; therefore, the deployment of personnel and the organisation of the Armies were the greatest considerations of the leaders of the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race. Both Mi Jing Lun of the Human Race and Mo Na Ye of the Black Ink Clan had each deployed their troops to counter the other.
A storm was coming!
As the days went by, the atmosphere on the Great Territory Battlefields became increasingly oppressive. Nevertheless, the Armies of both the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race did not dare to make any moves without explicit orders from above, lest they trigger a war in advance.
…..
At this time, there were many High-Rank Black Ink Nests and Innate Territory Lords missing from the No-Return Pass…
Somewhere in the void shrouded by the projection of the Universe Furnace, located in the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield, Yang Kai finally exhaled deeply and opened his eyes. It had been several months since he first entered this place. Now, filled with energy, he slowly stood up and even brazenly gave a lazy stretch.
Several months of recuperation allowed him to recover all of his strength. The last battle with the Innate Territory Lords followed by the intense pursuit by Mo Na Ye had left him severely wounded and exhausted. It was fortunate that his physique was extremely tough, and thanks to his potent Dragon Vein, it was not difficult for him to recover as long as nobody was disturbing him.
As soon as Yang Kai showed movement, the Innate Territory Lords trapped in this place instantly tensed up in response. In stark contrast to the ruddy complexion on Yang Kai’s face, their auras were weak and unstable. There was no helping this as they could not heal as Yang Kai could in this space, so their wounds had not gotten any better even after being trapped in this space for so long.
Watching Yang Kai get to his feet with a lazy stretch, the complexions of the Territory Lords turned ashen. Looking panicked, many of them cast pleading looks at Mo Na Ye in a silent prayer for help.
Although Mo Na Ye had known that this day would come sooner or later, Yang Kai’s recovery speed still shocked him. He did not wait for Yang Kai to make any moves and quickly opened his mouth to speak, “Brother Yang, the Black Ink Clan promises to provide 30% of our cultivation resources as agreed in the past. We will not withhold any resources or delay any of the deliveries!”
Yang Kai turned around, but said nothing as he simply gave Mo Na Ye a silent grin!
Mo Na Ye gritted his teeth and snarled, “50%!”
Yang Kai put his hands behind his back with a leisurely expression on his face, “The war is about to begin. Do you really think we have the time to be bargaining about such trivial matters? 30%? 50%? What does any of that matter? It wouldn’t make a difference even if you offered 100%. I don’t have time to hang around outside the No-Return Pass anymore.”
It was enough that he had been extorting resources from the Black Ink Clan for the past 1,000 years or so, and similar opportunities would not come again in the future. That was why it was impossible for Mo Na Ye to offer those cultivation resources in exchange for the lives of these Innate Territory Lords.
“What do you want then, Brother Yang?” Mo Na Ye asked solemnly. There were dozens of Innate Territory Lords trapped in this space; however, he was helpless to protect them. The situation left him feeling extremely heartbroken and powerless.
Yang Kai casually summoned the Azure Dragon Spear and gave it a little twirl. At the same time, he pushed his Space Principles and walked towards the Territory Lord closest to him. Space rippled in his wake, making it seem as though he was walking on the surface of a calm lake. The mysterious Space that left Mo Na Ye and the Innate Territory Lords completely vulnerable and helpless seemed no different from the flat ground under his feet.
Watching Yang Kai gradually approach him, the Territory Lord tried to flee in terror; unfortunately, his speed was slower than a turtle’s crawl despite his best efforts. By the time Yang Kai reached him, he had only managed to cover a distance of less than a metre. It was not that he had only moved by one metre. On the contrary, he had actually travelled quite far, but with the folded nature of the surrounding space, that distance was equal to one metre.
Yang Kai pointed his spear at the Territory Lord and turned to look at Mo Na Ye, “One piece of information in exchange for the life of a Territory Lord!”
“Information?” Mo Na Ye raised an eyebrow at those words.
“Yes. Information regarding the Universe Furnace that is valuable and unknown to me,” Yang Kai smiled.
A few months ago, he had been tricked by Mo Na Ye on this matter, but so what if he had fallen for that ruse? Now that the lives of these Innate Territory Lords were at risk, how could Mo Na Ye continue to keep the information he possessed a secret?
Mo Na Ye was certainly decisive and immediately inquired, “Does the information I told you earlier count, Brother Yang?”
Naturally, he was referring to the information he disclosed to Yang Kai a few months ago, about how the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom had appeared in more than one place.
Yang Kai frowned and pondered for a while, then he removed his spear, “Fine, I won’t take advantage of you. That one counts.”
Having escaped from death, the Territory Lord had a look of lingering fear on his face, his entire body drenched in a layer of cold sweat.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai strolled over to the next Territory Lord nearby and turned to look at Mo Na Ye again.
Mo Na Ye did not even bother to wait for Yang Kai to speak and promptly offered an answer, “According to the information obtained by the Black Ink Clan, Profound Nether Territory also has a projection of the Universe Furnace!”
[Is there really more than one projection? What does that mean?] Yang Kai frowned deeply. [How can the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom be in two places at once? In that case, where will the Universe Furnace emerge?]
He did not suspect that Mo Na Ye was deceiving him; after all, Mo Na Ye would not dare to do something that reckless in this situation. Nodding lightly, he sidestepped the Territory Lord with the spear pointed at him and came to the third Territory Lord.
Mo Na Ye sounded a little guilty as he muttered, “Azure Sun Territory also has an illusory phantom of the Universe Furnace…”
Yang Kai raised a brow at those words and glared at Mo Na Ye. Nevertheless, he moved on and came to stand in front of the next Territory Lord.
Before Mo Na Ye could speak, Yang Kai interjected, “Don’t tell me… Did the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantoms appear on another Great Territory Battlefield?”
Mo Na Ye smiled awkwardly, “Well, there’s one in Twin Poles Territory too…”
Yang Kai laughed angrily but grudgingly nodded in respect, “Good, count it as my loss. Judging by what you’ve said so far, do all of the Great Territory Battlefields have projections?”
Mo Na Ye kept his mouth shut and considered his answer carefully. Before he could respond, Yang Kai raised a hand to stop him, “I was just talking to myself. You don’t need to answer the question. More importantly, I do not want to hear any more about the other locations of the illusory phantoms.”
Mo Na Ye sighed heavily, “But, Brother Yang, what I’ve told you so far is indeed information that you didn’t know. You’ve always been an honest man. Are you going back on your word now?”
Yang Kai raised his chin with a rebellious expression on his face, “What? Haven’t you heard the phrase ‘People under the eaves have to bow their heads’?”
Mo Na Ye was absolutely annoyed…
Yang Kai muttered under his breath, “Judging by the information so far, does the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom appear in places where a large number of living beings lost their lives? What about the Barren Territory? What about the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction?”
While speaking, Yang Kai studied Mo Na Ye’s reaction carefully. Unfortunately, Mo Na Ye was a cunning man, so how could he slip up at such a moment?
Yang Kai snapped angrily, “Enough. Is there an illusory phantom of the Universe Furnace in the Barren Territory? Tell me honestly. This will count as a piece of information.”
Upon hearing those words, Mo Na Ye finally nodded, “Yes!” Then, he added a casual compliment, “You’re very quick-witted, Brother Yang. The truth is I’ve also speculated that there is an illusory phantom of the Universe Furnace at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. Unfortunately, we have no means of confirming the situation.”
Yang Kai couldn’t help teasing, “Have you lost contact with the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction?”
Mo Na Ye was expressionless, but he neither confirmed nor denied the statement.
Yang Kai frowned again, “The locations where the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantoms appear are all places where a large number of powerful Masters have lost their lives in battle, including this place… A lot of Innate Territory Lords died here. Does the Black Ink Clan know anything about the relationship between these two factors?”
Mo Na Ye shook his head, “No. The Black Ink Clan doesn’t know much about the Universe Furnace. The Human Race might know something.”
As he spoke, Mo Na Ye secretly thought to himself in his heart, [It looks like Yang Kai is completely clueless about the Universe Furnace. Otherwise, he would not have asked so many superficial questions.]
Yang Kai did not bother wasting his time and energy on threatening another Innate Territory Lord; instead, he stood in place and declared, “What other information do you have? Tell me everything. I am a man who means what he says. A piece of valuable information in exchange for the life of one Territory Lord.”
“That makes five pieces of information from earlier!” Mo Na Ye confirmed.
“I know,” Yang Kai agreed irritably.
Mo Na Ye seemed greatly reassured by those words. After considering his answer for some time, he began talking, “The illusory phantoms of the Universe Furnace are most likely some kind of projection! It’s impossible to tell where the Universe Furnace itself is hiding, but its projection is displayed at various places thanks to its mysterious powers.”
Why would YK do an information exchange when he’s leaving and can just get the information from his comrades? Makes less than zero sense.
Yo