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The cost was undoubtedly high, but for those who wished to remain among the living, it was nothing.
After Wang Chang, two more people failed to advance, and Yang Kai stepped in to save their lives one after another.
Fortunately, while the other three encountered some obstacles in their breakthrough, they all safely advanced in the end.
At this point, a total of 20 out of the initial 23 had successfully broken through to the Ninth Order, which meant that the Human Race had seen the birth of 20 new Ninth-Order Masters in one go. Including Yang Kai and the others, there were now 30 Ninth-Order Masters among their ranks!
This number was still not comparable to the Human Race at their peak, but it was a good start.
The Grand Army was now resting as almost everyone had injuries to recover from.
Conquering the No-Return Pass was only the beginning. In their original plans, the next step would be a crusade against the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
The Human Race had suffered a crushing defeat outside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction before, resulting in countless deaths and the eventual invasion of the 3,000 Worlds. Nobody wanted to experience that failure again.
Even after that defeat, the Humans had the strength to fight on.
But now, the Human Race had gathered all their strength. If they were to lose this time, they were likely to be doomed to extinction.
However, even the best-laid plans could never keep up with reality.
The appearance of the Black Ink Clan’s reinforcements disrupted the original strategy.
Before they could embark on their crusade to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, an elite Black Ink Clan Army of 10 million had to be disposed of. Without breaking through this obstacle, there was no point in thinking about a crusade to the Grand Restriction.
The only good news was that the reinforcements had emerged from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, and a lifetime of isolation left them with very limited knowledge of the current situation of the Human Race. They did not know about the existence of the Void Guard, nor were they aware that their movements were being monitored by the Humans, something which could be exploited.
Yang Kai and Mi Jing Lun held several discussions and finally came up with a feasible plan.
While the Grand Army was recuperating, some confidential items were rapidly being developed, consuming a massive amount of resources.
Half a year after the Humans conquered the No-Return Pass, Pure Yang Pass, inside the Main Conference Hall, the Ninth-Order Masters were gathered.
In front of the 20 Ninth-Order Masters who had only just broken through after the last war, people like Yang Kai were already considered veterans. Everyone couldn’t help but lament how the newcomers were replacing the old members, and the back waves of the river were pushing the front waves on.
A total of 30 people were gathered here. It had been thousands of years since the Humans had seen such a luxurious lineup.
After half a year, the new Ninth-Order Masters had just barely stabilised their cultivation. Though they have yet to fully consolidate their newfound strength, there was simply no time to let them slowly adjust their conditions. After the last battle, they had taken a full half year to recover, which was a luxury for the current Human Race.
Mi Jing Lun raised his hand, and jade slips flew out to everyone one by one. As they examined these slips, Mi Jing Lun spoke, “After that major battle half a year ago, the Void Guard scouting ahead reported that the reinforcements from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction have stopped and are now waiting to ambush us when we set out. They are currently located around the junction of the Black Ink Battlefield and the Late Ancient Era battlefield, though much closer to the latter.”
Listening to his briefing, the Ninth-Order Masters checked the jade slips and found this basic information was listed inside.
Mi Jing Lun continued, “From the intelligence we have now, the Black Ink Clan reinforcements have found out about the war here at the No-Return Pass as well as the outcome of the battle. That’s why they are lying in wait for our Army to fall into their trap ourselves.”
“This is good news! Since they have no idea that their actions have already been exposed, we can use their plan against them. Since they have chosen to ambush us, we can take advantage of their inaction to surround them and wipe them out in one fell swoop! If we are to go against the Black Ink Clan at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, these reinforcements must be eliminated first.”
“While you were all recovering from your injuries, Junior Brother Yang and I have formulated a plan. Please look it over. If there are any issues, please speak up as soon as possible so that we can discuss and solve them together.”
The group silently looked through the jade slips. The newly advanced Ninth-Order Masters remained silent, not because they felt that they lacked the qualifications to express their opinions, but because they felt that the plan was indeed feasible and there was nothing that had to be changed. They knew that while they were recovering and stabilizing their cultivation in retreat, Yang Kai and Mi Jing Lun were still working hard.
Xiang Shan on the other hand asked, “Other than the fact that they have no true Royal Lords among their ranks, the number of Masters they have is not inferior to the No-Return Pass when it was at its peak. Can we confirm there are no true Royal Lords among them?”
Mi Jing Lun looked at Yang Kai, “Junior Brother Yang personally went to investigate and can confirm this. Of course, we will survey the area again to ensure that our intelligence is correct before we begin our operation.”
Xiang Shan nodded lightly, “Then there’s no problem.”
Even though the forces of this reinforcement Army were not much different in terms of strength from the forces the Black Ink Clan had during their peak at the No-Return Pass, the situation they were facing now was quite different.
At the very least, these reinforcements did not have any true Royal Lords or Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods among them. Meanwhile, the Humans had not only gained 20 more Ninth-Order Masters, but they also had the support of Ah Da and Ah Er.
The advantages brought by the two Giant Spirit Gods alone were immeasurable. Furthermore, there was a big difference between trying to siege a fortified position and conducting a field battle.
Even if they had to face an Army of millions of elites, the Humans were confident that they could defeat the Black Ink Clan with minimal losses as long as careful preparations were made.
“Since there are no issues, let’s proceed according to plan! We have been preparing for this battle for the past six months, so all Armies should be ready to depart in three days!”
All the Ninth-Order Masters stood up to answer before dispersing.
After capturing the No-Return Pass half a year ago, the new Ninth-Order Masters were divided among the various Armies. Ultimately, it was decided to keep the configuration of the 12 Armies, so each Army now had two or three Ninth-Order Masters assuming command, avoiding the awkward situation of anyone lacking a Ninth-Order Master.
Once everyone left, Mi Jing Lun turned to Yang Kai and asked, “Junior Brother, how are your injuries?”
Yang Kai replied, “Nothing to be concerned about, but I won’t be able to use my Dragon Vein powers for a short period.” The drawbacks of using his Dragon Bead could not be restored quickly. It would have to take at least a decade of uninterrupted rest for him to properly recover, something the Humans could not afford right now.
Mi Jing Lun nodded, “We still need Junior Brother to work hard in the coming battles.”
“I know, it is my duty,” Yang Kai nodded and stood up, “If Senior Brother has no other orders, I will go and cultivate now.”
Mi Jing Lun laughed, “Go ahead.”
As soon as Yang Kai left the Main Hall, a face appeared in the void that blocked out the sky, revealing an ingratiating smile.
Yang Kai was speechless and threw a World Bead to Ah Da as he told him, “Eat less and don’t fall asleep. We’re going into battle soon!”
While chewing loudly on the World Bead, Ah Da answered him casually.
Not long after, the Space-Time River appeared outside of the No-Return Pass. Plunging inside, Yang Kai began refining resources and cultivating.
Time waited for no one, and Yang Kai was now using every moment he could to improve his heritage, trying to reach the peak of the Ninth Order as soon as possible.
After teaming up with Ah Da to slay a Black Ink Giant Spirit God last time, Yang Kai realised that he was still too weak. The Black Ink Giant Spirit God was only one of Mo’s creations, a mere Soul Clone. If he had to face Mo someday, what would he do?
Open Heaven Realm Masters were undoubtedly no match for Mo. According to Cang, Mo had already reached the legendary Creation Realm.
However, with Yang Kai’s increasing progress and enlightenment in his Grand Daos, in recent years, he faintly felt that something was off about the belief that Mo was in the Creation Realm.
Of course, he had no idea what exactly the Creation Realm was, but he knew that he needed to cultivate hard to bring his own cultivation to its peak before he could gain the qualifications to explore the mysteries of the next Realm.
He was still lacking in many ways.
Every moment of free time was extremely precious for Yang Kai in the current situation.
Three days passed in a flash.
Outside Pure Yang Pass, the Grand Army were fully armed and ready to go. The mood was solemn, and killing intent filled the air.
After preparing for half a year, the soldiers had still not lost their momentum or fighting spirit. All of them knew that taking the No-Return Pass was only the beginning, and winning a single battle did not mean the end of the war. Only when the Human Race conquered the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and vanquished Mo could they truly call themselves victorious.
In this situation, letting their guard down in any way would mean death.
12 Universe Fragments had already been prepared and lay across the outside of the No-Return Pass. These Universe Fragments were recently moved back from the depths of the void by the Humans, and each one corresponded to an Army.
At a certain moment, following the commands of the Army Commanders, the soldiers gathered on these Universe Fragments.
“Junior Brother, it’s up to you now.” Inside the No-Return Pass, Mi Jing Lun turned his head and said to Yang Kai.
Yang Kai nodded and took a step forward, arriving at the closest Universe Fragment. Summoning his Space-Time River, Yang Kai quickly turned it into a torrent which wrapped around the Universe Fragment in front of him.
Looking from afar, the surging river was just like a giant snake, coiling and enveloping the Universe Fragment.
Dao Strengths surged, and with the shaking of the Space-Time River, a section of the void was stripped away and compressed while the Universe Fragment within shrank rapidly.
In less than an hour, Yang Kai retrieved the river and reached out, grabbing a newly formed World Bead. After a quick investigation, he tossed it to Xiang Shan, who was standing next to him.
Even Xiang Shan, who was used to seeing the strong winds and waves, caught it in a panic as he cradled the World Bead in his palms.
There was no helping this as the entire Blood Flame Army was currently inside this World Bead. Heavens know what damage it would cause to the Army if the bead was to shatter.
At this moment, Xiang Shan could only sigh and marvel at the profundity of Space Secret Techniques!
He had never imagined that Yang Kai could do such a thing, refining an entire Universe Fragment where an Army of millions of Human Masters were located into a single bead…
“If you had such a technique, why didn’t you use it during the previous crusade?” Xiang Shan couldn’t help but ask.
When the Humans set out from Black Territory, they had to trek through a long and arduous journey. At that time, they used the method of taking Low and Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters into the Small Universes of High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters to reduce the cost and risk of transmission. Even though it was still considered convenient, it was far inferior to the current method Yang Kai was displaying.
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