Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Tia

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

Mi Qi slowly loosened his clenched fist and answered, "Yes!"

"This is an urgent matter. You should move out immediately." Yang Kai muttered to the side, not letting up for a single moment.

Mi Qi was helpless. He tossed the edicts to the Elders with a wave of his hand and ordered, "You heard what Palace Master Yang said. Go on…"

Waving his hand, he looked like there was nothing else to live for in his life.

Those Elders, whose injuries had yet to recover, looked at each other blankly. They were unable to conceal the sorrow and rage in their eyes; nevertheless, there was nothing they could do despite the grievances in their hearts. They were no match for their opponent. Even their Sect Master had to lower his head; thus, they could only carry out the order.

The Elders immediately split up and headed in different directions, turning into streams of light as they left. Although they were still injured, it was nothing serious and they could slowly recuperate during their journey. It was at this moment that they understood why those two Monster Kings had only injured them but not killed them. It was for this moment; they were kept alive to run errands.

This entire incident was premeditated. If all the Emperor Realm Masters of Full Sky Sect were dead, who would announce Mi Qi's surrender to the world? It was not convincing to have that edict read by someone else. Only if the Elders and Protectors of Full Sky Sect were the messengers would it drive home the point and make it feel real.

It was not hard to imagine that news of Full Sky Sect surrendering to High Heaven Palace would soon spread like wildfire, so Mi Qi sighed inwardly. His entire being seemed to have wilted considerably, like he had aged a lot all of a sudden.

"Get up, all of you. Stop kneeling. We're all one big family from now on." Yang Kai glanced at the Full Sky Sect's disciples around him, who were still kneeling on the ground, and beckoned them to stand with his hand.

All of them looked at Mi Qi and did not dare to move. Then, Mi Qi shouted, "Are you all deaf!? Didn't you hear what Palace Master Yang said? If you want to continue kneeling, you can kneel until the day you die! Don't bother getting up anymore!"

[A bunch of good-for-nothings! How did Full Sky Sect raise such a cowardly group of people!? Their cultivation might not be a match for their opponent, but there's no need to kneel from fear just because of a few words, right!?]

Following Mi Qi's biting words, how could they dare to remain kneeling? Thus, they stood up with embarrassed expressions.

Mi Qi coldly snorted, "From today onward, you may disobey my orders as your Sect Master, but you have to obey everything Palace Master Yang says. Do you understand?"

"Yes!" His words were met with a faint response. They seemed weak and helpless; after all, even they felt disgraced when their Sect Master uttered such words.

Mi Qi squeezed out a smile, "Palace Master Yang, do you have anything else to say?"

Yang Kai waved his hand dismissively to indicate that he had nothing to say to the rest of them. It was enough if he dealt with Mi Qi alone. After that, he turned to glance at Old Tao, "Old Sir, if you don't mind, how about you come inside for some tea?"

Mi Qi had the urge to roll his eyes behind Yang Kai's back. [This is Full Sky Sect, not High Heaven Palace. It's clear as day that he regards this place as his own territory now…]

Nonetheless, even if Mi Qi held such thoughts, he did not dare to say anything. He had chosen to surrender, so Full Sky Sect truly was part of Yang Kai's territory now.

Old Tao pondered for a moment and nodded, "Many thanks for your thoughtfulness. In that case, please excuse this Old Master's intrusion." He also wanted to understand the relationship between Liu Yan and Jiu Feng.

"Please!" Yang Kai stretched out his hand to indicate for Old Tao to enter. Old Tao refused politely, and after some back and forth, they entered side by side. The three Monster Kings followed closely behind. Meanwhile, Mi Qi deliberately lagged behind to walk beside Li Jiao.

The two of them could be considered old acquaintances and previously, Li Jiao even came over to try to persuade Mi Qi to surrender. It was unfortunate that Mi Qi did not heed Li Jiao's advice. He believed that he could sit back and relax if he invited Old Tao over, but who could have known that Old Tao would be incapable of rescuing him from his troubles? That was why Mi Qi ended up in this sorry state. Li Jiao couldn't help but sigh and reached out to pat Mi Qi on the shoulder, not knowing what to say to comfort him at this point.

Mi Qi sent a Divine Sense transmission at that moment, "Brother Li, you and I have known each other for many years and our relationship is not something normal friendships can be compared to. Tell me the truth, why is Palace Master Yang deliberately humiliating Full Sky Sect? I am certain I have never offended him before. Besides, I pay back the debts I owe him every year without fail. Why does he have to do this? He completely disregarded the pride of Full Sky Sect." [Moreover, he didn't give us any breathing space either. He made the Elders in the Emperor Realm set off immediately. I originally wanted to drag things out for a bit to see if I can come up with another solution and turn the situation around. But now… There's no chance for that anymore…]

In response, Li Jio lifted his head and looked ahead. [What's the point of cosying up to me now? I was kicked out the last time I came to visit you!]

Even with such thoughts, Li Jiao had no intention to continue taunting Mi Qi as the latter was pitiful enough as it was, so he simply smiled bitterly and replied, "Brother Mi, do you think Palace Master Yang is deliberately humiliating you?"

"Isn't he?" Mi Qi glared. [If it's not to deliberately humiliate me, then why did he force me to write the edict and make my Sect's Elders announce it publicly far and wide!?]

"He isn't," Li Jiao shook his head.

Mi Qi asked, "Then, why!?'

"To establish his prestige!" Li Jiao uttered those words.

Mi Qi was taken aback by those words, "To establish his prestige? Why?"

Although High Heaven Palace had only just emerged, it could already be considered one of the top Sects in the Northern Territory, a fact recognized by all. [High Heaven Palace is already one of the top Sects in the Northern Territory. Its standing is clear for all to see. What else does it need to establish? And, to who?]

Li Jiao pondered in silence for a while before responding, "Palace Master Yang wants to unify the Northern Territory."

This matter would not remain a secret for long, and Li Jiao was certain that Yang Kai would take the next step soon; therefore, it didn't matter even if he mentioned it now and let Mi Qi know in advance.

Mi Qi was shocked to the core upon hearing those words, and his jaw fell open in astonishment. It took him a long time to recover from the shock before he exclaimed, "Unify the entire Northern Territory!?" [What insatiable ambition!]

Unlike the other three Territories, there was no Great Emperor Sect assuming command in the Northern Territory. Although the Medicine Pill Valley had Wondrous Pill Great Emperor, Medicine Pill Valley did not intervene in the affairs of the Northern Territory; hence, the Northern Territory could be considered leaderless, unlike the Southern Territory which was headed by Star Soul Palace, the Western Territory which centred around Shadow Killer Palace, and the Eastern Territory, which was led by Serene Soul Palace.

Mi Qi could never have imagined that Yang Kai would be so ambitious or be so daring to actually act on his ambitions. He said with a lost expression, "Isn't he afraid of arousing public outrage and inciting the entire Northern Territory to join forces against him?"

Li Jiao replied, "That's why he has to establish his prestige."

Mi Qi was no fool. He might be a little cowardly, but he was a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master in the end. It required being sharp-witted to reach his current position. He had not understood what 'establishing his prestige' meant before, but he now understood it completely after listening to Li Jiao's explanation.

It was simply to say, 'Full Sky Sect is also one of the top Sects in Northern Territory, but so what? They were defeated by High Heaven Palace and had no power to fight back. They had no choice but to surrender in order to protect themselves. If this is what happens to Full Sky Sect, then what choice do the other Sects and Clans have?'

Once word of this incident spread, nobody would dare to resist High Heaven Palace when it pointed its claws at some other place in the future.

All of a sudden, Mi Qi didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "Just for that!? That's the reason why Full Sky Sect was unfairly victimized!?"

Li Jiao patted Mi Qi on the shoulder again and sighed, "Stay positive. At least you are still alive."

When it came down to it, Full Sky Sect was simply unlucky. Among the top four Sects in the Northern Territory, Ice Heart Valley and Yang Kai had a very close relationship. Meanwhile, Li Jiao and Yang Kai had built up a good rapport with each other after running around outside for so many years; therefore, Yang Kai only had one choice if he wanted to establish his prestige; and that was Full Sky Sect. It could be said that Mi Qi simply had bad luck.

After all, Full Sky Sect was one of the top Sects in the Northern Territory. Its words and actions held a lot of weight. The effect would not have been as good if it had been a smaller, less-known Sect.

Mi Qi let out a long sigh. At this point, it was useless to say anything else. Nevertheless, he felt a little better after learning that Yang Kai planned to unify the entire Northern Territory. That was because Yang Kai was not deliberately humiliating him or Full Sky Sect, it was just that it was a part of his grand plan.

Soon, the group walked into the previous hall. As the host of this place, Mi Qi immediately began making preparations. He ordered people to clean up the previous banquet and replace it with new dishes. Then, he asked the musician and the dancers to perform. The hall was once again filled with singing and dancing. It was just that Yang Kai was now sitting upright in the main seat. Moreover, there were no other Emperor Realm Masters from Full Sky Sect aside from Mi Qi present. Instead, those Emperor Realm Masters were replaced by the three Monster Kings and the Masters from Fire Dragon Palace.

Yang Kai raised his glass in a toast, and everybody joined in. It wasn't until after several rounds of drinks that Yang Kai finally started talking to Old Tao. They chatted for a bit and got to know each other's names; however, the main reason he hosted this banquet to keep Old Tao here was to ask him about Dragon Island.

Yang Kai departed from the Dragon Palace to return to the Lower Star Fields after causing a huge ruckus on Dragon Island back then; therefore, he had no clue what happened afterwards. He did not know if the Martial Beast Great Emperor managed to take Fu Xuan away or whether Zhu Qing received some form of punishment from Dragon Island.

It was a pity that Old Tao did not know much either. He had been staying in the Northern Territory to search for exotic beasts for Spirit Beast Island and more than ten years had passed since he last returned to Spirit Beast Island. He didn't even know that the Martial Beast Great Emperor had brought his strongest forces along with him to invade Dragon Island.

Since Old Tao did not know anything, Yang Kai did not elaborate on the matter either. It was just that the way he tried to be mysterious made Old Tao a little suspicious.

Regardless of whether the Martial Beast Great Emperor managed to take Fu Xuan away, Zhu Qing was probably forgiven for the ruckus she caused; after all, she was currently a Ninth-Order Dragon. Just going by the purity of her bloodline, she met the requirements to become an Elder of Dragon Island. It stood to reason that they would not punish her for the uproar he caused before.

Her situation was somewhat similar to that of Fu Xuan's as they had both pledged themselves to a Human. If Dragon Island really wanted to punish them, then Fu Xuan would not be spared either. In that case though, the Martial Beast Great Emperor would not stand idly by. And Dragon Island would not punish Zhu Qing if they weren't going to punish Fu Xuan. Otherwise, it would be highly improper.

On the other hand, Old Tao was curious about Liu Yan. He beat around the bush, trying to figure out the relationship between Liu Yan and Jiu Feng, but finally stopped asking after Yang Kai evaded his questions for some time. In the end, both parties did not receive the information they wanted, resulting in a fruitless conversation.

In the evening, Old Tao took his leave after the banquet ended, with Yang Kai asking Liu Yan to see him off. On the other hand, Yang Kai was accompanied by Mi Qi as he chose a suitable place in Full Sky Sect to arrange a Space Array.

At first, Mi Qi did not know what Yang Kai was doing, and it wasn't until he communicated with Li Jiao via transmission that he learned the truth and cried out bitterly in his heart, [It looks like there is no way for Full Sky Sect to break free from High Heaven Palace's control now that this Space Array connects both Sects.]

The next day, Yang Kai led a group of people back to High Heaven Palace. He was also accompanied by Mi Qi. The first thing he did upon his return was to summon everybody for a meeting. The participants were all cultivators above the Dao Source Realm; hence, there were not many people. Li Jiao and Mi Qi were included among them too. Many who did not know the situation glanced at each other in confusion. They were not bothered by Li Jiao's presence since everybody knew that he was on good terms with Yang Kai, but who was this guy called Mi Qi?

Even Hua Qing Si was puzzled. She glanced at Mi Qi from time to time only to see him smiling at her in an ingratiating manner, confusing her even more.

Once everybody had arrived, Yang Kai went straight into the heart of the matter, "Sect Master Mi has decided that his Sect will surrender to High Heaven Palace. From now on, Full Sky Sect will become a Subordinate Sect of High Heaven Palace."

Everybody was shocked to hear this announcement and many doubted their ears. Only the three Monster Kings looked calm.

Silavin: Not sure why the author used Spirit Beast Island as the leader of the East. It should be Serene Soul Palace.

Spirit Beast Island is kinda like that kid that always sits at the back of the class that doesn't really interact with others and just sleeps.