Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Jon

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

Although no one had bothered to reply to him, the fat City Lord wouldn't dare to show any signs of displeasure. As he waited apprehensively on the same spot, he listened to their conversations. Some unfamiliar names and Heavenly Wolf Valley were mentioned.

A moment later, the Masters in the hall started leaving the place and no one had bothered to spare the fat City Lord a glance since the beginning. Soon, several dozen figures leapt into the air and flew away.

It was only then that the City Lord heaved a sigh of relief as his back was drenched in sweat. At that instant, he felt as if he had just escaped from death's door.

He also realised that these top cultivators didn't come to this place for him or the city he was in. They were just passing by. He wondered which fool had offended these two great forces and made so many top cultivators come together to hunt him, causing him to be a bit anxious. After cursing that person in his heart, the fat City Lord finally felt at ease.

Heavenly Wolf Valley was situated in a vast mountain valley, surrounded by extremely high mountains, with only one way to enter the valley.

As the most promising rising star in Heavenly Wolf Valley, Lan He held an important position within the valley. As she led Yang Kai to the gates, the disciples who guarded the entrance immediately saluted her, "Elder Lan!"

As they spoke, they sized Yang Kai up and speculated about his relationship with Lan He. This was the first time they saw Lan He bringing a man back to the valley after all.

"Are they Howling Moon Heavenly Wolves?" Yang Kai looked up at the huge statues on either side of the Main Gate. The sculptures that were several tens of metres tall were apparently that of a howling wolf, weathered by time.

In the past, Yang Kai couldn't have guessed what Monster Beasts they were; however, after listening to Lan He's explanations, he could easily guess that these statues were of Howling Moon Heavenly Wolves.

With a smile, Lan He nodded her head, "That's right. Our Sect was founded based on the Ancient Divine Spirit, Howling Moon Heavenly Wolf. These sculptures were left behind by the first Ancestral Founder, so they're about twenty thousand years old already."

"They look imposing." Yang Kai nodded and complimented them.

Divine Spirits were not to be underestimated. He might appear to be bold whenever he irritated Luan Feng in the Ancient Lands, as if he was able to deal with her with ease; however, he knew that if she ever lost her temper and decided to fight it out with him, he might not be able to defeat her.

As Divine Spirits, Howling Moon Heavenly Wolves were naturally powerful as well.

"Brother Yang, please." Lan He smiled and invited him inside.

Yang Kai nodded and followed her into the valley.

As Lan He led the way, she uttered, "I'll bring you to meet our Valley Master. If you want to head to Spirit Beast Island, you'll need his help."

Yang Kai asked hesitantly, "Will it be troublesome for you to speak with the Valley Master?"

With a smile, Lan He replied, "Don't worry. He'll agree to it." She blinked, "By the way, I forgot to tell you that the Valley Master is my Master. Since I've agreed to it, there's no way he'll reject it."

Hearing that, Yang Kai couldn't help chuckling.

There were about three to four thousand disciples in Heavenly Wolf Valley, scattered around the mountain valley. There were some Spirit Peaks in the valley as well, but they were much shorter than those mountains in the surrounding area. Inside the valley, World Energy was abundant and the scent of flowers permeated the air, so it could be considered a lively and beautiful place.

Moreover, Yang Kai could see that there were many wolves in the valley. Some of them moved in packs, while some of them were lone wolves. Some of them were even seen running around the mountain valley playfully. Nevertheless, the disciples in Heavenly Wolf Valley were not afraid of them, and some people even had wolves as their companions, which went to show that this Sect was truly intertwined with the lives of wolves. Yang Kai secretly heaved a sigh and thought that the Sect really lived up to its name, as their disciples genuinely treated these wolves as their companions.

While he was ambling forward, Yang Kai suddenly felt a ferocious aura sweeping over him as a wolf the size of an ox suddenly got in his way. Yang Kai was amazed because the wolf was a Twelfth-Order Monster Beast. In other words, it was equivalent to a Human Emperor Realm Master.

However, its aura wasn't so strong, so it should be a Low-Rank Twelfth-Order.

What shocked Yang Kai was that he could sense a hint of Lan He's aura from this wolf. Recalling what he had seen earlier though, he had a speculation in his mind.

As expected, upon seeing the giant wolf, Lan He beamed at it and went over to pat its head, "Xiao Wu, were you waiting for me?"

The wolf gently pressed its huge head against Lan He's embrace as they appeared intimate with each other.

Lan He played with the wolf for a bit before she turned around and said, "Xiao Wu, let me introduce this Senior Brother to you. He was the one who had saved my life in the past, Yang Kai." Then, she said to Yang Kai, "This is my Battle Wolf, Xiao Wu."

As Yang Kai met with the wolf's sharp gaze, the wolf nodded slightly to express its gratitude in a fairly human manner. Yang Kai knew that a Twelfth-Order Monster Beast must have gained sentience and could no longer be considered an ordinary Monster Beast. Cupping his fists, he uttered, "Greetings, Brother Wu."

The wolf suddenly howled with a displeased expression, which stunned Yang Kai.

Lan He burst into a fit of giggles as she said in a joyful tone, "Brother Yang, Xiao Wu is a girl."

After she finished speaking, a crackling sound was heard coming from the wolf as its figure contorted and transformed into a burly woman. She was one head taller than Lan He, and her frame was quite stocky. Her fingers appeared strong with razor-sharp nails and she was clad in a blouse and short skirt that exposed her stout thighs to the air. Her well-built muscles seemed to contain an explosive power as she waved her fists at Yang Kai and bellowed, "Are you blind or what!?"

At that instant, Yang Kai was utterly embarrassed. [I am not at fault… It's difficult to tell whether a wolf is male or female in their beast form…]

Lan He leapt into the air and slapped her head, "You can't be so impolite to him!"

It was only then that Xiao Wu pressed her lips together as she straightened her face and cupped her fists, "I've heard about you from Little He before. Many thanks for assisting her at that time."

Yang Kai replied smilingly, "It was the least I could do, so there's no need to thank me."

Xiao Wu swept a glance over Yang Kai and gently pushed Lan He with her muscular shoulder before saying, "This brat is pretty good. Why don't you take him in? You're pretty mature now, so it's about time you looked for a mate."

Upon hearing that, Lan He was utterly embarrassed.

A stunned Yang Kai thought. [I'm not deaf. Shouldn't she be speaking in a hushed voice if she wanted to say something like this? Why was she so loud?]

A blushing Lan He chided, "Stop spouting nonsense. Brother Yang is in a bit of trouble, so I've brought him here to look for my Master."

"What trouble?" Xiao Wu asked curiously.

"It's no use telling you about it. Stay right here. I'll look for you later." As she spoke, she hurriedly beckoned to Yang Kai. She was worried that Xiao Wu might say something shocking again if they stayed any longer.

Watching the two of them leave, Xiao Wu snorted as her figure contorted and turned back into a wolf before she ran across the field.

"Brother Yang, I'm so sorry. Xiao Wu doesn't think before she speaks, so please don't mind her," Lan He said with a bashful expression.

Yang Kai put on a faint smile, "Xiao Wu is pretty interesting."

Lan He explained, "I grew up with Xiao Wu from infancy. For the disciples of Heavenly Wolf Valley, given enough aptitude, we're allowed to raise a Battle Wolf. To outsiders, they might just be helpers or tamed Monster Beasts, but to the disciples of Heavenly Wolf Valley, they're Brothers and Sisters."

Yang Kai said, "Why didn't you bring Xiao Wu to the Shattered Star Sea then?"

Lan He shook her head with a helpless smile, "There was a limited quota of people that were allowed to enter the Shattered Star Sea. We only managed to obtain a small number of spots, so Xiao Wu couldn't go."

Yang Kai nodded. He had been to the Shattered Star Sea as well, so he knew that when the place opened up, only those with Star Seals would be allowed in.

As they spoke, the pair reached a certain hall. Lan He told Yang Kai to have a seat and got someone to prepare some tea before saying to him, "Brother Yang, please wait here. I'll speak to my Master now."

After Yang Kai nodded in acknowledgement, she turned around to leave.

Lan He directly landed on a certain Spirit Peak in Heavenly Wolf Valley a short time later and shouted, "Master! Master!"

A moment later, a light voice was heard coming from a quaint cottage, "In here."

Lan He shuffled toward the source of the voice and saluted an elegant-looking middle-aged man, "Master."

The middle-aged man was none other than the Valley Master of Heavenly Wolf Valley, Tang Sheng, as well as the strongest cultivator in their Sect, a Second-Order Emperor Realm Master.

There was a Vice Valley Master called Qian Xiu Ying in the Sect who was also a Second-Order Emperor Realm Master, and the two happened to be a married couple. Tang Sheng had ascended to this realm earlier though, so he was slightly stronger.

Tang Sheng opened his eyes to look at his Disciple and felt gratified. Heavenly Wolf Valley wasn't a top Sect, so it was difficult for them to get a disciple to reach the Emperor Realm. Lan He didn't disappoint him though as she managed to reach Emperor Realm quickly, so as her Master, he was quite satisfied with her. With a smile, he asked, "Have you gained anything during your recent trip?"

Lan He replied, "I've experienced many new things and heard some interesting stories, but I haven't managed to gain anything tangible."

Tang Sheng flashed a smile at her, "Your experiences are crucial in making you stronger. Perhaps sometime in the future, something you saw or heard in passing will become a nutrient for your growth and the key to achieving a breakthrough. Perhaps even the least conspicuous of encounters will become the straw you can grasp at when you find yourself in a perilous situation."

"Master is wise." Lan He looked smilingly at him as she wasn't as cautious as when a Common Disciple was facing their Master. Instead, she treated him like he was her Father and spoke openly, "I've actually come across such a straw this time."

Tang Sheng asked curiously, "What do you mean?"

Lan He explained, "Master, do you remember Elder Ling?" As she spoke, she walked over and prepared a cup of tea for him.

Tang Sheng took a sip of it and said, "She's an Elder in our valley, and we meet each other frequently, so how could I possibly forget her?"

Lan He walked behind him and massaged his shoulders as she said with a smile, "I mean, do you remember why Elder Ling came to our Sect in the first place?"

After a sigh, Tang Sheng said, "She came here for Wu An. She and Wu An were deeply in love with each other; otherwise, I wouldn't have stretched the rules to take her in and even given her the position of Elder so readily."

Ling Yin Qin wasn't raised by Heavenly Wolf Valley, so the main reason she was taken in was that she had been married to one of their disciples, Wu An, in the past. Unfortunately, Wu An passed away in a Sealed World, but even after many years had passed, Ling Yin Qin had travelled a great distance to return her husband's ashes to the valley for burial.