Martial Peak

After more than ten years of hard work and persistence, Yao Si managed to build up a strong foundation for the Sixty-First Army. His hard work earned him the highest respect from everyone, and no one would object to the fact that he was the Army Commander's Adjutant. They also admired Yang Kai for his shrewdness as he managed to make Yao Si side with them; otherwise, their army wouldn't have become what it was now.

Presently, all the top talents, Emperor Realm Masters, and Monster Kings, had gathered together in the hall of High Heaven Palace, for which Yao Si deserved the biggest credit.

Yao Si went on to say, "An army cannot be established without a Standard. The army's morale lies with the Standard. Wherever the Standard leads, the army will charge forward. Sir, please choose a Standard."

All fifty-four armies in the Star Boundary had their own Standards. Wherever the Army Commander was, their Standard would be too. A Standard was the spiritual support for the army. The Sixty-First Army had just been established, so naturally, they needed one as well; however, Yang Kai had left the Star Boundary more than ten years ago, which was why this matter had been held up until now. Since he had returned now, it was the best time to choose a Standard.

Yao Si had already made some preparations. After he finished speaking, ten disciples from High Heaven Palace stepped into the hall with different flags in their hands. Then, they separated into two rows and took a seat in the middle of the hall before they raised their hands and expanded the flags.

After that, Yao Si said, "These are the final ten flags that the Division Commanders and I have selected. Sir, please choose the flag you prefer to be the Standard."

Yang Kai nodded his head and rose from the chair. With his hands behind his back, he walked up to the flags and examined them.

It had to be said that Yao Si and the Division Commanders had put in a lot of effort in selecting these flags; after all, the Standard would become the symbol of the Sixty-First Army in the future, so it couldn't be too gaudy. At the same time, it had to appear authoritative and carry a meaning with it so that others could recognise that it was the Sixty-First Army's Standard at first glance. It was indeed a difficult task.

All the flags came in different patterns. As Yang Kai went through them, Yao Si, on the side, explained to him what every pattern symbolised.

Yang Kai nodded from time to time as he listened to him; however, after going through all the flags, he fell silent and furrowed his brow.

Seeing that, Yao Si said, "Sir, if you're not happy with these flags, I'll tell the vexillographers to make some changes until you're satisfied with them."

Yang Kai replied, "There's nothing I'm not satisfied with." Frankly speaking, all the flags were excellent, and every one of them was good enough to be shown in public; however, he just felt that something was lacking.

"Sir, which one do you prefer, then?"

Yang Kai shook his head, "Our army is a little different from all the others. Even though we were the last to be established, we have the strongest collective power. So, we're bound to be the main force on the battlefield in the future, and the responsibility on our shoulders is especially heavy; therefore, our Standard has to be more outstanding than those of other armies." After he finished speaking, his gaze brightened all of a sudden as he extended his hand, "Bring me a sheet of paper and a brush."

Yao Si quickly gave a hint to the people outside the hall with his eyes, after which the disciples left to prepare the items. All ten disciples, who were holding the flags, left the hall and in just a moment, a few disciples rushed into the hall. Two of them separated and held both sides of a piece of white paper that was as large as a flag. On the other hand, the other disciples had a writing brush and an inkstone with them as they stood beside Yang Kai.

Yang Kai rolled up his sleeves and stood in front of the paper, but instead of drawing on it immediately, he stared solemnly at the paper.

Xie Wu Wei was just seated beside Hua Qing Si, so he leaned close to her and asked in a small voice, "Does Sir know how to draw?"

Hua Qing Si shook her head and spoke to him via Divine Sense, "I'm not sure whether he can draw." There was a tinge of worry on her alluring face as she prayed that Yang Kai wouldn't embarrass himself.

The Standard would be the Sixty-First Army's symbol. If Yang Kai's art skills turned out to be terrible, the Sixty-First Army would be embarrassed when others saw the flag. She knew that Yang Kai could be a little willful at times, but they had to be more serious when it came to choosing the right Standard.

While she was anxious, she suddenly felt that the temperature in the hall had plummeted as a chill ran down her spine. Instinctively, she circulated her Emperor Qi and lifted her head, only to see that Yang Kai was extremely focused. His murderous intent almost materialised as it swept across the hall, causing everyone inside to feel as though countless needles were pricking their skin.

Yang Kai lifted his hand and picked up the inked writing brush at that moment, and as soon as the tip of the brush came into contact with the paper, it began to flow smoothly. In just two breaths, he was finished.

Then, he passed the writing brush to a disciple and lightly took a few steps backwards. Looking at his work from afar, he grinned and said, "Good. This will be our Standard."

All of them were on tenterhooks as they wondered what Yang Kai had drawn on the paper, and seeing how satisfied he was, they craned their heads in an attempt to make out what was drawn.

Yao Si was beside Yang Kai, so he could see the paper clearly. His brow twitched as he wanted to say something, but soon, his face relaxed and he waved his hand at the disciples, who were holding the paper.

Both of them turned around and raised the paper to show it to everyone. It was then that all the top cultivators in the hall saw what Yang Kai had drawn on the paper.

There was only one thing on the flag, a large character, 'Kill'. The character wasn't beautifully written, but it was imposing. At a glance, every stroke of the word seemed to have turned into a blade and slashed at the beholder, which caused all of them to be astonished.

Yao Qi aptly said, "Sir, we are all willing to follow you into battle against our enemies to protect our homeland."

Everyone hurriedly rose from the chairs and cupped their fists, "Sir, all of us are willing to follow you into battle against our enemies to protect our homeland."

Yang Kai guffawed, "Good! Since no one objects, it is decided. There is only one meaning for our Standard, 'Kill'. Our job is to kill all the Demons who dare to invade the Star Boundary! We will let them know that the Star Boundary isn't a place they can come as they please!"

"Yes Sir!"

After he finished speaking, a curvy figure jumped out from the crowd and clasped her fists, "Sir, this subordinate is willing to become the Standard-Bearer. I shall tether my life to our Standard. Only if I perish will our Standard fall."

Yang Kai lifted his head and realised that it was Fu Ling who had just jumped out. She was a Seventh-Order Purple Dragon who came from Dragon Island, so naturally, she was placed in the Heavenly Dragon Division. Supposedly, the Standard-Bearer should be someone from the Colour Guard, so it had nothing to do with her. She must have an ulterior motive for coming forward at this point.

Upon that realization, Yang Kai scoffed, but just when he was about to tell her to step back, Yao Si said, "Sir, it isn't a bad idea. With a Dragon becoming the Standard-Bearer, it will make our army look even more formidable."

Yang Kai shot him a look and pondered on it. Upon realising that Yao Si was right, he nodded, "En, since you have the heart to bear this service for us, this King shall appoint you to be the Standard-Bearer for the Sixty-First Army. You must protect the Standard at all costs, only if the army falls will our Standard fall!"

"Sir may rest assured, I shall protect the Standard with my life." An elated Fu Ling took the paper from the two disciples and joyfully dashed out of the hall.

Yang Kai had only made a draft of the flag while the true Standard had to be created by someone else, so Fu Ling left to look for Hou Yu.

Since the Divisions, duties, and Standard had all been decided and settled, there was nothing else to do. Yang Kai swept a glance over them and said loudly, "All the Demons in the Star Boundary have either been destroyed or accepted into our own armies. Presently, all fifty-four armies are assembling in the Western Territory, so we mustn't be absent. All Division Commanders, after you return, you must begin preparations. At the break of dawn three days hence, we shall head to the Western Territory and storm into the Demon Realm to kill the Demons!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill!" All of them in the hall started chanting. The Monster Kings were especially enthusiastic as their voices seemed to shake the mountain.

…..

With three days to rest, Yang Kai kept his wives and parents company as they enjoyed some quality time together.

Of all his wives, only Xia Ning Chang had an auxiliary profession, Alchemist, so she wouldn't follow them to the Western Territory. The other four had to go to the battlefield. Su Yan was in the Heavenly Phoenix Division while Xue Yue was in the Colour Guard. On the other hand, the enchantress Shan Qing Luo worked under Chi Lian in the Spirit Snake Division while Zhu Qing led the Heavenly Dragon Division.

It had to be said that after more than ten years of separation, all of Yang Kai's wives had significantly grown stronger in terms of their cultivation. Xue Yue, Shan Qing Luo, and Xia Ning Chang had all reached the Emperor Realm, and while Su Yan still remained in the same realm, her power had increased tremendously. Besides the fact that the World Energy in the Star Boundary was denser, this was also because they had extraordinary aptitudes to begin with. When they were still in the Lower Star Field, they were already top talents, so their aptitudes were naturally much greater than that of the average person.

Yang Kai's parents' cultivation had increased as well, but he didn't have the heart to let them join the war. Every breath, people lost their lives on the battlefield. It didn't matter if they were Third-Order Emperors, Pseudo-Great Emperors, or Half-Saints, as no one could guarantee that they wouldn't lose their life the next moment. Given such a hostile environment, Yang Kai wouldn't want them to take part in the fighting. If they really went to the battlefield, Yang Kai wouldn't be able to focus on leading the army as he would want to protect them at all times.

Yang Ying Feng and Dong Su Zhu knew that after their departure this time, they would only meet again after the Two Worlds' Great War ended, but even though they were worried and reluctant to part with them, they didn't show their emotions on their faces. Instead, they forced themselves to smile as they enjoyed this moment of tranquillity.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye, and at the break of dawn, snowflakes could be seen swirling around with the cold wind on an ice sheet that was several dozen kilometres away from High Heaven Palace. More than three hundred thousand people had gathered on the ice sheet, but despite the numbers present, the place was completely silent.

They had already decided on the place to assemble early on; after all, High Heaven Palace couldn't accommodate so many people in its main square, so they decided to gather outside instead.

More than three hundred thousand people had been divided into ten formations. The number of people in each formation varied. There were only a few thousand people in the smallest formation while the largest one had more than thirty thousand people. Presently, all of them were staring in the direction where High Heaven Palace was located.

A moment later, a beam of light flew forward from that direction. When they saw the light, it was still several dozen kilometres away, but the next moment, it was already right before their eyes. Its speed was so quick that it had left behind a trail of light in the sky.

When the light diminished, Yang Kai's figure was revealed.

"Welcome, Sir Army Commander!" All of them called out to Yang Kai in unison. Their voices were so deafening that the world seemed to be shaking and the falling snowflakes stopped in mid-air.

With a rustling sound, the image of a kilometre-long blood-red flag expanded in the sky as it swayed with the howling wind. As the flag flapped, it was as though blood was flowing on it under the morning Sun. At first glance, it was as if the sky was bleeding.

On the flag, a giant 'Kill' character could be seen, and nothing else; however, the character seemed to have come alive as its raging murderous intent made even the sun seem to dim.

The flag was eventually hung behind Yang Kai, and it seemed to have covered the entire sky. Despite the fact that Yang Kai appeared as small as an ant compared to the flag, he was extremely imposing.