Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Tia

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

Li Wu Yi's gaze hovered across the Giant Furnace, but to his disappointment, he could not find a new title amongst the names.

[Did we… fail?] Even though he generally had a calm nature and could stare a Demon Saint in the face without the slightest change in his expression, he couldn't help staggering slightly at this moment as his complexion went pale.

Many of the Army Commanders were also whispering around him. Worry for their gains and losses flowed through the crowd…

*Weng…*

A soft sound suddenly rang out and a jade slip appeared out of thin air in front of Li Wu Yi. His expression froze for a moment, then he grabbed the jade slip and immersed his mind into it. The message left him feeling dazed for a moment, but immediately after that, a smile appeared at the corners of his mouth. The smile was not very obvious at first, but it soon spread across his face and the sound of his laughter reverberated across the entire sky.

Countless pairs of eyes turned to stare at Li Wu Yi and the jade slip in his hand which they could feel Yang Yan's aura coming from. In other words, the jade slip was sent by Yang Yan. Yang Yan was one of the candidates who participated in the Grand Dao battle, so for a message to be sent at this time undoubtedly meant that the Grand Dao battle was over. Judging from the cheerful look on Li Wu Yi's face and that joyful laughter…

Everybody felt their mood lifting and the anxiety in their hearts was replaced by a sense of pleasant surprise. Although they had some speculations in their hearts, they did not dare to be too sure until Li Yu Yi gave them some form of confirmation, just in case the truth was not what they were hoping for. The greater the hope, the greater the disappointment after all.

"Supreme Commander, did the Star Boundary obtain the opportunity for the Grand Dao?" An old man with a beard trembled uncontrollably, unable to restrain his excitement. His weathered face that looked like tree bark was flushed with an unnatural shade of red.

"Supreme Commander, just what is the situation right now? It's not too late to laugh after you've told us."

However, Li Wu Yi simply could not stop laughing. He was laughing so hard that tears were flowing out of his eyes. It left the people watching him feel quite speechless. In all the time that they had known him, nobody had ever seen him lose his composure so badly before.

It couldn't be helped though as he was just under too much pressure recently. Li Wu Yi did not dare to say that he was responsible for the survival of the Star Boundary, but as the Supreme Commander of the Star Boundary, every decision he made affected the future of billions of people, as well as the continuation of an entire race. All that he could do was buy as much time as possible while preserving as much of the Star Boundary's power as he could for the slight chance that might appear in the future.

To this end, Li Wu Yi had not hesitated to give up on the opportunity to enter the Profound Heavens Temple and participate in the Grand Dao battle, the goal he had been pursuing his entire life.

Now that a ray of hope had finally appeared, his tensed nerves suddenly relaxed considerably as a result.

It took quite a long while before Li Wu Yi managed to regain his composure. His gaze swept over the faces of the Pseudo-Great Emperors in front of him and he quickly said, "The Grand Dao opportunity belongs to the Star Boundary!"

As soon as those words rang out, everybody felt their breath quickening. Although they had their guesses, nobody dared to believe that it was true until Li Wu Yi confirmed the truth.

"Who!?" The old man asked in a trembling voice; this was related to the birth of a Great Emperor after all. The person who obtained the Grand Dao opportunity would become one of the Star Boundary's Great Emperors in the future. How could they not wish to find out more about it?

"Yang Kai!" Li Wu Yi replied with a smile.

There was a burst of exclamations as those present couldn't help exchanging glances with each other. Although Yang Kai's performance had been amazing since his return from the Demon Realm, nobody expected the candidate would turn out to be him. His cultivation was an indisputable fact after all.

When Li Wu Yi first announced that he was going to give his spot in the Grand Dao battle to Yang Kai, many people were extremely uncomfortable with the idea. How far one had traveled on the Martial Dao might not be based on seniority, but there were two reasons for their discomfort. For one, Yang Kai's cultivation had been too low. As for the other, his foundation and experience were lacking. Even if Li Wu Yi wanted to give up his spot in the Grand Dao battle, Yang Kai should have been the last person to receive the qualifications to enter the Profound Heavens Temple.

Before this incident, everybody believed that it was a complete waste of resources for Yang Kai to enter the Profound Heavens Temple. He was not even a Pseudo-Great Emperor, so what could he do even if he did enter the Profound Heavens Temple? Was he just supposed to make up the numbers?

That was why everybody was surprised to hear the name 'Yang Kai' coming from Li Wu Yi's lips. Nobody could have imagined that the final result of the Grand Dao battle would be a situation where the person who came out on top was somebody who was not even a Pseudo-Great Emperor! For a moment, they couldn't help feeling slightly dazed. Thinking back to Li Wu Yi's decision at the time, they felt as though the Supreme Commander really could see further as he stood higher than them.

On the other hand, Li Wu Yi's expression was filled with pride and glory. He had gone against everybody's opinions and allowed Yang Kai to occupy a precious spot to enter the Profound Heavens Temple. As such, he had endured a lot of pressure due to his decision. If he were not the Supreme Commander who had proven himself in war for the past two decades and whose orders were carried out without fail, he would have long since been questioned for his decision. Fortunately, Yang Kai had lived up to his expectations.

"Is it really Yang Kai?" Somebody asked in disbelief.

"What are the specific circumstances?"

"What about the number of casualties for the Star Boundary?"

Numerous questions were asked, one after another. Everybody looked at Li Wu Yi eagerly.

Before Li Wu Yi could answer, he heard several swishing sounds and figure after figure began to appear beside him all of a sudden. When everybody looked at those figures, their pupils contracted at the sight. These figures that appeared out of nowhere were the candidates who entered the Profound Heavens Temple previously; however, all of them were injured. None of them came out of the Profound Heavens Temple unscathed. The auras of the heavily injured were extremely weak and their bodies were covered in blood. More importantly, only around 10 people appeared in this place!

Yang Yan stood in the lead, and when she appeared, she felt many pairs of eyes staring at her with burning gazes. Thus, she immediately understood the situation and smiled. She turned to Li Wu Yi and smiled, "Fortunately I have not disappointed your trust!"

The moment she came out of the Profound Heavens Temple, she immediately reported the results of the Grand Dao battle to Li Wu Yi. Only then did she activate her Space Beacon to come here. That was the entire flow of events up until now.

Li Wu Yi nodded, "You've worked hard!"

Then, he turned to look at the people standing behind her and a look of sorrow flashed across his face. He cupped his fists and said, "You've all worked hard!"

Everybody returned the gesture.

Li Wu Yi then turned back to Yang Yan to ask, "Are you all that's left?"

He was in possession of everybody's Life Lamps, so he could tell how many people had lost their lives in the Profound Heavens Temple just from the number that had gone out; even so, he had to ask. How else was he supposed to accept this harsh reality?

Yang Yan nodded sadly, "There's also Bing Yun. She is currently inside Yang Kai's Small Sealed World, so she will come out with him."

Li Wu Yi sighed melancholically, "Only 3 out of 10 survived the Grand Dao battle. Haha… The Heavenly Way truly is ruthless!"

Similarly, the Pseudo-Great Emperors who stayed behind in the Star Boundary went pale. Only 10 of their compatriots had returned after the Grand Dao battle ended. Even if they included Yang Kai and Bing Yun in the numbers, only slightly more than 10 were still alive. It had to be said that as many as 30 people from their side had entered the Profound Heavens Temple at the beginning.

The Star Boundary suffered such heavy casualties in the short span of one month. Even the battle between the two worlds that had gone on for so many years had not caused such heavy losses among the Pseudo-Great Emperors from the Star Boundary. Moreover, there was one person who was extremely concerning among these 10 people who returned.

Li Wu Yi stared at Tian Yan for a while, seeming slightly surprised, "Fire Lord?"

Looking at the situation, Fire Lord of Demon Heavenly Dao did not seem to have been brought here as a captive. For some reason, he had appeared together with the rest of the Pseudo-Great Emperors from the Star Boundary. They also seemed to be coexisting peacefully with each other. It would seem that something astonishing had happened inside the Profound Heavens Temple.

Yang Yan explained, "This is Sir Tian Yan. It was all thanks to his great efforts that the Demon Race was defeated at the final stage of the Grand Dao battle and Yang Kai was given the chance to snatch the opportunity. He is one of our own."

Li Wu Yi's expression changed slightly, but he did not inquire about the details; instead, he asked, "What about the casualties on the Demon Race's side?"

Yang Yan smiled bitterly, "They lost as many as we did. Less than 15 of them survived."

There was the sound of cold air being inhaled sharply. The Demon Race Half-Saints had started off with 40 people at the beginning, but only about 15 survivors remained at the end. The casualty rate was not that different from the Star Boundary's. Looking at the situation in that way, the losses the Star Boundary suffered were not unacceptable.

Everybody then began talking all at once to ask various questions; therefore, Yang Yan and the others briefly recounted their experiences in the Profound Heavens Temple. The mysteries within the Source Sealed World made everybody yearn for the opportunity to experience it. Be that as it may, there were dangers brewing everywhere inside and the deathmatch that took place at the end was also extremely terrifying.

Many couldn't help wondering, if they had entered the Profound Heavens Temple, would they be amongst those who survived?

When they learned that Tian Yan had betrayed Jia Long at the last moment and caused the latter to fall short of victory, everyone looked at him with a much gentler expression than before. Wen Zi Shan also stepped forward to verify Tian Yan's origins at this point, drawing much admiration to the latter.

It had to be said that Demon Heavenly Dao was a powerful force that Can Ye had personally created back then. Not only did Tian Yan successfully infiltrate the enemy camp, he also became one of the Four Great Lords without ever being discovered. He even managed to endure until the Grand Dao battle before landing a fatal blow on the Demon Race. He had truly made a monumental contribution after years of strenuous effort.

Even if Li Wu Yi had been in that position, he had to admit that he could not have succeeded to this extent.

"Yang Kai swallowed the Heavenly Source Fruit and said he might have to remain in Profound Heavens Temple for a while," Yang Yan added.

Li Wu Yi nodded in response, "A Divine Fruit that was formed from the condensation of all the luck and fortune belonging to dozens of Pseudo-Great Emperors and Half-Saints… It will not be an easy task to refine."

He pondered quietly for a moment and said, "All of you should get some rest. There might be another tough battle waiting for us if a fight breaks out before Yang Kai comes out of retreat."

Yang Yan and the others nodded and soon left. After participating in the Grand Dao battle, they had gained a lot of benefits. Nevertheless, they really needed a good rest now.

Li Wu Yi's voice sounded magnificently, "Send out the order; all armies will prepare to march while bringing their supplies with them. We will evacuate Spirit Beast Island and head towards High Heaven Palace in the Northern Territory!

That was the last piece of pure land left in the Star Boundary! If High Heaven Palace fell, then the Star Boundary's death would not be that far off either.

The Army Commanders left with their orders. Once the command was conveyed, the soldiers gathered on Spirit Beast Island quickly got ready to leave. The Space Array was in constant operation and flashes of light flickered erratically.

After three days of hard work, only two people remained on the island. Mo Xiao Qi's eyes were red and swollen as she reluctantly stared at the home where she had lived since she was a child and choked out a few words, "Uncle Li, will we come back here again?"

He patted her head, "We will definitely return here one day!"

A flash of light appeared and disappeared before the figures of Li Wu Yi and Mo Xiao Qi vanished from atop the Space Array. A short while later, the Space Array cracked and turned into a pile of dust.

Two days later, the Southern Territory fell. The entire Southern Territory was eroded by the Demon Land. The flowers and trees withered in the places covered by the Demon Land and a dead silence fell across the land, as if even the vitality of this world had been taken away.

Another four days later, the Eastern Territory fell.

The day the Eastern Territory fell, Yang Xiao was ordered to quietly return to Dragon Island to observe the changes in the Sealed World where Dragon Island was located. He soon reported that the Sealed World where Dragon Island was located was not spared. The Demon Essence had invaded Dragon Island through the Void Corridor and the originally beautiful scenery instantly fell into a dead silence as a result.