Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Jon

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

The Great Territories where the Cave Heavens and Paradises were located were basically named after them. For example, the one Myriad Demons Heaven was in was called Myriad Demons Territory, while the one Great Battle Heaven was in was called Great Battle Territory.

Yang Kai also found Lang Ya Paradise and Golden Antelope Paradise in the Universe Chart.

He paid extra attention to Lang Ya Paradise because Zhang Ruo Xi's ancestor was born in that place. She had come to the Outer Universe together with him, but they had been separated by the Myriad Facets Insect. If there were no more unexpected events though, she should have headed to Lang Ya Paradise. On the other hand, Golden Antelope Paradise was where the Golden Blade Yuan Spirit existed. If he wanted to condense his Metal Element, that would be a good place to look.

Then, Yang Kai tried to calculate the distance between the two Paradises and himself, whereupon he became speechless. That was because they were several dozen Great Territories between them. If he wanted to travel there without the help of the Universe Transference Law, it would take him several years to do so.

Upon that realisation, he became slightly worried. Although Zhang Ruo Xi was fairly powerful in the Star Boundary, she was still too weak in the Outer Universe. She was on her own, so it wasn't certain whether she could safely and smoothly reach Lang Ya Paradise.

Other than the Great Territories that had their own names, there were also many of them that only had generic names. For example, A1 Territory, B3 Territory, and so on.

After going through them, Yang Kai realised that there was a regular pattern in naming them.

Those Great Territories that only had generic names were those that didn't have a single Second Class force occupying them. For example, the one that Great Moon Province was in was called D39 Territory instead of Great Moon Territory.

In that case, only Great Territories where Second Class and above great forces were headquartered could have their own names. Those with only Third Class forces didn't have such a right.

Some Great Territories didn't even have Third Class great forces as they only had a number of Universe Worlds.

It was an immensely difficult task to locate the Star Boundary in such an expansive chart, and after going through many Great Territories, Yang Kai felt his head ache slightly.

A long time later, he suddenly heard someone opening the door. He immediately retracted his Divine Sense and lifted his head, only to see Luo Hai Yi shuffling out of her bedroom.

He fell into a dazed state for a moment before realising that it must be the break of dawn.

"Sir, didn't you take a rest?" Luo Hai Yi gazed at him in surprise.

Yang Kai put away the Universe Chart and shook his head, "I forgot to take a rest because I was busy with something. Is it daylight now?"

She nodded her head, "Yes."

They had to start working in the morning, so they cleaned up for a bit before stepping out of the house.

After two days of demanding repayment, Yang Kai was already familiar with the task. In any case, he didn't expect to collect any money immediately. The other parties would have to verify his claims before deciding whether they'd make any compensation. Yang Kai just had to leave a notice of debt and have a chat with the individual shopkeepers; then, he would explain what had happened and inform the other person of the time limit of one month.

Everything went smoothly as they visited several shops on this day.

On their way to their next destination, however, Luo Hai Yi suddenly said, "Sir, you have to be careful when dealing with the shopkeeper from Hundred Refining's Hall."

"What's wrong?" Yang Kai looked doubtfully at her. What was different about Hundred Refining's Hall? She had never warned him about any shop before.

She explained, "I'm not sure whether it's true or not, but there's a rumour which says that the shopkeeper of Hundred Refining's Hall is a thug who is completely unreasonable."

Yang Kai took a look at his jade slip and realised that Hundred Refining's Hall was backed by a Paradise, so with a smile, he simply replied, "It's fine. I'll reason with him if he's a reasonable person. If not, someone else would deal with him."

With the Proprietress, who was a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, behind him, Yang Kai didn't have to be afraid of anyone as long as the other party wasn't a High-Rank cultivator. Furthermore, judging from how the other shopkeepers treated him over the days, he reckoned that First Inn was also backed by one of the Thirty-Six Cave Heavens.

Although both Cave Heavens and Paradises were First Class great forces, there had to be a reason that Cave Heavens were regarded as higher in status than the latter.

Nevertheless, if there wasn't a real need, Yang Kai wouldn't want to ask for the Proprietress' help. First of all, five percent of the money he collected would go towards his own repayment. Secondly, if he sought her help whenever he faced any difficulty, it'd make him look like a useless person.

Seeing his attitude, Luo Hai Yi held her words; after all, she had never met the shopkeeper of Hundred Refining's Hall before and had only heard some rumours about him. It'd be embarrassing for her if she was mistaken.

When they reached Hundred Refining's Hall, she still waited outside while Yang Kai presented a notice of the debt. A moment later, a shop hand led him into the inner court.

Upon stepping into this place, Yang Kai felt a series of violent energy fluctuations coming from up ahead. He was shocked as he wondered who had the guts to make trouble here. Judging from the intensity of the energy fluctuations though, these people were not very powerful. At the very least, they hadn't ascended to the Open Heaven Realm. Yang Kai reckoned that, just like himself, they had only condensed their Dao Seals.

A vigilant Yang Kai lifted his head and became astounded. In front of him, there was a large area that had been surrounded by an invisible barrier. Inside it, two figures continuously clashed with one another as they showcased their Divine Abilities and Secret Techniques. It could be said that they were in an intense battle.

One of them was a young man in green clothes while the other was an elderly man. It wasn't certain what grudges they had against one another, but their moves were so ruthless that it was as though they were determined to kill one another. Both of them were similarly powerful with excellent methods that marked them both as elites.

Yang Kai couldn't help staring fixedly at them for a time before the shop boy turned around and called out, "Please follow me!"

It was only then that Yang Kai retracted his gaze and followed after the shop boy.

Soon, they reached a platform, on which a burly man with a ruddy face was staring fixedly at the battle in front of him with his hands on his hips.

It seemed this man was born with ominous facial features, so he gave off a threatening feeling even if he didn't circulate any of his strength. However, presently, the energy fluctuations around him were unstable, which caused the subordinates around him to shudder in fright, as though they were worried that he would blow his top.

The shop boy hung his head low and stared at his own feet before saying in a shaking voice, "S-S-Shopkeeper, he's here."

"Tell him to wait," The burly man waved his hand and continued staring attentively at the battle without sparing Yang Kai a glance. He seemed agitated, but it wasn't certain what the reason was.

At that, Yang Kai was speechless. In the past, no matter which shop he visited, the shopkeeper would always treat him politely and wouldn't look down on him just because his cultivation was weak. It was the first time he had been outright ignored.

It seemed that the rumours weren't unfounded. Luo Hai Yi might be right to say that the shopkeeper of this place was a muscle-headed thug.

Since the shopkeeper wanted him to wait though, Yang Kai had no other choice but to comply. Fortunately, there was a battle going on, so he just regarded it as watching a show by shifting his attention to the two figures.

The battle was fervent; however, due to both parties having similar prowess, it seemed a winner wouldn't emerge so soon.

The shopkeeper of Hundred Refining's Hall appeared impatient, so he bellowed, "Wastes! The both of you! How much time are you going to keep wasting? I'll give you ten breaths to defeat the other party; otherwise, both of you will be sent to the mines!"

With a stunned expression, Yang Kai turned to look at this brute, thinking that all kinds of people existed in this world. The two who were fighting were clearly equally matched, but the shopkeeper was now forcing them to decide a winner within ten breaths. It was no different from forcing them to use their trump cards and forbidden techniques.

Noticing Yang Kai's stare, the burly man looked down at him and grinned, revealing a ferocious grin. In response, Yang Kai flashed a business-like smile at him.

Hearing the orders though, the two people on the battlefield leapt backwards and wore solemn expressions. Following that, even more violent energy fluctuations swirled around them and in the next instant, as though they had agreed upon it beforehand, they were both enveloped in dazzling bursts of light and clashed with one another again.

A world-shaking bang spread from the battlefield and caused countless ripples to form on the light barrier surrounding the battle stage. When the lights faded, one could be seen lying on the ground, while the other one remained standing tall.

The person who had become paralysed on the ground was the elderly man, and the one who was still standing proudly was the young man in green clothes. Despite the fact that he had won the battle though, his face had turned ashen, and all his clothes were drenched in blood. Apparently, he was injured as well.

Just then, the burly man lifted his hand, "Throw the one who has lost to the mines, reward the one who won."

The young man on the battle stage cupped his fists, "Many thanks, Sir Shopkeeper."

With a grin, the burly man took a seat and gulped down a cup of tea before sweeping a glance over everyone around him, "It was interesting this way. Don't you agree?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Everyone nodded as they wouldn't dare to say no.

A speechless Yang Kai wondered how Hundred Refining's Hall was still operating. Just who allowed such a reckless and thuggish man to become a shopkeeper? Given this man's temperament, could the business be profitable? It'd be a miracle if they could break even.

All of a sudden, the burly man turned to look at Yang Kai and asked, "Brat, you don't seem impressed. What do you think?"

Hurriedly, Yang Kai stepped forward and cupped his fists, "First Inn's Yang Kai greets Shopkeeper Pei."

According to the information in the jade slip given to him by the Proprietress, the shopkeeper of Hundred Refining's Hall was named Pei Bu Wan and had a Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm cultivation, which could be considered fairly powerful.

"First Inn?" Pei Bu Wan stroked his chin, "Haha, that's a famous place for sure. Brat, why are you here?"

Yang Kai replied, "I've written my purpose of visit in the notice of debt. I'm here to collect repayment."

Pei Bu Wan chuckled, "Debt? What do you mean?"

Yang Kai frowned, thinking that this Pei Bu Wan was asking something obvious, as everything had been written clearly in the notice of debt. It seemed that things wouldn't go smoothly today.

Despite his thoughts, Yang Kai continued calmly, "Shopkeeper Pei, some people from your great force made a move in First Inn and destroyed our inn, which is why Proprietress wants me to collect a repayment from you."

Pei Bu Wan tutted, "Some people from my great force made a move in First Inn? That's incredible. Who are you talking about?"

Yang Kai shook his head, "I have no idea as I don't know the details." He had not the foggiest idea about who destroyed First Inn. The Proprietress must be able to recognise them, but he was just a friendless and unlearned newcomer to the Outer Universe. Furthermore, at that time, he was hiding inside the Six Fated Paths Bag, so he wasn't even aware that First Inn had been demolished.

"Was this King one of them?" Pei Bu Wan asked.

Yang Kai shook his head, "No."

"Come closer and look carefully. Was this King one of those people who got into a fight in First Inn and destroyed it?" As Pei Bu Wan spoke, he pushed out his face.

"No," Yang Kai shook his head again.

"Are you sure?" Pei Bu Wan narrowed his eyes.

"I'm sure."