Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Tia

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

As for how Yang Kai persuaded Hui Gu into cooperating with him, that was the result of his own ability and charisma. Xu Ling Gong didn’t bother to pay much attention to that matter.

“The cultivation of Open Heaven Realm Masters comes from the accumulation and precipitation of time. Refining Open Heaven Pills or cultivation materials of various Orders has been the most orthodox cultivation method among Open Heaven Realm Masters since ancient times. Although this is a lengthy process, it is also the safest and simplest method.

“Naturally, there are people who want to take shortcuts. Refining the heritage of Universe Worlds for one’s own use is one such methods, but this method has many drawbacks. The heritage of those Universe Worlds that have been refined might not be perfectly compatible with oneself. If any rejection occurs, one’s heritage might even plummet as a result. The benefits are simply not worth the loss. Moreover, every single Universe World is unique. That includes the Small Universes within Open Heaven Realm Masters like ourselves. It is unimaginably difficult to find a Small Universe that complements perfectly with your cultivation.”

Xu Ling Gong’s voice slowly entered Yang Kai’s ears.

Yang Kai nodded lightly. He once met an Open Heaven Realm Master who tried to refine the heritage of the Demon Realm to restore his strength. It was just that he stopped that Open Heaven Realm Master from succeeding and eventually killed him for trying. On the contrary, the World Force released during the death of that Open Heaven Realm Master had nourished the Demon Realm instead.

“But, just because it is difficult to use shortcuts does not mean that there are no shortcuts!”

Yang Kai’s expression changed with those words and he asked, “Senior, do you mean…”

Xu Ling Gong glanced at Yang Kai meaningfully, “You had high ambitions in the beginning and aimed to advance directly into the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. Unfortunately, your actions touched on the tolerance of many people. In the end, you were forced to advance into the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm in Shattered Heaven. It has only been a few years since then, so how is it possible for a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master to advance into the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm in such a short period? I believe that the information I received is accurate, so you should have only advanced into the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm in Shattered Heaven, not the Sixth-Order.”

Yang Kai remained silent. That was not something he could hide even if he wanted to. Many people were there to witness his advancement after all. Even Qu Hua Shang had been present, so it was not strange for Xu Ling Gong to know about this matter.

“It is rumoured that there is a miraculous medicine in this world known as the World Fruit. World Fruits can be divided into Low, Mid, and High-Rank. The Rank of the World Fruit corresponds with the Rank of the Open Heaven Realm. More importantly, the World Fruit allows a cultivator to safely and directly advance to the next Order without any hidden dangers!” Xu Ling Gong continued speaking without regard for Yang Kai’s opinion, “Both you and Qu’er entered the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary in the past. Around that time, someone auctioned off a Low-Rank World Fruit in Yin-Yang Territory. That person had also entered the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary before. According to the information obtained by Yin-Yang Cave Heaven, that person obtained their Low-Rank World Fruit from the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary!

“That is why I believe that you managed to advance from the Fifth-Order to the Sixth-Order in such a short time by consuming a Mid-Rank World Fruit!”

“Senior is indeed insightful!” Yang Kai admitted frankly, “Indeed! I advanced into the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm by consuming a World Fruit!”

“Good!” Xu Ling Gong smiled slightly, “If that’s the case, then you and the Qu’er are definitely a good match for each other! I was initially worried that there might be a gap between the Qu’er’s future limit and yours. It looks like I was worried for nothing.”

If Yang Kai had advanced into the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, then his limit was the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm; however, if he reached the Sixth-Order with the help of a World Fruit, then his future limit would be the Eighth-Order, which was the same as Qu Hua Shang. With aptitudes like theirs, as long as they were given enough time, it was only a matter of time before they advanced into the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.

“You sure had good fortune to obtain such a precious treasure like a Mid-Rank World Fruit. No wonder you were willing to advance into the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm back at Shattered Heaven.” Xu Ling Gong nodded lightly and glanced at Yang Kai approvingly, “Consuming the World Fruit is the best-known shortcut in existence!”

“Senior, are you saying that… there are other shortcuts?”

Xu Ling Gong smiled slightly, “Of course! The 3,000 Worlds is vast and contains endless mysteries. Even a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master like me may never discover all its mysteries in my lifetime. The only reason you’ve never heard of these shortcuts before is that you have not seen or experienced enough of the world yet.”

Yang Kai said seriously, “Please enlighten me, Senior!”

Xu Ling Gong asked, “Have you ever heard of a Temporal River?”

“A Temporal River?” Yang Kai was astonished.

“It is an innate phenomenon filled with the mysteries of time. The flow of time inside a Temporal River is different from the outside world. It can be 10 times, 100 times, or even 1,000 times faster. Do you know what that means?”

Yang Kai expression stiffened in surprise, “Does Senior mean that cultivating inside if one cultivates in a Temporal River for 1,000 years, only one year will pass in the outside world!?”

“En!” Xu Ling Gong revealed an expression of nostalgia, “Although only one year passes in the outside world, you can cultivate for tens, hundreds, or thousands of years inside. The heritage you accumulate will naturally be stronger than others. Moreover, this is the standard process of accumulation and precipitation, so there will be no hidden dangers whatsoever. Back then... I entered a Temporal River and gained great benefits as a result!”

Yang Kai looked shocked. [I can’t believe there is something as strange as a Temporal River in this world! If I didn’t hear this from Xu Ling Gong himself, I might not believe something like that exists!]

However, he soon remembered about Flowing Time Great Emperor!

Flowing Time Great Emperor was proficient in the Dao of Time, and the Flowing Time Temple he left behind was once sealed a rich amount of Time Principles. The two little ones, Yang Xiao and Yang Xue, had cultivated in retreat for several hundred years inside the Flowing Time Temple, but only several years passed in the outside world. Hence, the Flowing Time Temple was akin to an artificial Temporal River that Flowing Time Great Emperor created.

It was a pity that the Time Principles Sealed within had long been exhausted and the flow of time in the Flowing Time Temple had returned to normal.

Looking at things from this point of view, it could be seen that Flowing Time Great Emperor was an unprecedented genius. If he had not died after his encounter with Mo Sheng, he would certainly have a place in the 3,000 Worlds.

At that thought, Yang Kai’s expression changed slightly, “Senior, could the opportunity you mentioned be a Temporal River?”

Xu Ling Gong burst into laughter, “You wish! If anybody were to come across a Temporal River, they would have gone in to cultivate a long time ago. They would never leave that place until the Time Principles inside had been exhausted, so you should stop dreaming about Temporal Rivers.”

Yang Kai was astonished. Only then did he realise that a Temporal River was something like a consumable resource. If somebody were to discover one, it only made sense that they would not leave anything behind for others.

“Don’t bother dreaming about Temporal Rivers for the time being. It is a very rare occurrence in the 3,000 Worlds. Even if one did appear, you would not get a chance to experience it.” Xu Ling Gong paused for a moment before he continued, “A Temporal River is one of the shortcuts, but another type is Small Source Worlds!”

“Small Source Worlds?” Yang Kai furrowed his brow slightly and revealed a dubious expression. He had never heard of such a thing before.

“Since you obtained a World Fruit, you must have entered the world inside the World Fruit.”

Yang Kai nodded, “That’s right.”

Furthermore, he had done so more than once. Yang Kai couldn’t help recalling that time in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. Using the Small Sealed World to cheat, he carried a group of people with him to experience more than a dozen worlds within the various World Fruits. He eventually angered the World Tree, which caused it to beat him up badly. [That incident... was truly traumatic.]

“A Small Source World is similar to what you experienced when you entered the world within the World Fruit. It can be said that a Small Source World is a weaker version of the World Fruit’s World.”

“Please enlighten me, Senior!” Yang Kai humbly said.

“The flow of time in a Small Source World is different from the outside world, and if you can refine part of the Small Source World’s Source Strength, then you will only obtain a part of the Small Source World’s World Force. If you integrate this World Force into your body, it will strengthen the heritage of your Small Universe and save you many years of cultivation!”

Yang Kai’s eyes brightened at those words.

If he could obtain the Small Source World’s World Force by refining the Small Source World’s Source Strength, then it was certainly as Xu Ling Gong mentioned. He would strengthen his heritage and save a lot of hard cultivation time. [No wonder he mentioned that a Small Source World is a weakened version of the World Fruit. A World Fruit can help an Open Heaven Realm Master advance directly into the next Order, but a Small Source World cannot.]

“Even so, the Small Source World has its own advantages compared to a World Fruit. A World Fruit can only be used by one person once. On the other hand, a Small Source World can become a training ground for many people. Small Source Worlds are one of the foundations that support the Cave Heavens and Paradises. Every Cave Heaven and Paradise will have at least one Small Source World. Yin-Yang Cave Heaven has a total of three Small Source Worlds!”

Yang Kai looked excited, “So, the opportunity you mentioned earlier...”

Xu Ling Gong replied, “That’s right. The opportunity this Monarch prepared for you is the chance to enter one of the Small Source Worlds. This Small Source World is the highest ranked among the Small Source Worlds in Yin-Yang Cave Heaven. If you can refine part of the Source Strength, you will surely obtain great gains!”

Yang Kai gratefully said, “Many thanks, Martial Uncle!”

Such a precious gift was incredibly generous. Qing Kui also mentioned that few people received this opportunity, even among those in Yin-Yang Cave Heaven.

Yang Kai could roughly guess the reasons for such strict restrictions. Xu Ling Gong had mentioned that a Small Source World could become a training ground for many people; however, the Small Source World would weaken every time somebody refined a portion of its Source Strength. If care was not taken, the Small Source World would vanish completely one day.

Compared to a one-time-use consumable item like the World Fruits, a Small Source World could be used many times, although the effects were not as good as the World Fruit, but had their respective advantages. Be that as it may, there was a limit to how many times a Small Source World could be used within a certain amount of time. That was why only the most talented cultivators in Yin-Yang Cave Heaven could enter the Small Source World.

In any case, the existence of a Small Source World was no doubt more important for a Sect than a World Fruit; after all, the former could help increase the strength of many disciples over time, while the latter would only benefit a single person.

Xu Ling Gong must have gone through a lot of trouble to let a semi-outsider like Yang Kai into the Small Source World.

“You don’t need to think too deeply. This Monarch is only doing this for the Qu’er. Since you only just advanced into the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, your foundation is unstable and your heritage is lacking. Entering the Small Source World will give you a chance to accumulate and precipitate some strength. Otherwise, it would be unfair for Qu’er if you encounter danger and die early,” Xu Ling Gong said lightly, “Besides, there’s no guarantee you will gain anything even if you entered the Small Source World. It all depends on your own effort and luck.”

“Rest assured, Martial Uncle. This Junior will do his best!” Yang Kai promised solemnly.

“We’re here!” Xu Ling Gong suddenly stopped in his tracks and stood in the middle of the void.

Yang Kai looked around but saw nothing.

Meanwhile, Xu Ling Gong formed a set of hand seals before he suddenly pointed to the front and shouted, “Please answer my call, Ancestor!”

A stream of light burst forth, causing ripples to spread out in the Void ahead. After the ripples settled, an old man sitting cross-legged eerily appeared in Yang Kai’s vision without warning.

The old man had white hair and a white beard. His brows were so long that they drooped to his chest. His upper body was unclothed and covered in firm muscles that gleamed with a bronze glow that seemed to contain an endless amount of power. His lower body was only covered in a pair of plain linen trousers. To top it off, he was barefooted.

When the old man opened his eyes though, it felt as though two bright suns flashed into existence!