At the entrance of the Plain Palace, Yang Kai walked over to a small hill and stared down at the cold corpse, a trace of sadness flashing across his eyes. At this moment, this corpse was wrapped in a layer of ice, so even after several days, the corpse showed no signs of damage, nor was it bitten by any wild beasts.
The fatal wound on her chest was caused by a sharp blade, but from this wound, it was obvious that she had not suffered any pain before her death, but her eyes were filled with fear and helplessness.
“Palace Master!” Hua Qingsi stepped forward and called out softly.
“Why are you here?” Yang Kai asked as he squatted down and brushed his hand over the cold corpse. The ice immediately melted as he gently closed her eyes and smoothed her hair.
“Elder Ji asked me to stand guard here,” Hua Qingsi replied as she quietly observed Yang Kai’s expression, knowing that Ji Yao was right. The Palace Master really did know this dead woman, but seeing the guilt and grief on Yang Kai’s face, it seemed that their relationship was not ordinary, but neither was it to the extent of a romantic relationship.
Yang Kai nodded. When Ji Yao had accompanied him to break open the Plain Palace's Sect Protection Array and rush in, he had also noticed that Ji Yao had used a Secret Technique to freeze Yu Zhuo's corpse. However, at that time, the battle was imminent, so he didn’t have the time to waste. It was only after everything was settled that he had the time to investigate.
The dead were gone, but the voice and smile on her face continued to grow in his mind. If she hadn’t died here, with Yu Zhuo’s performance at the Martial Meeting, there would have been a high chance she would have been able to break through to the Emperor Realm in the future. However, on the road of martial arts, one had to overcome many obstacles, and the slightest mistake would result in one’s soul being destroyed.
In fact, they didn’t have much of a friendship. This time, the Southern Domain had lost twenty or thirty thousand people, and even more than a third of the Azure Sun Temple’s disciples had died, but the only one who made Yang Kai feel pity and heartache was her.
What a strange feeling. Looking at the person in front of him, Yang Kai could recall the day he refused to see her, when she suddenly turned around and waved at him. No one would have thought that the moment she turned around, it would be forever.
“Palace Master, those people over there are her fellow disciples. They want to bury her corpse to rest,” Hua Qingsi waited for a long time, but when she saw that Yang Kai still didn’t respond, she spoke up.
Yang Kai looked up and saw a dozen or so people standing not too far away. The one in the lead was a young woman who looked to be in her thirties, and behind her was a group of women, each of them wearing a bleak expression while a few of the younger ones were gently sobbing.
“Please call them over,” Yang Kai nodded.
“Yes,” Hua Qing Si replied before walking over to the woman and saying a few words before bringing the dozen people over.
“RakshasaSect’s Qin Pei greets Elder Yang,” The young woman bowed and swept her eyes over Yu Zhuo’s corpse, her eyes immediately reddening. At least Yang Kai was right in front of her, so she didn’t immediately cry.
Yang Kai swept his eyes over everyone and found that among these dozen or so people, Qin Pei’s cultivation was the highest. She was only a Second-Order Principle Source Stage cultivator while the others were only 1st order Principle Source Stage cultivators. The rest were Void King Realm and Void Return Stage cultivators.
“Are you Yu Zhuo’s fellow disciples?” Yang Kai asked.
Qin Pei nodded, “Yes, I am Yu Zhuo’s Senior Sister.”
“Where’s your Sect Master?” Yang Kai looked at her. Although Rakshasa Sect was not a very powerful Sect in the Southern Domain, Yang Kai remembered that they had an Emperor Realm Sect Master, and this time it was their Sect Master who had led them to participate in the Martial Meeting.
Qin Pei lowered her head and sobbed, “Sect Master also fell.”
As soon as these words came out, the women who were sobbing couldn’t help crying. Rakshasa Sect was a woman’s Sect, as long as it was a woman’s Sect, it would attract the attention of many. It was inevitable that some lecherous people would try to take advantage of them. In the past, with an Emperor Realm Sect Master presiding over the Sect and a marriage alliance with the surrounding Sects and families, it had been relatively safe. Now that the Sect Master had died so tragically and one of the only two 2nd order Principle Source Stage masters had died here, it could be said that their foundation had been damaged. In the future, it would be difficult for Rakshasa Sect to establish a foothold in the Southern Domain. As long as news of this spread, the fate of the many female disciples of Rakshasa Sect would be bleak. Thinking about the future, how could the group of women hold back their grief?
Yang Kai was silent.
Qin Pei took out a cloth bag from her Space Ring and handed it to Yang Kai.
“This is…” Yang Kai looked at her suspiciously.
Qin Pei wiped away her tears and forced a smile, “Junior Sister Yu Zhuo asked me to collect some seeds a few days ago to give them to you. I collected them a little late so I didn’t have time to give them to her.”
Yang Kai pursed his lips and reached out to take the cloth bag, feeling that it was extremely heavy.
Qin Pei continued, “Junior Sister Yu Zhuo admires Elder Yang a lot. A while ago…” As she spoke, she couldn’t continue, covering her mouth and sobbing. The dozen or so women behind her also began to cry in grief.
Hua Qingsi was also quite upset by this scene, her eyes turning red.
After a while, Qin Pei calmed down, took a deep breath, and smiled, “Junior Sister Yu Zhuo is truly fortunate to be able to meet Elder Yang before her death.”
Yang Kai’s grip on the cloth bag tightened slightly as he felt his chest tighten.
Qin Pei continued, “If Elder Yang doesn’t mind, I would like to bring Junior Sister’s body back to the Sect for burial.”
Yang Kai nodded lightly, speechless.
Qin Pei squatted down and gently stroked Yu Zhuo’s head before storing her corpse into her Space Ring.
“Many thanks, Elder Yang!” Qin Pei Fu bowed and prepared to leave with her fellow disciples.
“Wait a moment,” Yang Kai called out to her.
Qin Pei turned around and asked, “Does Elder Yang have any other instructions?”
“What plans do you have in the future?” Yang Kai looked at her and asked.
A trace of confusion flashed across Qin Pei’s eyes as she shook her head. These past few days, she had also thought about this problem. With the Sect Master dead, what should the thousands of disciples of Rakshasa Sect do? Currently, the only one with the highest cultivation in the Sect was a Third-Order Principle Source Stage Elder who had remained behind to guard the Sect. Such a force was simply not enough to protect the foundation of Rakshasa Sect. Although there had been many sects and families who had been married to Rakshasa Sect, without the deterrence of an Emperor Realm master, the people who had been married to them would probably want to swallow up Rakshasa Sect more than anyone else, so how could they protect them?
The future fate of Rakshasa Sect could already be foreseen, unless they were able to pull in powerful external help, but if they didn’t know their roots, even if they managed to pull in external help, it would be like inviting a wolf into their home. All of these considerations made the future of Rakshasa Sect bleak.
“Do you want to revive your Sect or join another family?” Yang Kai asked, “If it’s the latter, I can introduce you to any Sect in the Southern Domain or the Northern Domain. The choices in the Southern Domain are limited, but you can choose any Sect in the Northern Domain.”
Qin Pei’s eyes lit up, “Elder Yang is willing to help my Rakshasa Sect?”
Yang Kai said, “Yu Zhuo and I are… friends. Although she has gone, her Sect is in trouble, so I can’t just sit back and watch.”
Receiving such an affirmative answer, Qin Pei couldn’t contain her joy, and the dozen or so Rakshasa Sect disciples also stared at Yang Kai in disbelief. In their eyes, the Emperor Realm masters were always high and mighty, and unless one was an Emperor Realm, they had no qualifications to speak with them on equal terms. This was also why they had been standing far away, not daring to step forward.
Because Hua Qingsi, who was guarding Yu Zhuo’s corpse, was an Emperor Profound Realm master.
Although the Sect Master was kind and amiable when she was alive, with the dignity of an Emperor Realm, no one dared to act presumptuously in front of her.
The First-Order Emperor Realm was like this, let alone the Second-Order and Third-Order Realm, and this Elder Yang was an Elder of the Azure Sun Temple, so his status was even higher than an ordinary First-Order Emperor Realm master’s. Therefore, when Qin Pei spoke to Yang Kai just now, she had been a bit cautious, but who would have thought that the other party would be so friendly, actually calling him a friend of Yu Zhuo.
The word “friend” carried too much weight. Which Emperor Realm master would be willing to be friends with a Principle Source Stage master? Even if there were, it was extremely rare. If Yu Zhuo heard this, she would be overjoyed.
Thinking of Yu Zhuo, Qin Pei’s expression became filled with sorrow as she firmly declared, “We want to restore our Sect!”
Rakshasa Sect was the place where they grew up, the home of a group of women. If they could restore it, who would be willing to abandon their home?
The group of women behind her also nodded vigorously.
“Is that so…” Yang Kai pondered for a moment before asking, “Has your Rakshasa Sect ever hired a Guest Elder?”
Qin Pei shook her head. The Rakshasa Sect only had one Emperor Realm master, if they really wanted to hire a guest Elder, they would have to choose a Emperor Realm master. However, most Emperor Realm had their own Sects, so who would go to the Rakshasa Sect to become a guest Elder? And there was no need to hire a Principle Source Stage master.
“Hire me, from now on I’ll be a guest Elder of Rakshasa Sect,” Yang Kai squeezed out a smile.
Qin Pei was immediately stunned. Listening to Yang Kai’s words just now, she knew that Yang Kai intended to help them restore their Sect, but she hadn’t expected him to use such a method. In her opinion, Yang Kai would at most announce to the outside world that he was protecting her sect so that some people who harbored malicious intentions would not act rashly. She had never imagined that Yang Kai would actually be willing to lower himself and become a guest Elder of Rakshasa Sect.
This was a Guest Elder, so even if he was given the title of Guest Elder, it was equivalent to having the mark of Rakshasa Sect imprinted on him. If Rakshasa Sect were to encounter any trouble in the future, how could Yang Kai not help?
Seeing Qin Pei remain silent, Yang Kai rubbed his nose and asked, “Is it that your Rakshasa Sect only allows women to exist? If so, I can recommend someone to you. Her cultivation is no worse than mine.” He was naturally referring to Ji Yao, he believed that she would be willing to help him.
“No, no!” Qin Pei quickly waved her hand. What kind of joke was this? Even if the Rakshasa Sect really had such a rule, at this moment, it was no longer so. What kind of person was Yang Kai? The greatest contributor to this event in the Plain Palace who was able to easily command more than two hundred Emperor Realm, more than thirty Monster Kings, and three Holy Spirits. Not to mention that he was an Emperor Realm master, even if he wasn’t, no one in this world would dare look down on him. With him as the guest Elder of the Rakshasa Sect, who would dare act rashly?
TO BE CONTINUED...
Martial Peak