C.4446
Translator: Silavin & Jon
Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun
Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys
The reason the Dao Theory Assembly was held did have something to do with Yang Kai. If Qu Hua Shang hadn’t followed him to the Shadowless Cave Heaven to help him, none of this would have happened.
Before he came to this place, the notion of eventually taking part in the assembly did occur to him, but he had never expected that he would be forced into joining it in such a way.
At that instant, he was torn between tears and laughter.
Yang Kai thus secretly decided that he would just win first place and come up with a solution after Qu Hua Shang’s confinement ended 100 years later. In any case, there was no way he would watch as she married some stranger she had no feelings at all for.
Qu Hua Shang 100 year confinement was a certainty, and no one could foretell what would happen after she was freed. A lot of things could change after such a long time.
“Don’t forget what you’ve said.” Xu Ling Gong had been waiting for Yang Kai to say that, then he turned to look at Qing Kui, “You’ve also heard it right, Qing’er? No one forced him.”
Yang Kai was startled as he felt that Xu Ling Gong suddenly appeared jubilant.
To the side, Qing Kui replied with a straight face, “Yes, I’ve indeed heard it. It was Junior Brother Yang who requested to take part in the Dao Theory Assembly.”
Xu Ling Gong laughed heartily, “Good, give him a place in the assembly and take him through the procedures later.”
“Yes.”
It was only then that Xu Ling Gong rose from the chair and examined Yang Kai, who appeared perplexed. Then, he placed his hands behind his back and calmly strode out.
[It’s settled? Just like this?] Yang Kai gazed at the middle-aged man’s back in shock. When he sensed his murderous intent earlier, he genuinely thought that Xu Ling Gong wanted to kill him. It never crossed his mind that he would be so easily appeased.
It seemed that Xu Ling Gong was like a loud thunderstorm that carried no rain.
Regardless, it was the best outcome for Yang Kai. Xu Ling Gong man was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master after all, and he was the Honoured Master of Qu Hua Shang. If they got into a fight, Yang Kai wouldn’t have even been able to fight back, so he would definitely suffer a terrible loss.
“Junior Brother Yang, Honoured Master has high hopes for you, so you mustn’t disappoint him.” Qing Kui chuckled and patted the other man’s shoulder. It was obvious that he was also ecstatic. When those scheming people saw a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master suddenly showing up in the Dao Theory Assembly, they would certainly be flustered.
Qing Kui wasn’t serious when he said that his Honoured Master had high hopes for Yang Kai of course. To Xu Ling Gong, he just wanted to see Yang Kai taking part in the Dao Theory Assembly and wasn’t concerned about the final outcome, nor did he expect Yang Kai to win first place.
The heritage of a newly promoted Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master wasn’t comparable to those who had been in the same Order for several hundred or thousand years.
Yang Kai said after a sigh, “Don’t worry, Senior Brother Qing. I’ll do my best to not disappoint all of you.”
“Good, just do your best, but don’t push yourself too hard,” Qing Kui replied in a perfunctory manner.
“Can I check on Senior Sister Qu?” Yang Kai asked.
He had never been more embarrassed in his entire life. When Xu Ling Gong barged into the room just now, his soul almost left his body. He supposed that Qu Hua Shang wasn’t in a better state either, and he was worried since he couldn’t see her now.
“Junior Sister Su is taking care of Qu’er, so you don’t have to worry about her. Just get some rest now. I’ll take you through the procedures of joining the assembly tomorrow.”
“En.” Yang Kai did not insist. He reckoned that both of them would be embarrassed if he really saw Qu Hua Shang right now, so he obeyed Qing Kui and returned to his temporary residence.
The next morning, Qing Kui came to visit again and led Yang Kai to deal with the procedures to take part in the Dao Theory Assembly.
Yang Kai stared the other party’s back as he fell into his thoughts.
He finally came to his senses after a night of contemplation. He was quite flustered the day before, so he hadn’t managed to sort out his thoughts for a while. After he returned to Riverside House however, Yang Kai pondered on the issue and realised that something was off. The incident just felt odd to him, as though he had been set up.
He was just there to visit Qu Hua Shang and find out about her intentions; he didn’t have any lustful thoughts, so how did they end up lying together on her bed? Furthermore, the atmosphere at that time had been strange and it was as if he couldn’t help having obscene and lustful thoughts fill his mind. Qu Hua Shang seemed more attractive than she usually was, and his self-restraint also seemed to be much lower than it should have been.
In truth, Yang Kai was quite fond of Qu Hua Shang, but it hadn’t reached the point where he wanted to get intimate with her.
He even suspected that he had been affected by some kind of aphrodisiac, but after checking on his body carefully, he couldn’t detect any residual medicinal traces.
Another thing was that Xu Ling Gong and the others came at exactly the right moment to interrupt him and Qu Hua Shang.
If they came any earlier, nothing would have happened in the first place, and if they came any later, he and Qu Hua Shang would have already finished cooking rice and shelling peanuts.
Moreover, why would the Master and his Disciples visit Qu Hua Shang together all of a sudden? It might be possible for Qing Kui and Su Ying Xue to do that since they were Qu Hua Shang’s Senior Brother and Sister; however, as a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, Xu Ling Gong shouldn’t have had so much free time. What’s more, while Xu Ling Gong was her Honoured Master, there was no way he should have directly kicked open the door to his female Disciple’s bedroom without first knocking.
Yang Kai had a feeling that he had been set up, but he couldn’t gather any proof. Even if he asked Qing Kui about it now, the latter definitely wouldn’t admit to it; therefore, he decided to pretend to know nothing.
In any case, taking part in the Dao Theory Assembly was no big deal to him.
On the road, Qing Kui was amiable to Yang Kai as he told him some interesting tales about Yin-Yang Cave Heaven and soon, they arrived at their destination.
The procedures to join the assembly were not complicated. Yang Kai just had to tell them his name, background, and cultivation, then he was given a token.
However, when he left, he was brought to another Spirit Peak instead of his usual resting place, Riverside House.
“There are many people who are going to take part in the Dao Theory Assembly, and the participants are all assigned to one of a few Spirit Peaks to have some rest and to get acquainted with one another. You’re going to Intertwining Fate Peak,” Qing Kui explained with a meaningful smile.
“Get acquainted with one another?” Yang Kai arched his brow.
Qing Kui grinned, “Although the Dao Theory Assembly is still a few days away, the tests began the moment you signed up.”
A glint flashed through Yang Kai’s eyes as he realised the intentions of those from Yin-Yang Cave Heaven.
The Dao Theory Assembly indeed hadn’t commenced; however, since the test had already started, the performance of the participants would be recorded by those from Yin-Yang Cave Heaven. Moreover, such an arrangement would allow the more powerful cultivators to thin out the weaker ones before the official event began, thus saving some time and effort.
“I’ll have to get to know my neighbours then.” Yang Kai grinned, “However, Senior Brother Qing, I’ve just ascended to the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, so I’m unable to fully control my strength. If I accidentally kill or cripple someone who offends me…”
Qing Kui said, “The Dao Theory Assembly is not a child’s game. Since they have the guts to take part in it, they have to be prepared to lose their life at any moment. Those who haven’t realised such a simple truth can scram back to where they came from.”
Yang Kai raised his brow, “Does that apply to everyone?”
“Of course.”
“En, I understand.” Yang Kai nodded. In that case, he wouldn’t have to worry about anyone holding him responsible afterwards.
Seeing the vicious glint in the eyes of the young man in front of him, Qing Kui suddenly felt uneasy as he wondered if he had made the right decision by conning him into taking part in the assembly. He couldn’t help but drop him a reminder, “If you come across the disciples from other Cave Heavens and Paradises, you’d better act with a bit more restraint. It will do you no good if you form a feud with them.”
Yang Kai replied, “Don’t worry, Senior Brother Qing. I understand.” The prerequisite was that they wouldn’t come to offend him.
A while later, they finally arrived at Intertwining Fate Peak. The buildings were closely connected and formed into a huge courtyard at the centre of which was a platform atop which two people were engaged in an intense battle as their World Forces clashed.
Yang Kai took a glance and, judging from their energy fluctuations, they were only in the Fourth-Order. Moreover, the two of them were pretty restrained as they clearly didn’t intend to kill one another. Yang Kai thus retracted his gaze and ignored the matter.
Now, to him, Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were no different than slightly bigger ants.
Qing Kui led Yang Kai to descend from the sky and land in front of a certain building, then said, “This will be your residence before the Dao Theory Assembly starts. The token given to you is a jade that can be used to control this building’s arrays. You’ll be informed when the Dao Theory Assembly is about to commence.”
“Got it. Many thanks, Senior Brother Qing.”
After an impassive nod, Qing Kui shot into the sky and soon disappeared.
Yang Kai took a glance at his temporary residence, then fished out the token and infused his World Force into it. Following that, he waved his hand, whereupon a gap appeared in the protective array around the building. After he entered the place, the gap closed.
A handsome young man clad in all white clothes, who was seated beside the central stage, asked the person beside him with a frown, “Who is that guy? Why would Elder Qing personally lead him to this place?”
Not only was the young man good-looking, but his demeanor was also calm and aloof. It was apparent that he came from a powerful background. What’s more, he had the air of a Leader about him.
Upon hearing his associate’s questions, he shook his head to indicate that he had never met this guy before.
A sense of wariness flashed through the young man’s eyes as he wondered, “Could he be a disciple from one of the Cave Heavens or Paradises?”
However, even if he was a disciple from one of the Cave Heavens or Paradises, he wouldn’t necessarily be treated by Qing Kui in such a way. The arrival of such a person on Intertwining Fate Peak all of a sudden caused them to feel a little concerned.
A Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master offered to help, “Give me a moment, Brother Kong. I’ll ask around and see whether I can find out that guy’s background.”
The person called Brother Kong nodded his head, “Many thanks for your help, Brother Sun.”
The man surnamed Sun appeared to be honoured, “Don’t mention it, Brother Kong. When the Dao Theory Assembly starts, all of us on Intertwining Fate Peak will need you to take care of us, so you don’t have to thank me for solving such a trivial problem for you.”
The man surnamed Kong nodded in a reserved manner, “Good.”
After the message was sent, they waited. Many people had arrived on Intertwining Fate Peak much earlier than Yang Kai, so they had either already known or met each other, forming a rather harmonious relationship with no major conflicts so far.
However, nobody seemed to know who Yang Kai was, and since he was guided here by Qing Kui personally, he naturally drew some attention.
