Chapter 5440, The Road Ahead Translator: Silavin & Qing Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys After a long while, Huang Xiong finally spoke up, “The two Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods attacked us from both front and back, destroying a few Great Passes in the opening moments of the battle. The Old Ancestors had no choice but to order us to retreat from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to preserve our strength. The Black Ink Clan naturally didn’t just let us go, so their Army pursued us under the lead of the Royal Lords…” During the bloody battle in the void, the two races both suffered serious casualties. Meanwhile, the two raging Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods were constantly causing havoc. In such a situation, even the Old Ancestors weren’t able to reverse the declining trend. While they were retreating, the two Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods destroyed several more Great Passes, and though most of the Humans inside those Great Passes managed to escape in time, there were still a significant number of casualties. The situation had taken a turn for the worst, and even if the Human Army and the others from all the Great Passes managed to reorganize themselves, they were still facing annihilation. Therefore, the Old Ancestors had a rapid discussion and decided that the remaining Great Passes would split up into several groups and retreat separately. The group to which Azure Void Pass belonged to was particularly unlucky as they were targeted by the Black Ink Giant Spirit God that came from the Late Ancient Era Battlefield. Besides that Black Ink Giant Spirit God, there were nearly 20 Royal Lords and large numbers of Territory Lords and Feudal Lords within the pursuing Black Ink Clan Army. If the Humans didn’t think of a way to escape from the Black Ink Giant Spirit God, it would be impossible for them to escape using this route. At the critical moment, Azure Void Pass’ Old Ancestor split off from the main group in order to lure the Black Ink Giant Spirit God away. Naturally, the Black Ink Clan wouldn’t give up on chasing the Humans so easily, so the Black Ink Clan Army surrounded the Humans from different sides under the lead of the Black Ink Giant Spirit God and Royal Lords. That struggle lasted for nearly 300 years. It was only 200 years ago that Azure Void Pass’ casualties reached a breaking point where too many Eighth-Order Masters had fallen, making it impossible for them to flee anymore. As such, they made a last stand against the Black Ink Clan. The result was clear and required no other explanation. Azure Void Pass was destroyed, and the Old Ancestor couldn’t resist the joint assault of several Royal Lords and ultimately died in battle. The huge holes on the walls around the Great Pass were made by the huge bone club of the Black Ink Giant Spirit God. From that moment, Azure Void Pass, which had been guarding the Black Ink Battlefield for millions of years, met with total defeat, ending its magnificent history. More than 20,000 soldiers had guarded this place, yet less than 1,000 remained after the nearly 300-year battle. Azure Void Pass could be said to be almost entirely wiped out! Among the less than 1,000 remnant soldiers, many had been stained by Black Ink Strength and were constantly at risk of falling. Moreover, because their supplies had been completely used up, most of those corrupted soldiers had to sacrifice themselves just so that they wouldn’t become Black Ink Disciples and bring more trouble to their fellow survivors. This situation was just like Meng Qi’s, the Seventh-Order Master Yang Kai met when he first arrived at the Black Ink Battlefield. Meng Qi was the first Open Heaven Realm Master Yang Kai had met that had the courage to give his life for the Human Race! Back then, Yang Kai felt greatly touched by this selfless sacrifice. In the 3,000 Worlds, Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm cultivators were true Masters who were only found in the Cave Heavens and Paradises, making them all but invincible and untouchable. However, on the Black Ink Battlefield, such a Master willingly ended his life without any hesitation in order to protect the secret of the Void Corridor leading to Black Territory. It could be said that the Human Race was able to endure until today because there were millions of Humans like Meng Qi who sacrificed their blood, sweat, and even lives to protect the 3,000 Worlds. Such bravery should be respected by all. The remnant soldiers of Azure Void Pass didn’t leave this place but instead found a dead Universe and silently hid inside. For one, they knew they might not be able to survive if they left, and two, Azure Void Pass was taken from their hands, so they still wished to take it back, even if their chances were slim at best. Their wait lasted nearly 200 years and finally ended when Yang Kai arrived yesterday. While they were waiting for an opportunity to re-take what they had lost, they also looked for a way to solve their troubles of being corrupted by Black Ink Strength and tried to salvage a derelict Purifying Black Ink Battleship; however, after the disappearance of the Eighth-Order Master named Hai Xing who led that effort, the rest didn’t dare to act rashly. If Yang Kai had arrived just half a year later, the remnant soldiers of Azure Void Pass would have launched a last-ditch attack under Huang Xiong’s lead. Even if they couldn’t get Azure Void Pass back, they would rather die with the Great Pass than linger on in disgrace! While they spoke, Huang Xiong’s body suddenly expelled a dense cloud of Black Ink Strength. It was a sign of the Purifying Black Ink Pill taking effect. Purifying Black Ink Pills were effective as long as a cultivator had not been entirely turned into a Black Ink Disciple. The less Black Ink Strength in them, the better their situation would be, and the more effective the pill was. Therefore, Purifying Black Ink Pills were usually taken prophylactically. A short while later, Huang Xiong had dispelled all the Black Ink Strength in his body and let out a long sigh of relief. It had been difficult for him to keep suppressing the corruption of the Black Ink Strength, but now, that problem was completely solved. Yang Kai looked at Huang Xiong and asked, “Division Commander Huang, did you previously sacrifice part of your Small Universe?” Yang Kai hadn’t paid attention to it at first, but he now noticed that Huang Xiong’s aura was quite unstable. It felt like his Order would regress at any moment. That was a clear sign that the latter’s Small Universe was damaged. On the Black Ink Battlefield, such a situation only occurred when one was forced to sacrifice a large portion of their Small Universe. Huang Xiong nodded, “This is already the second time I was invaded by Black Ink Strength. I was able to sacrifice part of my Small Universe to save myself the first time, but this time… I did not have the option to do so again.” His aura was already fluctuating unstably, so if he sacrificed part of his Small Universe again, he would definitely regress into the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. Under other circumstances, Huang Xiong would not have hesitated to sacrifice part of his Small Universe to purge the Black Ink Strength’s corruption from himself, but he was the last Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master among the remnant soldiers of Azure Void Pass, so his strength was indispensable for their survival. Without a powerful Master to lead them, this rag-tag band of soldiers’ fate would be sealed. Huang Xiong wasn’t the only one who was concerned about such a possibility because everyone among the 1,000 or so remnants that were stained with Black Ink Strength had similar thoughts. None of them was unwilling to sacrifice their Small Universe, they simply felt it was better to retain as much strength as possible to launch one final attack on the Black Ink Clan! Meanwhile, Yang Kai knew of Huang Xiong’s worries without needing him to explain anything. With a slight nod, Yang Kai retrieved a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit and gave it to Huang Xiong, “Division Commander Huang, refine this.” Just as Huang Xiong was about to refuse when he saw Yang Kai take out several dozen more Profound Yin Spirit Fruits and called out to Sun Mao, “Senior Brother Sun, please distribute these fruits to those with damaged Small Universes.” Sun Mao agreed and happily came forward to accept the fruits. Noticing the situation, Huang Xiong didn’t refuse anymore and readily took one for himself. Despite not having any more troubles with Black Ink Strength, the amount of strength he could exert now was at best on par with a newly promoted Eighth-Order Master. If he could repair his Small Universe, his strength would increase significantly. After all, he was originally a veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Having suffered hundreds of years of hardships and torment, these soldiers finally attained a moment of peace and could finally dispel Black Ink Strength plaguing them and restore their Small Universes. Sun Mao came forward and whispered to Yang Kai, “Senior Brother, I would like to lead a few people to gather the bodies of our fallen Brothers and Sisters. Might I trouble you to stand guard here?” Nodding, Yang Kai agreed, “Of course. Go ahead.” Even if Sun Mao hadn’t mentioned this, Yang Kai had also planned to spend some time helping to gather the remains of the fallen Azure Void Pass soldiers. These soldiers had all died in battle and deserved to be laid to rest with dignity rather than simply being left in the nameless void to rot. Receiving permission, Sun Mao quickly led a few others away to carry out the task. A month later, the interior and exterior of Azure Void Pass had been cleaned out. All the bodies of fallen soldiers they could bring back were buried in the restored Cemetery. Then, Sun Mao and the others found a way to dispose of the corpses of Black Ink Clansmen and the remaining Black Ink Strength in the nearby void. Inside the Core Hall of Azure Void Pass, Huang Xiong led Yang Kai to investigate the situation. Since he had consumed a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit and repaired his Small Universe, Huang Xiong was no longer at risk of regressing to a lower Order, but he still needed some time to cultivate to restore his strength to its peak. Now that Azure Void Pass was rid of its external enemies, the two of them needed to think about what they had to do next. Of course, there was only one idea that came to mind, which was to head towards the No-Return Pass! There must still be a Heaven-shaking war happening there! Although it had been hundreds of years, both of them weren’t sure whether the Black Ink Clan had captured the No-Return Pass; therefore, they needed to head over and take a look for themselves in order to be sure. With two Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods and dozens of Royal Lords, there was no telling whether the Divine Spirits headed by the Dragon and Phoenix Clans would be enough to withstand the enemy. Perhaps the No-Return Pass had already been defeated. But the 3,000 Worlds were everyone’s homeland after all, and they all had to return there at some point. Great Evolution Pass had a Core, so Azure Void Pass naturally had to have one too. In fact, every Great Pass had its own Core, which was placed in the most central location in each Great Pass. Moreover, every Great Pass was only able to function as a Mobile Palace Artifact and engage in a crusade because of the existence of its Core. These Cores were the crystallisation of the wisdom of Great Experts from the Early Ancient Era. After a thorough investigation, Huang Xiong discovered that a strong force had shattered Azure Void Pass’ Core, and from the lingering aura, he determined that it was the Old Ancestor’s doing. Seeing that Azure Void Pass was lost, the Old Ancestor must have shattered the Core at the last moment, preventing the possibility of the Black Ink Clan causing more trouble to the Human Race after gaining Azure Void Pass. Yang Kai’s accomplishments in Dao of Artifact Refining and Dao of Spirit Arrays were quite profound now, but it was still completely beyond his capabilities to refine a new Core. Moreover, even if he was able to refine a new Core, there were nowhere near enough soldiers in Azure Void Pass to power it. During the Great Evolution Army’s crusade, Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao personally controlled the Core while 30 Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters worked together with her to power it. Now, the only Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters here were Huang Xiong and Yang Kai, so it was impossible for them to even activate a Core if they sank all their strength into it. Huang Xiong also understood this. It was never his intention to regain Azure Void Pass but instead to simply retrieve the Core for possible future use. Since the Old Ancestor had shattered the Core though, he could only discard this plan. “There are 935 of us in total, so although it will be cramped, one Purifying Black Ink Battleship should be able to fit everyone. I need a few who are skilled in Artifact Refining and arranging Spirit Arrays to assist me. Please help me arrange that, Division Commander Huang.” Huang Xiong nodded, “Then I shall have to trouble you, Division Commander Yang.” On the Black Ink Battlefield, once a cultivator reached the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, they were qualified to become a Division Commander. Though no Old Ancestor or Army Commander had appointed Yang Kai to such a position, the situation was different now, so it was normal for Huang Xiong to address Yang Kai as Division Commander. If they wanted to head towards the No-Return Pass, they couldn’t only rely on just the few soldiers they had here. A Warship was necessary to maximise the strength of the Fifth and Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters among them and reduce their consumption in battle.