Martial Peak

Chapter 1998, Sneak Attack

Translator: Silavin & PewPewLaserGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

This sudden change caused everyone to freeze on the spot.

After a short silence though, someone suddenly shouted, “We can’t retreat! There’s a restriction here that will kill you if you try to withdraw! Everyone be careful!”

“Damn it, it’s a trap!”

“Damn Star Soul Palace…”

“I… what should I do?”

Many people here had low strength but had still coveted the treasures before them, but now that they found themselves in this predicament they began to blame and accuse Star Soul Palace for their misfortune.

In the current situation, if they moved forward, the Dragon Pressure they needed to resist would become fiercer, and the slightest carelessness could lead to their head exploding, an incredibly gruesome death. The few cultivators who had died just now were a perfect example of this. However, there was also no retreat from there as the thirty or so fresh corpses that had holes through their chests proved.

After realizing that they could neither advance nor retreat, many chose to simply stand in place.

However, not everyone was like this as there were still some who had real capabilities and confidence in their strength who continued to resist the Dragon Pressure as they walked towards the Soaring Dragon Altar step by step. These masters were focused on the dozen or so treasures before them, and despite the gruelling difficulty of each step forward, they only felt more and more joyful as they approached their goal.

Snatching wealth from the jaws of danger was a truth everyone understood well. Who among the cultivators here had not experienced many life or death crisis? As such, most had extremely strong determination.

What’s more, without even mentioning whether they could snatch those dozens or so unknown treasures, many cultivators still felt ecstatic just because of the benefits they gained from approaching the Soaring Dragon Altar.

Every step they took tempered their will, and under the supreme Dragon Pressure, many of the Origin Kings present even noticed that their Saint Qi was rapidly being transformed into Source Qi.

The conversion speed was far more than what taking Source Condensing Pills could achieve.

Yang Kai discovered this as well.

In truth, he was capable of completely ignoring the Dragon Pressure from Soaring Dragon Altar; after all, he possessed the Source of a Golden Divine Dragon in his body. Although the Soaring Dragon Altar was made from True Dragon Bones and could radiate intense Dragon Pressure, in front of Yang Kai’s Golden Divine Dragon Source, this paltry Dragon Pressure could play no role.

In ancient times, countless different clans belonged to the Dragon clan, but among these clans, bloodline suppression was obvious. The Golden Divine Dragon was of the highest status in the Dragon clan while, from the previous vision the Soaring Dragon Altar created, it was most likely refined from a Red Dragon’s bones.

Red Dragons primarily controlled Fire Attribute power.

The Golden Divine Dragon Source’s mere presence was sufficient to suppress the Dragon Pressure from the Soaring Dragon Altar, leaving a ten-metre radius around Yang Kai free from any kind of suppression.

When Yang Kai discovered this, his first thought was to immediately rush up to the altar and snatch everything for himself.

But after thinking about it carefully, he decided not to act rashly.

After all, there were still hundreds of Origin King Realm cultivators here. Even if Yang Kai could somehow escape from the encirclement of these Origin Kings, which was a questionable prospect at best, he would find himself in grave danger once he left the Five Coloured Treasure Pagoda.

Once the people outside learned that he had obtained so many benefits from the Soaring Dragon Altar, he would become a public target.

An ordinary man is innocent, but treasures make him guilty. Yang Kai didn’t believe that those Dao Source Realm masters outside would not covet the treasures from the Soaring Dragon Altar. If he became the target of multiple Dao Source Realm masters, his future would become bleak.

And so, Yang Kai didn’t dare to reveal too exaggerated of a performance.

At this moment, he hid amongst the crowd while approaching the Soaring Dragon Altar step by step, relying on the Supreme Dragon Pressure to transform his Saint Qi into Source Qi while also leisurely observing the situations of the cultivators around him.

Not long after, many powerful Origin Kings were silently noted by Yang Kai.

These people were undoubtedly Masters who had fully transformed their Saint Qi into Source Qi, and when they were resisting the Dragon Pressure, they clearly had a much easier time than the others. This group was moving far faster than the rest and had created a noticeable gap between them and the others.

Yang Kai quickened his pace a bit while thinking in his mind how he should pack away all the treasures without getting caught.

Just as he was lost in thought though, a grating voice came from the side, “How dare you surpass this Young Lord, die!”

As soon as the word ‘die’ was left out, a palm print struck towards Yang Kai. This palm caused a howling and violent wind to burst form and seemed to contain great destructive power.

Yang Kai’s complexion instantly sank as he raised his own hand and palmed in response.

*Pa…*

With a light thump, the two violent palms collided with one another and released a powerful shockwave.

Yang Kai’s body shook slightly but he remained standing in place while on the contrary, his attacker gave out a shout as he was unable to resist Yang Kai’s blow and was on the verge of being blown away.

The man’s face changed drastically in the next instant, draining of all colour and blood.

After all, the cultivators that had tried to retreat earlier had all been shot through by the light beams the Soaring Dragon Altar shot out. He was not sure whether he would receive the same treatment if he was forced backwards.

If that really happened, he did not have confidence he could withstand the attack from the Soaring Dragon Altar.

Realizing this, he grit his teeth and actually forced himself into the ground like a wooden stake.

He would rather let the force from Yang Kai’s blow wreak havoc inside his body rather than be forced backwards.

*Pa pa pa…*

There was a series of popping sounds as this man’s face turned pale and blood began overflowing from his mouth and nose, turning his appearance hideous.

“Young Lord!” Someone shouted and hurried forward and pressed his hand against this half-buried man’s back, circulating his strength to resolve the last remnants of Yang Kai’s strike, allowing the half-buried man to finally stand firm.

Yang Kai finally looked back and saw a familiar face, grinning as he snickered, “So it is Young Master Jiang…”

The person who attacked him was surprisingly Jiang Chu He, who had riled up the crowd before.

When Yang Kai saw him for the first time, he felt this Jiang Chu He gave off a scholarly and upright aura, befitting his status as the Young Lord of a big family, but after watching him manipulate the crowd into pressuring Qin Yu, Yang Kai understood that this person was a sinister trickster who was both petty and manipulative.

In short, the type Yang Kai most despised!

Even just now, it seemed Jiang Chu He had only attacked him because Yang Kai had managed to overtake his progress.

“Who is Your Excellency?”

Jiang Chu He had suffered a big loss just now and nearly encountered a fatal disaster, so while he bore extreme hatred towards Yang Kai in his heart, he was equally fearful of him. He had never expected that he would be unable to even withstand a single move from another Origin King.

And in the situation just now, it was clear that the other party had only used a casual blow rather than his real strength. Didn’t that mean that if this was a life or death battle, he wouldn’t be able to resist at all?

[Is he some kind of monster?] Jiang Chu He felt a deep sense of fright.

Since when did Maplewood City have such a genius?

“Who am I?” Yang Kai grinned, “Young Master Jiang only needs to know there are some he cannot afford to offend.”

Seeing Yang Kai’s shameless boasting, Jiang Chu He flashed an unconvinced expression on his face, but after thinking about it, he realized that this young man might be from some outside great force. After all, Maplewood City currently had many masters gathered from around the Southern Territory.

Considering all this, Jiang Chu He’s expression turned solemn as he cupped his fists and said, “This Jiang previously committed an offence and asks Your Excellency not to take it to heart.”

“Seems you still have some sense. It’s fine, since it is your first offence, I will let it pass,” Yang Kai smiled coldly before turning around and ignoring Jiang Chu He as he walked off.

Jiang Chu He stared at his back, his face turning blue, then red while trying to suppress his own injuries and simultaneously resist the supreme Dragon Pressure in the air, making his situation quite difficult.

At the very back of the crowd, Qin Yu walked forward slowly, accompanied by her many guards. This couldn’t be helped as her strength was truly quite low here, so she was unable to advance as quickly as the others.

But it was precisely because of this that she was able to witness this scene just now.

“This person… What is his background?” Qin Yu frowned.

As a cultivator of Maplewood City, Qin Yu, naturally, knew what kind of strength Jiang Chu He possessed. Although Jiang Chu He’s aptitude wasn’t the best, he had the resources of the Jiang Family backing him, and after many years of cultivation, he had already reached the peak of the Third-Order Origin King Realm and fully transformed his Saint Qi into Source Qi.

In short, even if Jiang Chu He was not invincible in the Origin King Realm, he was not someone who could be injured with a single move from a cultivator in the same realm.

But someone had accomplished just that.

While this surprised Qin Yu, it also piqued her interest in Yang Kai.

“Young Lady, is there something about that man that is of interest?” When a guard saw Qin Yu staring at Yang Kai, he couldn’t help asking.

“Have any of you met this man before or know of his origins?” Qin Yu asked softly.

All the guards shook their heads, indicating they had never met Yang Kai before.

The guard who spoke earlier followed up, “If Young Lady wants to know, subordinates will make some inquiries after the Five Coloured Treasure Pagoda closes.”

Qin Yu nodded, “Remember to just inquire, do not offend him.”

“Yes.”

…

Near the Soaring Dragon Altar, the gap between everyone’s strength gradually became clear as time passed. Although everyone here was basically an Origin King, and many had reached the Third-Order, those who were strong and those who were weak were quickly separated under the pressure of the Soaring Dragon Altar.

Those who had superior will, perseverance, and strength were able to approach closer faster.

The rest lagged behind.

For a time, hundreds of cultivators became divided into several rings with Soaring Dragon Altar as the core, all of whom were desperately trying to get closer to the centre.

In the first ring, there were roughly forty Third-Order Origin Kings who had only a small gap between each of them. It was foreseeable that if nothing happened, these forty masters would reach the Soaring Dragon Altar first. As for the second, third, and even further out rings, these people had no hope of obtaining anything.

However, these people did not dare to retreat, as that would be courting death, so they could only grit their teeth and march forward.

During this period, more and more cultivators died violently because they were unable to bear the intense Dragon Pressure. Within a radius of several hundred metres of the Soaring Dragon Altar, there were now a few hundred headless corpses littering the ground, making for a horrifying scene.