Chapter 822, You Stubborn Old Fart
Inside the jungle, Ruan Xin Yu, who was following the path back the gathering point, indignantly grumbled, “You fool, since you finally got to see him again, why did you just leave like that?”
“Isn’t he alive and well? What else was I supposed to do?” Yun Xuan smiled lightly.
“Are you alright with this?” Ruan Xin Yu asked, feeling bitter in her heart.
“En, I’m fine with it,” Yun Xuan replied with a relaxed and indifferent look upon her face, “He is not someone I can hope to be with anymore, even if I try to stay by his side, I’ll only be a burden to him. Since that’s the case, I might as well end things now and just leave it as a fond memory. That’s more than enough.”
“You won’t regret this in the future?” Ruan Xin Yu asked.
“There’s nothing to regret.”
“Forget it, do whatever you want, it’s your own business, just don’t come crying to me later saying you failed to grasp today’s once in a lifetime opportunity.”
“I won’t!” Yun Xuan said faintly, glancing back briefly before returning her gaze forward again. A tear gathering at the corner of her eye as her heart became clearer about what was in that man’s mind. She, more than anyone else in the world, understood that she was just a passer-by. If that wasn’t the case, he would definitely have chased after her.
…..
After Yang Kai returned to Nine Heavens Holy Land, he immediately called Xu Hui and the other Elders over.
“Holy Master, according to your instructions, all the disciples have made preparations to evacuate and are ready to depart!” Xu Hui cupped his fists and reported.
Yang Kai nodded, “Come with me!”
No one knew where he was going or what he was planning to do, but none of them asked any questions and simply followed behind Yang Kai.
Shuttling through the nine peaks, a moment later, Yang Kai arrived in front of a large smooth stone surrounded by carvings of dragons and phoenixes, and was engraved with the words ‘Holy Tomb’.
The Holy Tomb was the restricted area where all former Holy Masters of Nine Heavens Holy Land were buried. Arriving here, the looks on all of the Elders and Protectors’ faces became respectful.
“You’ve all been wondering where I plan to place the Holy Land’s thousands of disciples, do you still need to ask now?” Yang Kai stood in front of the giant stone and smiled back at everyone.
After a brief moment of confusion, all of them suddenly understood.
Xu Hui stuttered to ask, “Holy Master, the place you mentioned, it couldn’t be…”
“Besides here, can you think of anywhere else?” Yang Kai nodded lightly, “The Holy Tomb is without a doubt the best option.”
“We cannot!” Xu Hui’s expression changed greatly, “This is the sacred ground where all the Holy Land’s Holy Masters are entombed, how could we possibly disturb their eternal rest?”
“Those who are dead are gone. There is nothing we can do that will disturb them,” Yang Kai shook his head.
“The Holy Land has its customs, no one other than the Holy Master and the Saintesses may enter the Holy Tomb!”
“Customs are dead, people are alive, please be flexible Great Elder,” Yang Kai persuaded.
“While that may be true… No, this really will not do! If we were to enter the Holy Tomb, blatantly violating the customs and traditions passed down by our ancestors, what face would we have left in front of the Holy Land’s future disciples?”
“You stubborn old fart…” Yang Kai began losing his patience, turning his eyes to the rest of the Elders and asking, “What do you think?”
Shi Kun wore a difficult expression and quickly averted his eyes.
Meng Tian Fei and Luo Sheng also did not express their opinions.
Cheng Yue Tong opened her lips and tried to say something but quickly stopped herself.
“A group of wastes!” Yu Ying coldly snorted, solemnly saying, “Holy Master, although Great Elder is indeed somewhat stubborn and inflexible, in this case, I believe he is right.”
“You also think so?” Yang Kai stared blankly at this beautiful woman.
Yu Ying nodded firmly.
Yang Kai rubbed his forehead in frustration before turning to the last person present, “An Ling’er…”
“Don’t ask me, I’m just an ignorant little girl, I don’t know anything,” An Ling’er quickly pretended it was none of her business.
Yang Kai gawked at her for a moment before clenching his teeth. She was the only one he had counted on siding with him, yet she had actually abandoned him at this critical juncture.
“Is there really no way?” Yang Kai turned his eyes back to Xu Hui and asked solemnly.
“If it was any other matter, having received Holy Master’s command, even if this old master had to offer up his life, I would not hesitate, it’s just… regarding this…” Xu Hui stuttered, his expression filled with a mix of unwavering loyalty and guilt, as if he truly wished to obey Yang Kai’s command yet was simply incapable of doing so.
“Good!” Yang Kai interrupted him before he finished, “Then I wish all of you good luck, in two or three days, Zhang Ao will return and the Beast Sea Jungle’s Great Senior will bring the masters of the Monster Race here, when the time comes, we’ll see just how many of you can live! Farewell!”
Saying so, Yang Kai turned around and prepared to leave.
Xu Hui’s eyes shrank as he hastily reached out and grabbed Yang Kai’s sleeve, tightly pinching it as if his life depending on it, asking in amazement, “Holy Master, where are you going?”
“You all want to sit here waiting for death, but I have a bright future ahead of me, so why would I stay here to accompany you? Of course I’m going to leave,” Yang Kai replied as if it were a given.
“But if you leave, what is the Holy Land to do?” Xu Hui asked in a fluster.
“Huh? What does that have to do with me? I found a way out of this mess for all of you yet you refuse to take it, could it be you want me to stay here and be buried along with the rest of you?” Yang Kai spat disdainfully as he declared, “Sorry to disappoint you, I’m not so noble.”
“This…” Xu Hui suddenly became speechless, thinking that young people really acted like young people, making snappy decisions and rushing into things without the slightest hesitation. Before, Yang Kai had shown an attitude worthy of a Holy Master, yet now all of sudden he had become cold and indifferent, as if he didn’t care whether the Holy Land was destroyed or not.
“Furthermore…” Yang Kai snorted, “Even though you call me Holy Master, all of you refuse to execute my commands; what point is there in me staying here then? Even if you somehow survive this crisis, I’m afraid I’ll degenerate into a puppet you can manipulate at will.”
“We would not dare!” Xu Hui protested in horror.
“Oh really? Why are you still restraining me then?”
Xu Hui quickly let go and withdrew awkwardly.
“Enough!” Yu Ying called out, glaring towards Yang Kai somewhat badly, “The Holy Master should have the demeanor of a Holy Master, how can you act like such a rogue? Do you enjoy forcing Great Elder into a corner like this?”
After reprimanding Yang Kai, she let out a sigh and glanced over at Xu Hui, “Great Elder, this…”
Xu Hui hesitated for a long time, seemingly contemplating the issue, secretly glancing over at Yang Kai to observe the latter’s reaction, helplessly sighing after a while, “Since the Holy Master has made such a proposal… even though it will ruin the customs passed down by our ancestors, I suggest we take a vote. The seven of us here have the highest decision making authority in the Holy Land, so if the majority here agrees to enter the Holy Tomb, then… we can only do so.”
“So be it,” Yu Ying nodded.
“Who doesn’t agree to enter the Holy Tomb? Raise your hands high so I can see them,” Yang Kai asked, sweeping his eyes over the crowd.
Great Elder Xu Hui quickly raised his hand.
However, the other five Elders and Saintess An Ling’er all glanced around at each other awkwardly, none of them moving a muscle.
“You…” Xu Hui turned to face his fellow Elders with a shocked and somewhat hurt expression upon his face, as if he couldn’t believe no one here agreed with him that preserving the Holy Land’s traditions was of paramount importance.
“Slippery boy…” Yu Ying muttered to herself. She knew, if Yang Kai had phrased his question differently, the result of this vote would have been different.
The new Holy Master was a young man, and apparently an impulsive one at that. In this situation, who would be willing to openly refute his opinion? If they did that, it would only cause him to feel a sense of rejection towards the Holy Land, possibly leading to him abandoning them altogether.
No one could afford this responsibility.
“Great Elder, you let me win,” Yang Kai cupped his fists and grinned.
Xu Hui smiled back bitterly, “Since things have gotten to this point, this old master won’t make any more objections. Everything will be in accordance with Holy Master’s wishes.”
“I’m doing this for your own good, don’t look so distressed. If the Holy Land’s previous Holy Masters knew what the current situation was, I’m sure they’d forgive you.”
“I hope so.”
After opening the Holy Tomb with the Holy Master Spirit Ring, Yang Kai led everyone inside, each of them wearing a solemn expression, as if they were on some kind of sacred pilgrimage.
Once inside though, seeing this tiny city-sized Mysterious Small World that had no sun, moon, or stars, and was simply overcast with a hazy bluish white sky, all of them couldn’t help feeling a bit lost.
“This is the Holy Tomb?” Yu Ying whispered softly, her beautiful eyes unable to hide their disappointment. The sight in front of her was completely different from what she had imagined.
She had believed that the Holy Tomb was a serene and peaceful paradise with refreshing gardens and crystal clear lakes.
The reality though was that the Holy Tomb was a barren, dreary purgatory filled with a pervasive Yin Qi and the only moving objects inside were some dim fluorescent wisps, akin to spirits, that only added to the atmosphere’s creepiness.
Everyone else looked around with curiosity and surprise. Only Great Elder Xu Hui wore a worried look as he fidgeted about, constantly muttering under his breath, as if he was still afraid that their arrival had disturbed the slumber of the previous Holy Masters.
“The World Energy here is very rich,” Cheng Yue Tong inhaled gently, her full chest exaggeratedly undulating, a look of surprise flashing across her face.
The World Energy density among the nine peaks was already outstanding, but compared to the Holy Tomb, it was still dwarfed. It was no wonder all previous Holy Masters would choose to enter secluded retreat here.
“The environment isn’t very inviting, but it is a good place to take shelter and cultivate,” Yang Kai smiled, “When I first came here, I was also shocked by how rich the World Energy aura was. I don’t know where this World Energy comes from though. En, this Mysterious Small World is much smaller than an average Mysterious Small World, but there should be no trouble housing all the Holy Land’s disciples here.”
“From what Holy Master just said, it sounds as if you have been to other Mysterious Small Worlds, yes?” Cheng Yue Tong looked at Yang Kai with amazement.
Although the concept of Mysterious Small Worlds was widely known about, very few people had actually entered one before. These mysterious spaces were completely independent of Tong Xuan Realm and their entrances were usually quite difficult to find.
Yang Kai just smiled lightly, glancing over at An Ling’er, not bothering to explain.
“Where are the coffins of the previous Holy Masters? Why can I not see any of them?” Xu Hui looked around for a while, a look of confusion filling his face, “There should be many coffins here.”
Yang Kai’s brow twitched imperceptibly and asked, “Why do you say there should be coffins here?”
“It only makes sense, every previous Holy Master would craft his own coffin and carry it with him into the Holy Tomb at his predestined time of death… Also, this place is far too clean, there’s simply nothing here.”
Listening to Xu Hui say so, everyone else also discovered that something was out of place. The Holy Tomb’s ground was perfectly flat, as if it had been cut with a single stroke of a very sharp blade, and even though a layer of dust had covered most of it, there were some traces left behind by what appeared to be a violent explosion of energy.
“Yes, where are the remains of the previous Holy Masters?” Shi Kun scratched his head and looked around.
“There may be some hidden secrets inside the Holy Tomb… En, the last time I came here, it was like this,” Yang Kai quickly said.
If Xu Hui were to find out he had shattered all the bones and coffins inside the Holy Tomb when he absorbed the drop of Demon God Golden Blood, Yang Kai really didn’t know how this old man would react.