Martial Peak

“Yang Kai! Quickly kowtow and apologise!” roared the disciples.

“Yang Kai! Xie Fellow Apprentice is kind enough to not pursue the matter any further. However, his forgiveness does not represent ours. If you don’t apologise, I will consider you an enemy!” one of the Fellow Apprentice screamed, with little concern for his own name.

“Yes! Yang Fellow Apprentice does not have any pride. He dares to woo Su Female Apprentice with one as weak as himself. He is simply a toad looking to eat goose meat! It’s best he looks into a mirror and gives up!” many Female Disciples clamoured together against Yang Kai. Similar to vixens, they nagged.

TLN: (LOL Vixen XD! This was really written by the author!)

Yang Kai’s facial expression shows no change. He remained aloof.

Lan Chudie pulled Yang Kai aside and whispered to him, “Fellow Apprentice, if you are a real man, you must adapt to the situation. Just throw down your pride for a moment. What’s the worst that could happen?”

Yang Kai rolled his eyes.

“What?” Lan Chudie questioned as a frown stretched across her cheeks.

“You don’t have to explain to me. You don’t know Xie Hongchen’s true intentions. You don’t know what he’s done and will do to me later on.” Yang Kai snorted as he looked at Lan Chudie with a hint of resentment.

Lan Chudie claimed frustratedly, “How would I know what he did to you?”

“We may be Fellow Apprentices and, for the past few days, have been helping each other survive, but we are in no way friends. You don’t have to think that you have abandoned me and feel guilty about it. My matters do not require your care.” Yang Kai said coldly.

TLN: (I’m surprised that she would even feel guilty o.0)

Lan Chudie clenched her teeth as her face turned slightly pale. “Why don’t you know what’s good for you?”

Lan Chudie stomped away. She no longer wanted to pay attention to him. Lan Chudie quickly paced to Xie Hongchen’s group and turned her head. “You are right. I don’t owe you anything. Seeing as how you are so carefree, I’ll let you deal with your own affairs.”

Xie Hongchen, within his group of High Heaven Pavilion Disciples was grinning slyly. He was enjoying the scene of Yang Kai suffering isolation and bullying from his very own supporters. As he smirked, he stood there pridefully and arrogantly, mocking Yang Kai.

Xie Hongchen thought to himself: To join my team to survive? Fine! You little boy first have to admit your mistakes and kowtow. If you are not willing, you can wander alone around this dangerous place. Let’s see if you can survive!

Xie Hongchen’s eyes glimmer as he awaits Yang Kai’s decision.

After a while, Yang Kai spoke. “This big group of disciples can only group up and act mighty against me. Urging me to apologise just to gain favour from those that are stronger. Why would I join you?”

While cutting deeper into the sea of disciples, Lan Chudie heard what Yang Kai said. Noticing how his words were also a response to her, her chest wells up with humiliation and discomfort.

TLN: (LOL! I actually thought you were being truly considerate for once!)

However, Lan Chudie’s discomfort soon turned to self-convinced fury. If I do not earn the favour of the powerful, in this dangerous place, how am I going to survive? Naturally, I must earn the support of someone likes Xie Fellow Apprentice. How could I possibly choose to side with someone who is weaker than me? You still dare to complain about me after taking care of you for these past few days. If you were stronger, people, including me would naturally want to be your ally.

I have already urged you but you paid little to no heed to my words. This is the path you have chosen and yet you blame me? Thinking about this, Lan Chudie no longer felt remorse for leaving Yang Kai.

TLN: (My God!!! You admitted that you want to take advantage of him. However, when he said that he would end up in a disadvantageous position, you did not even take his words into account! Instead, you lied to yourself, thinking that your plan was the best! What a bloody cunt!)

After speaking, Yang Kai wasted not a second longer and strode back into the bushes and away from these two groups.

Seeing how Yang Kai was walking away safely, Nie Yong wanted to quickly stir up more trouble. “Yang Kai is simply too much. He dares to speak like that to our Fellow Apprentices and we’re letting him walk away?”

From the darkness, a ball of flame were quickly conjured and launched towards Yang Kai’s direction.

Yang Kai remained solemn and calmly dodged the attack. The boy pays no heed to the direction it came from and proudly vocalised, “Xie Hongchen, what is the meaning of this? I will make sure Su Female Apprentice hears about this and see to it that you will receive retribution for all that you have done!”

Xie Hongchen’s complexion sank. He knew that Yang Kai was referring to Long Hui’s matter. He had thought that Long Hui would be able to kill Yang Kai with absolute certainty. Unexpectedly, Yang Kai managed to survive and learned of his implications in the matter.

A few days ago after Yang Kai’s return to the High Heaven Pavilion, Xie Hongchen slept on pins and needles. His fear was not of Yang Kai, but of retribution from Meng Wuya after seeing them return to the school in each other’s company.

However, since Meng Wuya did not act against Xie Hongchen, he thought that he was safe. That both Yang Kai and Meng Wuya had no knowledge his involvement in the matter. In hearing Yang Kai’s words, he knew that the said matter would be exposed sooner or later. Rapidly, his murderous intentions transformed to reality as he signalled to Nie Yong hastily.

Nie Yong grinned with delight. Because of Yang Kai’s exposure of his plans to peep at Lan Chudie and Yishuang earlier, he hated Yang Kai! To earn the consent of Xie Hongchen to go after Yang Kai was a delightful discovery.

Nie Yong shouted angrily. “Yang Kai! Your bold impudence against Xie Fellow Apprentice requires more than punishment. I will teach you a lesson personally!” He raised his arm and started inciting. “Which Fellow Apprentice wants to join me in disciplining this arrogant boy?”

Immediately, a group of disciples rushed to Nie Yong’s side and started chasing after Yang Kai.

Lan Chudie half raised her hand, wanting to speak out. She could find not a single word leaving her throat as she helplessly observed the group pursue Yang Kai with the intention to draw blood.

Du Yishuang reacted without delay to try and aid Yang Kai, but was intercepted and impeded by Fang Ziji.

“Fang Fellow Apprentice, let me go! I need to help him, he saved my life not too long ago!” Du Yishuang urged.

“This is not a matter for you to interfere in!”

“But...”

Fang Ziji looked at Du Yishuang intensely and shifted his attention to two Female Apprentices and demanded, “Look after her and make sure she does not leave the group.”

“Yes,” the two Female Apprentices responded in compliance as they briskly secured Du Yishuang’s arms.

Fang Ziji looked at the vanishing figure of Yang Kai and leered happily. “To think that High Heaven Pavilion has such disgraceful internal problems. This is nothing short of laughable.”

Du Yishuang continued to struggle in vain. Meanwhile, Zuo An tried to console her, “You don’t have to be too worried. Although that boy is a mere Initial Elementary Stage 7, he had always made me feel threatened... It is entirely possible for him to come out of this unscathed.”

“Are you sure?” Du Yishuang stopped struggling and asked in a soft voice.

“My intuition implies as such.” Zuo An answered confidently. His intuition has also been the reason for his absence in provocations against Yang Kai.

Running deeper into the jungle, the numerous shadows trailing Yang Kai failed to disappear.

“Yang Kai, in these few days we’ve spent together, our friendship has deepened considerably. I’m willing to minimise your suffering, as long as you let me catch you!” Nie Yong gleefully taunted.

“Friendship?” Yang Kai sneered. “With someone like you? Don’t make me nauseous!”

“Good! Good! I love what you have said!” Nie Yong lividly howled in response, tilting his head back just a little. “Fellow Apprentice! This boy has received an Earth High Grade Martial Skill! If we can hold him down and get it out of him, all of us will be able to learn it!”

TLN: (IDK why it changed to a high grade to be honest... but let’s just go with it.)

“An Earth High Grade Martial Skill?!” The group of pursuers called out in alarm. Quickly, their motivation turned into greed as they sped up. Being in such a large group over the course of the past few days made it necessary for them to split almost everything they had. In the end, the disciples did not obtain anything worthwhile. However, in light of hearing such a palatable opportunity, why would they ever give up?

“Yang Kai, why do you insist on resisting and being stubborn?” An apprentice swung his sword at Yang Kai.

TLN: (Wow, Fellow Apprentices swinging swords and torturing each other.???? Can’t wait for their future!)

Yang Kai instinctively felt danger behind him and quickly sidestepped, avoiding the blow and losing no speed.

In the same position, Yang Kai felt another sword strike approach his front, forcing him to stop abruptly. The hunting group took the chance and surrounded him.

Yang Kai looked around and counted five. Every single one of them was in the Qi Transformation Stage and worse, their cultivation level was greater than Nie Yong’s.

The five people who encircled Yang Kai scoff at him. “Yang Fellow Apprentice! You have done a crime and I am here to punish you in the name of justice,” jeers Nie Yong.

Yang Kai undauntedly snorted. “Is peeping on women bathe not counted as a crime?”

Nie Yong’s face flushed. The other four disciples looked at the embarrassed boy in confusion, which only made things worse.

A disciple from the left spoke out, “Yang Kai, if you consider yourself our Fellow Apprentice, we will not take your life. If you tell us the Earth High Grade Martial Skill Technique, not only will we leave you unharmed, we will also persuade Xie Fellow Apprentice to forgive you.”

“Fellow Apprentices, It’s not that I wish to decline, but I decline.” Feeling pressure, Yang Kai did not whimper. Instead, he held his head high and puffed out his chest. “If you would like to try and take it from me, then it will depend on your skills.”

A Disciple from the opposite side shouted angrily. “We proposed a toast and you did not eat. Instead, you choose to forfeit. Do not think that we are not wont to kill just because we are apprentices from the same sect? Since you have already offended Xie Fellow Apprentice, you can consider yourself dead. If we kill you here, no one would know and we will never be punished!”

Out of the five Disciples, Nie Yong was the one who hated Yang Kai the most. Unwilling to wait any further, he beckoned, “The time for idle chat is over! We just need to torture him for the Martial Skill Technique!”

When they were dividing the stone babies, Nie Yong was extremely envious of Yang Kai’s choice. Although he did not know what Yang Kai received, he was certain it must be useful from the boy’s smug face.

With a warcry, Nie Yong’s fist rushed ahead and a familiar cool breeze followed. A dangerous aura threatens Yang Kai!

Nie Yong had decided to use his strongest Martial Skill to incapacitate Yang Kai.

Meanwhile, the other four disciples stood there and watched. After all, the difference in the cultivation level between the two left them with credence of an imminent victory.

One of the Disciples casually commented, “Nie Fellow Apprentice’s cool breeze palm has reached such a high level of proficiency. He must have been training hard to perfect it.”

All the three other disciples gave an approving nod. The cold breeze palm is one of High Heaven Pavilion’s Earth Low Grade Martial Skill can only be obtained with 500 contribution points. It goes without question, that Nie Yong invested countless amount of hours and effort for it. Thus, it is also expected of him, and anyone else in that case, to train arduously with it. For the group, using such a Martial Skill with such a high levelled cultivator was enough to deal with Yang Kai. There was no suspense as the group simply waited for the inevitable.

Yang Kai, on the other hand, decided that he would welcome the palm attack with his very own!