Chapter 5532, Brains and Brawn
Translator: Silavin & Qing

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

When the other Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters saw Yang Kai’s enthusiastic state, they felt some lamentation and shame. They were lamenting because the younger generation was growing so fast. Though Yang Kai was the only youngster with a high position now, others from his generation had begun showing their talents on the battlefield and would soon rise up.

These Juniors who had shown their brilliance on the battlefield were the future of the Human Race and were the reason the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors sacrificed themselves to pave the way forward for them.

As for why they felt ashamed, it was because these old fellows couldn’t help Yang Kai…

After calming his thoughts, Wei Jun Yang spoke, “Since you’ve made your mind up, we won’t try to dissuade you, but you must remember that you’re now an Army Commander, so if you find yourself in a dire situation… you must ensure your own safety first.”

“I understand,” Yang Kai nodded heavily.

“Junior Brother, when will you leave?”

“Immediately!”

Wei Jun Yang raised his hand and summoned his Universe Chart. Then, he moved his hands to display an image of the void, “There are three Territory Gates that lead to different Great Territories in Profound Nether Territory. Junior Brother can quietly exit through here,” While he spoke, he reached out and pointed at one of the Territory Gates.

One of the three Territory Gates was guarded by the Human Race so that they had somewhere to retreat if they lost the war. Another one had been taken over by the Black Ink Clan, while the last one was still unclaimed. However, both sides had set up camps there to prepare for any spontaneous battles.

The Territory Gate Wei Jun Yang was referring to was that third gate.

Although the Human Race couldn’t claim that Territory Gate, they could absolutely find a way to send Yang Kai and a small team through the portal. A minor battle would be enough of a distraction to slip through the Territory Gate.

However, Yang Kai instead asked, “Which Territory Gate is the nearest to Acacia Territory?”

Going through different Territory Gates meant they would have to take different routes. Sometimes, a slight difference might mean they had to cross several additional Great Territories to get to their destination.

Wei Jun Yang studied the three Territory Gates before pointing to the Territory Gate being guarded by the Black Ink Clan, “This one!” He was then slightly stunned and asked, “Junior Brother, don’t tell me you want to go through this one?”

Yang Kai replied, “There’s no time to waste, so we naturally have to take the fastest route possible.”

“Nonsense!” Fei Yong Ze reprimanded, “The Black Ink Clan Army’s main camp is there! How are you going to pass by them? If you get surrounded, you’ll die!”

Smiling, Yang Kai assured him, “That’s why I need the Profound Nether Army’s help.”

Wei Jun Yang thought about it and asked, “You want the Profound Nether Army to pressure the Black Ink Clan? Aren’t you afraid they might suddenly rise up and attack you?”

Yang Kai explained, “I just killed three Territory Lords a few days ago, so the Black Ink Clan is definitely paying more attention to me. Now that I’m overseeing Profound Nether Territory, those Territory Lords might be feeling on the edge, wondering which one of them would be next. Senior Brothers, place yourselves in the Territory Lords’ shoes, if I suddenly try to leave this Great Territory, would you give your all to stop me, or just let me pass?”

Fei Yong Ze was about to continue reprimanding Yang Kai, but hearing this question he frowned and hummed for a moment.

The other Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were looking at each other.

Eventually, Wei Jun Yang spoke up, “If Junior Brother is the only one leaving, of course, they would pick up a fight because the ability you displayed is too shocking, so the Black Ink Clan naturally wants to get rid of you. If you give them the opportunity, why wouldn’t they take it? But if you add the Profound Nether Army…”

[That is another story… Would the Black Ink Clan really make things difficult?]

Originally, the Black Ink Clan here had the upper hand and almost seized Profound Nether Territory completely, but Yang Kai appeared and foiled their plans.

The Black Ink Clan would naturally be wary of a Master like Yang Kai, who could easily kill Territory Lords like they were random chickens or dogs.

Therefore, if such a Master wanted to leave Profound Nether Territory, it would be great news for the Territory Lords, so the Black Ink Clan might really not stop him but welcome him leaving.

Such a plan might sound far-fetched, but after careful consideration, it seemed there was quite a lot of space for manoeuvring.

At that instant, Wei Jun Yang looked at Yang Kai with a complicated expression and remembered how Ou Yang Lie had joked that Yang Kai should be called Big Head Yang.

The next generation was very admirable indeed! If one only had brawn but no brains, they would be nothing more than a ruffian. However, like Yang Kai, people with brains and brawn were the bane of the Black Ink Clan.

“It’s also fine if they don’t let us pass. We can just start another battle,” Yang Kai beamed, “If they still aren’t afraid of me, I’ll just kill another three Territory Lords. There are only so many Territory Lords here, so they will have to let us pass sooner or later.”

Ou Yang Lie felt his blood boiling when he heard that, “I agree! If we really start a battle, I’ll be the vanguard!”

Wei Jun Yang glared at him before looking at Yang Kai, “Even if the Black Ink Clan are willing to let you pass, isn’t your departure the same as telling the Black Ink Clan that their biggest concern has left and that they can start another war without fear while you’re gone?”

Although the Human Race wasn’t afraid to start another battle, they had suffered a significant loss during the last one and still needed time to recuperate.

Yang Kai answered, “They won’t have the guts to do that. Since I can leave Profound Nether Territory, I can return as well. How can they rest assured that I’ve really left? If they see me leave right in front of them, they will only become even more cautious because if they start another battle, they will have to worry about me attacking them from behind!”

After a short pause, he continued, “Moreover, it doesn’t matter if another battle happens. I’ve already distributed many Small Stone Race soldiers to the others. I must say, the idea of treating the Small Stone Race as Artifacts to be refined rather than beasts to tame is quite ingenious. With their addition, the Profound Nether Army’s capabilities are much stronger than they were before.”

The Small Stone Race was a sharp tool when used to deal with the Black Ink Clan, the only problem was that they had very low sentience and were hard to control.

Many times, the Small Stone Race ran off after killing all the enemies. Those with quick reflexes could capture some of them, but those who weren’t quick enough could only watch as they ran away.

When Yang Kai first began giving out the Small Stone Race soldiers, he told others to try using Beast Taming Techniques to control them. Although the method worked, the results weren’t very good.

It wasn’t until one day when an Open Heaven Realm Master tried treating them like artifacts that a new method was discovered.

Using this method to refine Small Stone Race soldiers was far more efficient than using a Beast Taming Technique because this was far easier for most cultivators. By spreading this method, many more Small Stone Race soldiers could be better controlled to kill the enemy and then be brought back after the battle.

After all, not every cultivator knew Beast Taming Techniques, but everyone knew how to refine an artifact.

This methodology was now widespread throughout the Human Race Army. Now, all Humans would use similar techniques to control the Small Stone Race soldiers!

The Open Heaven Realm Master who discovered this method was praised and rewarded heavily by the Supreme Headquarters, which made him the envy of many.

Yang Kai currently only had a single army of Great Sun Small Stone Race and another of Great Moon Small Stone Race on hand, each with 1 million troops. All the others had been distributed to others.

The ones he kept with him were his trump card for dealing with a Royal Lord. There was only one Royal Lord left, and there was no telling when he would encounter him again, so Yang Kai wanted to keep a hidden hand just in case.

Although it hadn’t been long since their last battle, the soldiers of the Profound Nether Army now had several million Small Stone Race soldiers on hand, so the overall combat power of the Army had only increased, not decreased.

If they did start another large-scale battle, the Humans of Profound Nether Territory wouldn’t have to be wary of the Black Ink Clan.

Inside the Main Conference Hall, all the Eighth-Order Masters looked at each other and kept silent.

Yang Kai had made a clear and concise argument to persuade them, so they had nothing more to say.

Seeing that the others were silent, Yang Kai announced, “This matter is settled then. Pass down my order, the centre outpost’s frontline soldiers are to form up and advance towards the Black Ink Clan’s main camp!”

All the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters stood up and bellowed, “Yes, Sir!”

Soon, the Eighth-Order Masters dispersed and returned to the frontline Universe Fragments where Yang Kai’s orders were relayed, and all 200,000 recuperating soldiers moved out.

When news of their operation got out, a few Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters overseeing the auxiliary fronts were shocked. [Is there something going on at the frontline? Didn’t the battle there end recently?]

They went and asked around, and in the end, they were told this was an order from the newly appointed Army Commander Yang Kai.

It was only then that those Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters at the auxiliary fronts found out that the Profound Nether Army had a new Army Commander.

That was because the news of Yang Kai being appointed as Army Commander hadn’t been announced yet.

Now, this matter has caused a stir among the Army.

They said a new broom sweeps clean, and the new broom called Yang Kai was so good at cleaning that he was thinking of cleaning out the Black Ink Clan.

At that instant, some people were worried while some were excited.

The Masters from the auxiliary fronts could only cooperate with those at the frontlines, so they relayed their orders. All the auxiliary front soldiers also began preparing for battle, increasing the Army’s momentum.

Meanwhile, the Black Ink Clan were shocked.

They had lost three Territory Lords last time, and they only had a limited number of Territory Lords at the frontline, so not only was their Army’s combat power weakened, but the Territory Lords were now hiding inside their base camp.

The scene of that Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master killing three Territory Lords was still fresh in their memories, and every Territory Lord was wary of him. Therefore, they didn’t dare take any impulsive actions before they could figure out how to deal with that Eighth-Order Human.

During that last battle, the Black Ink Clan suffered significant losses, but the Humans didn’t fare much better. Everyone thought both sides would pause and rest for at least a few years, but now the Humans were making such a big move within less than half a month!

[Did the Humans get more reinforcements?]

All the Territory Lords appeared and observed the situation, but when they discovered that the Human Race Army was really preparing for war, they all felt worried.

Though they couldn’t figure out what was happening, since the Humans were gathering their troops, it was obvious that they were planning to attack.

At the same time, inside the Main Conference Hall, Yang Kai sat alone while lost in thought, feeling like he was forgetting something.

After careful thinking, he discovered that he was now an Army Commander but didn’t have an adjutant.

Before, no matter whether it was Xiang Shan or any of the other Army Commanders, they all had adjutants, which made it easier for them to relay their orders. After all, it was impossible for people in high positions to do everything themselves.

Profound Nether Army wouldn’t assign him with an adjutant as such people were usually the Army Commander’s most trusted associate.

Yang Kai didn’t have any potential candidates in mind, but he wasn’t in a hurry either. This matter would have to wait until he was back from Acacia Territory.

Hua Qing Si was a good option. While she was the Head Manager for High Haven Palace, not only had she managed High Heaven Palace well but also the Star Boundary by extension.

She was an exceptionally meticulous woman and was perfect for the role of an adjutant.

It was a pity that the Head Manager still needed to oversee High Heaven Palace and had no time to spare.