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Amber’s awakening combined with the improvement of Yi Yi and Amber’s strength was undoubtedly the only good news Lu Ye received in the recent period.
Yi Yi was in charge of the Nine Wards Scroll. As she grew stronger, she became increasingly capable of drawing more and more power from the Nine Wards Scroll. Take their last battle with the Fox Mutant inside the Nine Wards Scroll for example. If Yi Yi could have brought out more of the Nine Wards Scroll’s power back then, then Lu Ye might not have needed to fight so desperately.
On the other hand, the Life Energy Art and the Beast Pact Art had been established between Amber and Lu Ye. The pact between them allowed Lu Ye to borrow Amber’s strength during a battle. In addition, the limits Lu Ye could achieve when the Beast Form Secret Technique was activated increased in parallel with Amber’s strength. It could be said that Amber’s strength was tantamount to directly improving Lu Ye’s strength.
Both Yi Yi and Amber were Lu Ye’s special support. Moreover, they were unique in the entire cultivation world of Jiu Zhou.
There were obvious traces of cultivators appearing outside the Ameliorate Arcane Glade recently. They were the Thousand Demon Ridge cultivators who received the news and rushed here immediately. Not much time had passed since the news was spread, so their numbers remained low for now. Nevertheless, more and more cultivators would gather in the surroundings with the passage of time.
Although these cultivators had obtained the information on Lu Ye, they did not dare to act rashly until they could confirm the authenticity of the information. That was why they simply searched around the Arcane Glade in secret. Unfortunately, they could not find any clues regardless of how hard they searched because the Arcane Glade was covered by a Concealment Ward.
A few days later, one of the cultivators finally lost patience and soared into the sky above the Ameliorate Valley. Then, he raised a hand and cast a Spell Technique toward the ground.
Following the surge of Spiritual Power, the Concealment Ward abruptly faded away. The entire situation in the Arcane Glade came into view as a result. There were several wooden huts scattered throughout the land and a gurgling Spirit Spout flowing with spring water. A man casually sat on the ground in front of one of the wooden huts with a saber resting on his legs. He was staring up at the figure in the sky with a calm expression.
Their gazes met. The Spell Cultivator who attacked earlier studied the man below intently, then his expression became joyous. “Lu Yi Ye!”
Although he came here based on the information he received, there were no means to confirm whether this place was Lu Ye’s hiding spot. The only method was to personally witness Lu Ye’s whereabouts. Therefore, all the Thousand Demon Ridge cultivators who were either hiding in the shadows or standing in the open couldn’t help becoming excited at the sight of Lu Ye when the Concealment Ward vanished to reveal his figure at this moment.
Just as the Spell Cultivator was feeling ecstatic, more than ten figures lurking in the shadows immediately flew over from nearby. It was only natural to make the first move now that they discovered Lu Ye’s whereabouts! There was only one of him after all. Only the person to kill him could receive the rewards! Be that as it may, not everybody rushed forward at that moment. Most of them chose to stay put and watch how things played out instead.
Inside the Arcane Glade, Lu Ye raised his hand with his palm facing the Spell Cultivator suspended in mid-air. The Spell Cultivator was engrossed in his delight of finding Lu Ye’s whereabouts. Hence, he did not understand the reason for Lu Ye’s actions when he first noticed Lu Ye’s movements.
While the Spell Cultivator was puzzling over Lu Ye’s intentions, Lu Ye suddenly clenched his fists. It looked like he was virtually holding the Spell Cultivator in the palm of his hand. Then, he swung his hand down and coldly ordered, “Get down!”
As soon as the words came out, the Spell Cultivator suspended in mid-air suddenly felt an enormous pressure bearing down on him. It was as though a large mountain had appeared out of nowhere. In a state of shock, he began to fall out of the sky like a bird with broken wings. The sudden turn of events left him in panic. Screaming in horror, he desperately summoned his Spiritual Power to stabilize himself.
At this moment, the distinct sound of swords filled the air. Numerous flying swords flew out from another one of the wooden huts. Wrapped in the icy-cold aura of death, they sped toward the flailing Spell Cultivator with incomparable precision.
Dull thudding sounds rang out continuously. The Spell Cultivator’s Spiritual Power Shield only held out for a moment before the Spiritual Power Shield was completely destroyed and the flying swords penetrated his flesh. Crimson blood gushed outward, accompanied by the shrill screams that reverberated throughout the Ameliorate Valley.
*Thud…* The Spell Cultivator crashed to the ground but did not die immediately. His mouth and nose were covered in blood, and countless bones in his body were broken. Furthermore, his entire body was pierced by more than a dozen flying swords.
Before he realized what was happening, a shadow loomed over him from above. He opened his bleary eyes a crack. Lu Ye, who was originally sitting in front of the wooden hut, had approached him at some point in time and stood looking at him from above.
In a panic, he instinctively tried to summon his Spiritual Power. However, Lu Ye stepped on his chest at that moment. The heavy impact caused him to cough up blood, and the Spiritual Power that he gathered with great difficulty dissipated once more.
Lu Ye raised his blade. The blade of the pitch-black Inviolable Saber gleamed with a sharp light.
“Wait…” the Spell Cultivator shouted.
The words had just left his mouth when Lu Ye stabbed the blade into his body. The blade penetrated his chest and came out through his back, killing him on the spot. His body shuddered slightly, then all traces of vitality disappeared. ℝå𝐍ȰᛒÊ𝙎
Afterwards, Lu Ye bent down and retrieved the Spell Cultivator’s Storage Bag, then he kicked the corpse out of the Arcane Glade. Shaking the blood of the Inviolable Saber, he coldly glanced up at the dozen or so figures floating in mid-air.
Upon coming into contact with Lu Ye’s gaze, they couldn’t help feeling their scalp go numb in fear. Although the Spell Cultivator who attacked earlier had only cast one Spell Technique, the Spiritual Power fluctuation around him indicated that he was a Ninth Order Realm Spell Cultivator!
The Ninth Order Realm was the limit that could be accommodated within the Cloud River Battlefield, so Ninth Order Realm Masters were generally considered the strongest in the Cloud River Battlefield. Be that as it may, one of the strongest people in the Cloud River Battlefield had died in this place without rhyme or reason!
With the exception of support provided by the person controlling the flying swords, Lu Ye had only attacked once throughout the entire incident! Hence, the Thousand Demon Ridge cultivators naturally did not believe that the Ninth Order Realm Spell Cultivator had died at Lu Ye’s hands. The reason the Ninth Order Realm Spell Cultivator suffered such a tragic fate was due to his complete negligence and carelessness.
Thinking back to what happened to the Spell Cultivator, somebody exclaimed with a frown, “The Aerial Lock Ward!”
It did not make sense for a Ninth Order Realm Spell Cultivator to fall out of the sky without warning. Aside from the presence of an Aerial Lock Ward, there could be no other possible explanation.
They had long heard that Lu Ye had extremely high attainments in the Way of Wards, but they did not expect him to be so capable that he could even establish an Aerial Lock Ward. Furthermore, the information they received did not mention the existence of the Aerial Lock Ward. There was no saying whether Tu Guanxiong had intentionally or unintentionally omitted the information when he released the information to the public.
The dozen or so Thousand Demon Ridge cultivators who excitedly rushed over earlier couldn’t help feeling lucky… They were grateful that their speed had not been fast enough. Otherwise, they would have suffered the same fate as the Spell Cultivator if they had entered the range of the Aerial Lock Ward.
As for why Lu Ye did not wait until they barged into the range of the Aerial Lock Ward to activate the power of the Grand Ward, it was perfectly understandable. It was not that he did not want to wait but that he did not dare to wait.
Taking advantage of the opportunity created by the Aerial Lock Ward to kill a Ninth Order Realm Spell Cultivator was easy. However, that was not the case if more than a dozen people invaded the Arcane Glade at the same time. Even if he could kill some of them, the rest would be very troublesome. Hence, the current situation was the best response. He could deter the rest just by killing one person. After all, the death of a Ninth Order Realm Spell Cultivator would make the others more cautious and fearful of being reckless.
Lu Ye shot a cool glance at the dozen or so cultivators, then he waved his hand lightly to reactivate the Concealment Ward. A ripple swept across the sky, and the entire Arcane Glade vanished from view.
They exchanged glances with each other for a moment and quietly retreated from the Arcane Glade.
Although a Ninth Order Realm Spell Cultivator had died in an inexplicable manner, they had gotten confirmation regarding the information that Lu Ye was hiding in this place. In addition, some people also noticed the presence of Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan. The flying swords that ambushed the Spell Cultivator earlier had been controlled by Li Baxian.
As the news continued to spread throughout the land, the area outside the Ameliorate Valley gradually grew more and more lively. The land that was generally sparsely populated suddenly became extremely crowded, and cultivators could be seen everywhere.
Some of the cultivators who were acquainted with each other gathered together in small groups to discuss various methods to safely and effectively slaughter Lu Ye so that they could obtain the massive bounty. On the other hand, some of the stronger cultivators kept to themselves and watched their surroundings coldly.
The Sacred Universe Arcane Glade cultivators also returned to the Ameliorate Valley under Ming Zhe’s leadership, but they did not gather together in one place. On the contrary, they split into several small groups and scattered in different directions.
Looking at the bustling atmosphere around the entrance to the Ameliorate Valley, Ming Zhe sighed and breathed out softly. The heavy losses that the Sacred Universe Arcane Glade suffered previously distressed him greatly. Not to mention, Huo Liaoyuan also lost his life at the hands of Lu Ye.
Now that Thousand Demon Ridge cultivators from across the land were traveling in this direction, there were more than three hundred cultivators gathered outside the Ameliorate Valley at this moment. Furthermore, the cultivators who dared to venture deep into these lands were undoubtedly in the Sixth Order Realm and above. With such a force, Lu Ye would be powerless to resist even if all they did was push forward recklessly.
Staring in the direction of the Ameliorate Valley, a look of triumph and delight flashed through Ming Zhe’s eyes at the thought that his revenge would soon come true.
Unfortunately, the situation developed in a different direction than he imagined.
More and more Thousand Demon Ridge cultivators gathered outside the Ameliorate Valley over time. Although many among them were Ninth Order Realm Masters from First Tier and Second Tier Sects, nobody made the first move to invade the Ameliorate Valley. Every one of them simply observed the situation from the side as though they had reached a tacit understanding among themselves…
Ming Zhe slowly came to a realization.
The Sacred Universe Arcane Glade no longer wished to receive the bounty on Lu Ye’s head. All they wanted was to borrow the strength of others to exact revenge for their fallen companions. On the other hand, these cultivators who came here for the sake of profit and self-interest were different. Every one of them was eyeing the enormous bounty on Lu Ye’s head.
Nobody dared to act rashly after learning about the Aerial Lock Ward in the Ameliorate Valley. If Lu Ye could prepare an Aerial Lock Ward, then who could say what other strange and rare Ward were hidden inside the Arcane Glade? The person who made the first move at this time was bound to suffer great misfortune!
To put it simply, these people were not united in their goals. They were hoping for somebody else to make the first move and test the dangers hidden in the Ameliorate Valley so that they could secretly take advantage of the discoveries!
At first, Ming Zhe was livid. These people clearly had the strength to crush everything before them, but they were scheming and plotting against each other instead. It was truly a disappointing sight.
Upon further thought, he could understand their mentality. He would have the same thoughts if he placed himself in their position. They did not have a grudge against Li Ye after all. What’s more, the bounty on his head was too large. It was so massive that they could not help being cautious in order to increase the chances of their success. But, if this situation were to continue… Who would kill Lu Ye?
Ming Zhe’s worries were obviously superfluous. How could others fail to reach the same realization as he had? Just when Ming Zhe was worrying about the situation, a figure suddenly stepped forward from among the crowd and flew into the air. His actions immediately attracted everybody’s attention.
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