Sage of Humanity-Chapter 619 - 617 All Comers Are Guests
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If the fame of the cultivators in the Cloud River battlefield were to be ranked, Lu Ye would undoubtedly stand alone at the top of the list.
Even back in the days of the Spirit Stream battlefield, his deeds had already attracted the attention of many Divine Sea Realm strong cultivators, and the substantial rewards offered by the various big sects of Ten Thousand Demons Ridge ensured that most Nine Provinces cultivators had heard the name of Lu Ye.
Below Lu Ye were the likes of Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan.
Perhaps in the entire Nine Provinces cultivation world, their fame wasn't exceptional, but in the Cloud River battlefield, their names were very well-known.
After all, which Cloud River cultivator hadn't come up from the Spirit Stream Realm? Which of them hadn't looked up to these two toxic tumors of the Spirit Stream Ranking in the Spirit Stream battlefield...
Further down the list were those like Song Zhui, who had a decent background, impressive cultivation, and some renown.
Ying Wuji could also be counted among this tier, although few had seen his true face, many had heard of his name, especially the cultivators from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge, and especially the ghost cultivators...
Because just two months ago, Ying Wuji, with his Level 9 Cloud River cultivation, had assassinated a True Lake Realm cultivator in the Chaotic Sky Plain of Bingzhou!
The feat of a Cloud River slaying a True Lake was astounding; although the True Lake Realm cultivator had been injured, the news spreading far and wide still left people dumbfounded.
This was not just a matter of killing an enemy at a higher grade, but of killing across realms, and throughout the entire history of the Nine Provinces cultivation world, there were countless who had killed across grades, but only a very few had killed across realms.
The primary reason Ying Wuji was able to do this was that he was a ghost cultivator!
And not just any ghost cultivator, but one from Senluo Hall.
In Bingzhou, among the ten 1st grade powers— one palace, two halls, three gates, and four sects— one of the halls was Yuanhong Hall where Song Zhui came from, and the other was Senluo Hall where Ying Wuji hailed from.
Senluo Hall was a very special sect with seven or eight out of ten cultivators being ghost cultivators, making it one of the most troublesome sects in the entire Nine Provinces.
Like Beixuan Sword Sect, like Mad Saber Sect, they only cultivated in one field from generation to generation, achieving the pinnacle of mastery. These two big sects were indeed powerful, but their strength was out in the open.
Senluo Hall was different; no one knew the true depth of Senluo Hall's foundation because ghost cultivators always lurked in the shadows.
It was said in the cultivation world that if a cultivator provoked any other 1st grade sect, there might still be a chance of survival, but if one were targeted by Senluo Hall, there would be no escape.
As cultivators from the same Bingzhou, belonging to the same Ten Thousand Demons Ridge camp, approximately the same age, and with similar cultivation levels, it was only natural that Song Zhui and Ying Wuji had connections in private.
His outwardly righteous and selfless speech was meant to galvanize the cultivators who came from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge; after all, according to the information he had received, the defensive forces in Lu Ye's spirit ground were very strong, and they could only hope to breach Lu Ye's defenses by first rallying the power of Ten Thousand Demons Ridge.
Then, under his lead, Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators would launch a strong attack, visibly drawing Lu Ye's attention, while Ying Wuji hid in the shadows, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
After Lu Ye was killed, he and Ying Wuji would split the rewards equally. The plan was covert and had a very high chance of success.
"I will make my move, rest assured," Ying Wuji's voice drifted in, "but I'll take sixty percent!"
Song Zhui spoke detachedly, "Why?"
"The infamy will be mine to bear."
If one were to steal a kill under the watch of so many Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators, it would surely enrage the crowd, and there would be no hiding it. When it came time to claim the rewards from the big sects, it would be clear who had killed Lu Ye.
While the cultivators whose kill was stolen might not dare to offend Ying Wuji, cursing him in private would still be fair game, and this was bound to happen.
"You, a hiding ghost cultivator, are afraid of being cursed by others?"
"Words can be like a knife stabbing at the heart; too many curses, and I'll be deeply upset. I don't care, I want sixty percent."
"That will be the death of you!" Song Zhui snorted, unamused, "As you wish."
The difference between fifty percent and sixty percent wasn't significant, and Song Zhui couldn't be bothered to quibble over it.
"Then make it quick, I can hardly wait!" Ying Wuji urged.
Moments later, under Song Zhui's command, the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators moved swiftly and efficiently. Hundreds of cultivators, arranged into groups, took action, with the physically strong physique cultivators at the forefront, followed by the combat cultivators brimming with killing intent, and then the ghost and magic cultivators in the back.
In Song Zhui's arrangement, a group of cultivators formed into nine teams, assuming a triangular formation, and marched grandly towards the Great Reversal Spirit Ground.
Inside the Great Reversal Spirit Ground, Li Baxian, Feng Yuechan, and Giant Armor stood next to Lu Ye, looking up towards the direction of the valley entrance, their expressions grim.
With Ten Thousand Demons Ridge's line-up, their side had no chance of resisting, and it wouldn't have mattered even if the demon wolves had been left behind as guards—they still couldn't have overcome the opposition.
In the end, they would have to retreat back to the Nine Provinces!
What puzzled Li Baxian was that his junior brother seemed to have no intention of immediately retreating back to the Nine Provinces and was still standing there quietly.
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He did not know what Lu Ye was planning, but he knew that his junior brother was no longer the youth in need of his protection that he had been when they first met. After years of growth, his junior brother had become capable of standing on his own.
The cultivators from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge were slowly pressing towards the spirit ground, and Song Zhui's voice spread in all directions, "Fellow Daoists, be careful not to step into the range covered by the other party's spirit ground, I'll repeat it once more—there is a Great Sky Prohibition Array within the boundary of the spirit ground! Soon, we will act together to break the protective array here, then follow my command to move."
Song Zhui's previous efforts were quite effective; apart from some shady ghost cultivators lurking in the dark, the overt cultivators at this moment were quite accommodating. After all, since they couldn't monopolize the reward for killing Lu Yiye, there was no need to rush in recklessly, and it was safer to act together with the group.
Nine groups of people, with Song Zhui personally leading one group, flew at the forefront.
When they reached a near enough distance, Song Zhui raised his hand, and all the cultivators came to a halt simultaneously. He sent forth a weapon control technique towards the front which seemed to penetrate an invisible barrier; ripples spread, the effect of the large array concealing everything was broken, and the situation inside the spirit ground was laid bare to everyone's eyes.
Several wooden houses were scattered around, and a striking spiritual spring was very conspicuous. In front of one wooden house, four figures stood steadfastly—despite a particularly towering and mighty figure at the back, Song Zhui's gaze was immediately attracted to Lu Ye standing at the forefront.
He frowned slightly, a hint of surprise flitting across his face—the situation… was not quite what he had expected.
At the same time, the cultivators from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge also noticed that there was no protective array in front of them…or rather, the protective array was not activated!
The entire spirit ground was there in their view, defenseless.
Moreover, they did not see any trace of the demon wolves that the rumors had mentioned.
What did this mean?
Song Zhui's gaze swept over various places of the spirit ground. Although he did not find any traces of demon wolves, it did not mean they weren't there. If Lu Yiye could set up a large array to conceal the entire spirit ground, hiding some demon wolves would naturally be no problem.
Song Zhui was certain that if they dared to step foot into the spirit ground, those hidden demon wolves would surely attack from all sides!
Such petty tricks—he saw right through them. It was like bringing an axe to a sword fight.
However, although the situation was unexpected, it actually made Ying Wuji's covert actions more convenient.
Originally, his plan with Ying Wuji was that he would lead people to break through the protective array of the spirit ground, and then Ying Wuji would take the opportunity to sneak in and assassinate Lu Yiye.
Now, given that the other party hadn't even activated the protective array, wouldn't Ying Wuji be able to enter freely, as if it were unguarded territory?
As numerous thoughts flashed through his mind, Song Zhui's face revealed a signature warm smile. Looking at Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan behind Lu Ye, he began to speak slowly, "Fellow Daoist Li, Fellow Daoist Feng, it's been years since we last met, and you both still radiate the same charm!"
When Song Zhui was in the Spirit Stream battlefield, he was ranked 3rd on the Spirit Stream Ranking!
That was the highest rank that cultivators could achieve during the reign of the three major tyrants who dominated the Spirit Stream Ranking.
The first was Feng Yuechan, and the second was Yanh Xing; neither was a match for the cultivators who came after them.
As a powerhouse on the Spirit Stream Ranking, Song Zhui naturally knew both Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan.
Li Baxian ignored him completely. Being in opposing factions, there was no need to show any courtesy. Instead, he whispered to Lu Ye, "Song Zhui from Yuanhong Hall is very strong, at least on the same level as Xia Liang. Don't be fooled by his sunny and cheerful appearance, he is actually very scheming."
Lu Ye nodded slightly; he had some idea of Xia Liang's strength. If this guy was on the same level as Xia Liang, he was certainly formidable.
Yuanhong Hall... Lu Ye suddenly remembered, wasn't this a 1st grade sect from Bingzhou within the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge?
As for Li Baxian's assessment of Song Zhui, it undoubtedly meant that the man was somewhat two-faced. However, it did not matter; Lu Ye did not need to engage in any schemes or trickery with them, as today's confrontation was an outright and direct plot!
Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan ignored him, but Song Zhui did not take it to heart. He now turned to Lu Ye and said, "Fellow Daoist Lu from the Righteous Blood Sect, I've long admired your reputation, Song Zhui offers his respects!"
With that, he greeted Lu Ye with all due civility.
Lu Ye responded casually, "Fellow Daoist Song has come from afar, why not come inside for a chat? Standing outside talking to me like this, if word gets around, people might think that we cultivators from the Righteous Blood Sect don't know how to receive guests properly!"
Song Zhui laughed heartily, "Fellow Daoist Lu jokes, sitting down for a chat can be postponed. I've heard that Fellow Daoist Lu has a very high level of skill in the Array Path, and I would not want to fall into any formation traps."
While smiling on the surface, he inwardly sneered, becoming more certain that Lu Ye had hidden some earth-shattering formation within this spirit ground, waiting for them to step in and catch them off guard.
"Why would that be?" Lu Ye's expression was as calm as still water, "All who come are guests, and I could not be more welcoming. How could I possibly set up any arrays like the Heavenly Net Earthly Fiend Array or the Startling Wings Sky-Soaring Array or even the Mount Sumeru Positive and Negative Invisible Sword Array to deal with you?"
The Heavenly Net Earthly Fiend Array...
The Startling Wings Sky-Soaring Array...
The Mount Sumeru Positive and Negative Invisible Sword Array...
What are all these formations?
A group of Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators were nervously twitching, looking at the spirit ground, feeling it fraught with danger and concealed murderous intent.
