Sage of Humanity

A spirit ground capable of accommodating two to three hundred cultivators for simultaneous cultivation is not easy to construct. This is the result of generations of effort accumulated by the Sacred Fire Order and the Universe Sect, and it is also an important foundation for both sects on the Cloud River battlefield.

Within both sects, not all cultivators from the Cloud River Realm qualified to cultivate within the spirit ground.

From each generation in the two big sects, the number of Cloud River Realm cultivators ranged from at least a thousand to sometimes two or three thousand. A single spirit ground simply couldn't accommodate all, so even if half a year ago, the Sacred Universe Spirit Ground had suffered heavy casualties, it had since been replenished.

The one originally stationed here, Huo Liaoyuan, died in Great Reversal Valley. The Sacred Fire Order then sent someone named Wang Xhun from the Cloud River Level 9 to replace Huo Liaoyuan's position, jointly managing the area with Tu Guanxiong of the Universe Sect.

At this moment, the two were discussing affairs, and the topics shockingly concerned Lu Ye.

For the cultivators of the Cloud River Realm, the distance between the Sacred Universe Spirit Ground and Great Reversal Valley wasn't considered far, which was why the Sacred Universe Spirit Ground had previously tried to take over Great Reversal Valley.

The bounty on Lu Ye himself was one aspect, and the Great Reversal Valley Spirit Ground was another.

In Huo Liaoyuan's view, eliminating Lu Ye while seizing the spring spirit from the Great Reversal Valley Spirit Ground would not only kill two birds with one stone by enlarging his own spirit ground, but it had also seemed feasible.

Yet, who could have imagined that his ambitions would end with his demise, and the cultivators from both sects who went with him were almost entirely annihilated.

The Sacred Fire Order had dispatched Chu Yun and Zhou Pei to hunt down Lu Ye, and after a lengthy pursuit, not only had they failed to capture him, but they had also been slain by Lu Ye instead.

Moreover, Lu Yiye had reached the top position in the Cloud River contenders' ranking with his cultivation at the Cloud River Level 8.

All these events clearly indicated one thing—Lu Yiye was a formidable enemy!

Priorly, they were the ones initiating trouble, but now that Lu Yiye had truly matured, who knew if he would seek revenge?

In normal circumstances, a single big spirit ground naturally wouldn't worry about such matters. After all, numbers aside, even the protective array shrouding the spirit ground wasn't easily broken.

The Sacred Universe Spirit Ground had been stable for many years, certainly with good reason.

But what about Lu Yiye? Not only was his strength extraordinary, his expertise in Array Path was unimaginable. As early as in the Spirit Stream battlefield, the protective arrays of each big sect's headquarters within the Core Circle seemed non-existent to him; the Sacred Universe Spirit Ground's protective array might not stop him either.

And once he broke into the spirit ground, numerous disciples from both sects could die or be injured.

If such a formidable enemy truly came to cause trouble, the cultivators from both sects wondered how they could defend themselves, which gave Tu Guanxiong and Wang Xhun extreme headaches.

Before they could devise a plan, a thunderous booming sound was heard, deafening and shaking the entire spirit ground violently.

"What's happening?" Tu Guanxiong's brows jumped as he suddenly stood up.

Wang Xhun also looked outside, his face full of confusion.

The next moment, screams reached their ears, brief and frantic, clearly issued in the moments before death.

"It's an attack!" Tu Guanxiong quickly realized.

Following this, the shouting outside became clearer, making his skin crawl.

"Lu Yiye! Lu Yiye has broken in!"

"It's Lu Yiye, block him... Ah!"

In an instant, the previously calm spirit ground erupted like a boiling pot of oil, completely boiling over as figures dashed out from their places of retreat in panic.

Tu Guanxiong and Wang Xhun quickly emerged, faces etched with terror.

The protective array of the spirit ground was still in operation, with a visible spirit force protective barrier enveloping the entire ground. Under normal circumstances, no one should be able to break into the spirit ground without breaching this barrier.

Yet, at that very moment, an unfamiliar figure appeared within the spirit ground. Wrapped in surging, fiery red spirit force, he looked as if he was engulfed in flames, wielding a pitch-black long saber with scorching spirit force climbing the blade. His movements were as swift as thunder, wreaking havoc wherever he went, stirring a storm of blood and gore.

Moreover, three weapon control streams of light revolved around him, devastating the cultivators under his precise control, assaulting them continuously.

No one could withstand his single saber strike, let alone the power from his controlled weapons!

In just a short period, twenty to thirty people in the spirit ground had already been killed or injured!

"How could it be so fast!" Tu Guanxiong was shocked.

Upon hearing the disturbance, he and Wang Xhun had rushed out, and in just a short time, Lu Yiye had already made his way in, killing indiscriminately without any prior warning.

And at this time, when the Sacred Universe Spirit Ground was utterly unprepared, the scattered, fleeing cultivators were no match for Lu Ye.

"Lu Yiye, you're seeking death!" Wang Xhun roared furiously and charged towards Lu Ye.

"Senior Brother Wang!" Tu Guanxiong cried out in alarm, unable to stop him, and with gritted teeth, he too rushed forward.

Then he witnessed a terrifying scene—Wang Xhun, who had charged out furiously, was casually slashed back by Lu Ye, his spirit force in disarray, blood scattering across the sky. If Tu Guanxiong hadn't caught him in time, he would have been in an even more wretched state.

Even though they knew Lu Ye was now very powerful—otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to kill Xia Liang, slay Chu Yun and Zhou Pei, nor would he have been able to claim the top spot on the Cloud River contenders' ranking—

knowing was one thing but without having witnessed it firsthand, their understanding of that so-called strength wasn't clear.

Until now!

Wang Xhun was also from the Cloud River Level 9, having previously participated in the Cloud River struggle for supremacy. Although he didn't make it into the top hundred, he still ranked within the top three hundred.

Among those at his level in the Nine Provinces' Cloud River Realm, he could be considered outstanding.

Tu Guanxiong admitted he was unmatched.

Yet such an outstanding figure had been casually struck flying back by Lu Yiye with a single slash of his saber, and had even sustained moderately severe injuries!

Could a strength from someone at Cloud River Level 8 be so formidable?

Or was the Spiritual Artifact he wielded extraordinary?

Tu Guanxiong, with his keen eyesight, had already noticed that the Boulder Mountain Saber in Lu Ye's hand reached the level of a Magic Artifact; yet even so, Wang Xhun should not have been so ineffective!

During his brief moment of distraction, more than a dozen people were slaughtered.

Fortunately, the cultivators who had been in closed-door cultivation had all rushed out together. Without needing any orders, facing the enemy who suddenly invaded their spirit ground, they each unleashed their abilities to attack.

In an instant, multicolored lights carrying the formidable power of magic and spells streaked back and forth within the spirit ground, creating a scene of fervent activity.

Faced with such a dense offensive, no matter how fast Lu Ye was, or how agile his movements, he could not completely avoid them.

The Defense Spirit Runes on his body kept breaking and reforming, yet he was still battered all over, uncaring as before, just like when he fought against Xia Liang and his group of enemies, charging wherever there were more people.

The three magic-artifact-class weapons had a significant effect. With Lu Ye sparing no expense of spirit force, the speed and lethality he unleashed were not something that ordinary Cloud River Realm cultivators could withstand. As Liu Guang flickered, blood sprayed and limbs flew.

Tu Guanxiong discovered with horror that if the situation continued to develop like this, regardless of whether Lu Yiye would die, the disciples of the two sects at this spirit ground would likely be massacred in a short time.

"Quick, return to our sect headquarters for reinforcements!" Tu Guanxiong gritted his teeth and issued the command, as he and Wang Xhun together rushed toward Lu Ye.

Given the strength Lu Ye displayed, no cultivator below Level 9 could withstand a single slash from him; only he and Wang Xhun could slightly hold him back.

Before the reinforcements from the two sects arrived, they must hold him back at all costs!

Thinking this way, yet when they truly faced his edge head-on, Tu Guanxiong realized how naive he had been.

The terrifying power that was impossible to withstand, the wild and fierce aura, the indescribable sense of oppression; Lu Yiye merely had to slash down, and he was spattered with blood and sent flying.

Wang Xhun fared even worse. He had already been injured before, and this slash had severed one of his arms, tormenting even his resilient spirit, making his face twitch in pain.

Such an enemy... how could they block him?

In facing him, he himself, a cultivator from the Level 9, was like a child facing an adult.

What felt like an immensely long twenty breaths of time felt like it had lasted twenty years.

In the Sacred Universe Spirit Ground, the dead and injured had already exceeded a hundred, and almost every moment, disciples were dying. Those who were still alive, their eyes brimming with fear and horror, their attacks becoming timid and hesitant.

Tu Guanxiong deeply realized that when a person's strength reached a certain level, the number of opponents no longer mattered.

Indeed, there were still many disciples alive on their side, but in this short period, they had been scared out of their wits. No one had the courage to directly face Lu Yiye, and under such low morale, being slaughtered was only a matter of time.

He and Wang Xhun again joined forces to try to hinder Lu Ye, but it had no effect. Wang Xhun was severely injured and near death, and he himself had been struck by Lu Ye's saber, leaving a huge wound in his abdomen, the flesh horrifically mangled.

And yet, this wasn't even Lu Ye specifically targeting them; it seemed he had merely swung at them casually.

Disaster!

This was undoubtedly the biggest disaster since the establishment of the Sacred Universe Spirit Ground!

If they did not overcome this challenge today, then in the future on the Cloud River battlefield, there would be no more Sacred Universe Spirit Ground, and the two big sects would also lose a foothold here.

If so, it would be a severe blow to both sects.

Fortunately, at this moment, within the Heaven's Augury Hall where the Heaven's Augury Pillar was placed, suddenly, several strong auras appeared, and even more auras continued to emerge from within the hall.

Tu Guanxiong's face lit up with joy, knowing that the reinforcements from the two sects had arrived!

From the time he sent for help back to their sect headquarters to now, it had only been a few dozen breaths, and the response speed of the two sects couldn't be said to be slow!

However, his joy had just surfaced when it transformed into boundless fear.

Because, within the spirit ground where he was slaughtering left and right, Lu Yiye suddenly turned his head towards the direction of the Heaven's Augury Hall. Following that, he turned into a fiery red stream of light, wrapped in a fierce aura, and directly barged into the Heaven's Augury Hall.

Tu Guanxiong was dumbstruck in an instant!

Then from the Heaven's Augury Hall came a series of exclamations and screams, along with the roaring of beasts.

Amid the turmoil of spirit force, one aura after another flickered out like extinguished candles.

Tu Guanxiong's eyes trembled violently.

In his mind, an unimaginable scene popped up, one that he simply couldn't accept. Though he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he felt that this scene was probably what was happening.