Sage of Humanity

Within this stronghold, the reason Zui Shan became the leader was related not only to his character but also to his cultivation.

He was the strongest person in the stronghold.

Yet the breath of the newcomer was faintly higher than his.

And right behind him, another seven or eight figures burst into the cave.

The people behind Zui Shan immediately showed a look of despair, realizing they were unlikely to escape this disaster.

The man who rushed in first had a hawk-like nose, a gloomy and unruly face, and eyes like a falcon scanning over Zui Shan and his companions as he said coldly, "Pure Land is handling this. I advise you to surrender without resistance; otherwise, you will wish you were dead!"

His followers lined up behind him, activating their spirit force and demonstrating their powerful cultivation.

The atmosphere instantly became charged and tense.

Zui Shan said in anguish, "We are all of the human race; instead of fighting the Corpse Race, you choose to prey on weaker kinsmen. Do you not have a shred of conscience?"

The gloomy cultivator coldly laughed, "Conscience? What is that? In such chaotic times, only one's own strength is the true path! You weaklings are destined to be food for the stronger. Rather than dying at the hands of the Corpse Race and becoming one of them, it's better for us to utilize you for our cultivation. With our growth, there might be a chance for the continuation of the human race. The purpose and earnest efforts of our Pure Land sect are beyond the understanding of you ignorant folks."

"Nonsense!" Zui Shan could not suppress his anger.

The gloomy cultivator was too lazy to waste any more words, raising his hand to give an order. However, at that moment, a figure appeared in the shadows without a sound.

Before he appeared, no one had noticed him.

He was almost right behind the gloomy man…

A look of disbelief flashed through Zui Shan's eyes. That person... wasn't he the guest named Ying Wuji?

He hadn't noticed when the other party had stayed behind, nor where he had hidden before.

Thump…

As if something had been pierced, Zui Shan's pupils suddenly contracted to the size of pinpoints, as if he had seen something unbelievable.

The gloomy man who was about to give an order suddenly stiffened, feeling an inexplicable pain in his chest, followed by an overwhelming sense of weakness spreading throughout his body.

Realizing something, he looked down only to see a blade that had pierced through his chest without his knowledge!

"When... did this happen!" the gloomy man murmured to himself. He wanted to resist, but he couldn't muster any bit of his spirit force, and he could clearly sense the ebbing of his life force.

The sudden turn of events caused the Pure Land cultivators around him to change their expressions dramatically, instinctively scattering to both sides. As they refocused, they were all dumbstruck!

Their strongest member had been silently approached and assassinated!

"Thump…" Another light sound, Ying Wuji drew his curved blade and spoke indifferently, "Well said... but don't say it again in your next life!"

Thump…

The gloomy man fell to the ground, completely silenced, and a large area of blood stained the ground red.

All present were horrified, feeling a chill all over.

Zui Shan and the others had not expected that the guest who arrived that day would possess such mysterious and unpredictable skills. With such a miraculous ability, if it were used against them... would they defend with their heads? Perhaps they would die without knowing how, just like the gloomy man!

He quickly collected his wits and shouted loudly, "Kill!"

With the enemy in disarray due to the sudden turn, now was not the time to hesitate.

As he shouted, he was the first to pounce on the enemy, followed closely by several others who had finally reacted.

Ying Wuji was already whirling his dual-blades, slaughtering like a wolf among sheep.

Feeling extremely exhilarated. This was the strength a Cloud River Realm cultivator should have. Ever since the struggle for dominance in Cloud River began, he had been contending with the peak Cloud River Realm experts of the Nine Provinces, experiencing many defeats and much despondency, especially after encountering Lu Yiye, which made him doubt himself.

He wondered if he was too weak?

Coming to this world, he was chased to a dead end by a horde of zombies, yet Lu Yiye could easily resolve the trouble and even saved his life, deepening his self-doubt.

Until this moment!

He finally met a normal opponent.

And finally understood one thing.

It was not that he was weak.

It was that Lu Yiye... that guy…

Was simply! Too! Strong!

In the chaotic fight, Zui Shan and the others took down two, while Ying Wuji killed all the rest.

Feeling the pent-up frustration finally dissipate, Ying Wuji felt entirely relaxed and couldn't help but shout, "Awesome!"

Zui Shan and the others looked at him dumbfounded, momentarily regarding him as an extraordinary being.

"What are you dazing at? Let's go!" Ying Wuji, in high spirits, called out to the others and chased after the direction of the secret passage.

Zui Shan and his men finally snapped out of it. Leaving one person to tidy up the spoils, the rest hurried to keep up with Ying Wuji's pace.

In that secret passage, as Lu Ye moved forward, a figure suddenly appeared ahead of him.

Xu Wang behind him exclaimed in a low voice, "Not good, the Pure Land has found our secret passage location!"

The very thing he feared the most had still happened.

The location of the stronghold was revealed by Xiaowu, but the direction the secret passageway led to was known only to him and Zui Shan, no one else in the stronghold had that information, and it was certain Xiaowu didn't either.

However, each stronghold had its own secret passageway.

Those from Pure Land who intended to attack their stronghold would definitely search nearby for the exit of the secret passageway. Originally, Xu Wang still held a glimmer of hope, but now it seemed like it was nothing but wishful thinking.

"Where... are you going?" The newcomer was a woman whose appearance could not be seen clearly in the dim light, but her voice was soft and sweet, making one unable to resist wanting to hear her speak a few more words.

It seemed as though she had been waiting here for a long time. When she spoke, there was a hint of excitement in her voice, it was unclear what she was anticipating.

But if one person had shown up, then surely more would follow.

In such a narrow corridor, this situation was not in their favor; if they were to engage in a major battle, not to mention whether the cultivators in the stronghold were a match, the ordinary people would certainly suffer many casualties and deaths.

"And a little brother at that... It's rare to see a handsome young man like you. Come talk to your sister..." The woman had already seen Lu Ye's face clearly as he led the way, and her words were filled with seduction.

She stepped forward, reaching out to grab at Lu Ye.

Yet, on that pale, jade-like hand, there were sharp, slender fingernails, gleaming with a metallic luster.

Clang...

A long knife was drawn from its sheath. As the fiery red light of the blade flickered, those following closely behind Lu Ye could only catch a glimpse of the woman's shocked expression in their field of vision before they heard a scream abruptly cut short.

Lu Ye continued forward without stopping.

Behind him, the sound of a heavy object falling to the ground could be heard, and a strong scent of blood wafted out.

By the time the cultivators following Lu Ye arrived at the spot, they saw only a warm corpse lying on the ground.

"One strike..." Their eyes widened in disbelief.

When the woman had attacked, the spirit force she unleashed was not weak; they all knew they were no match for her.

To the cultivators in the stronghold, such a woman was already considered a strong adversary, and the only one who could surely defeat her was their leader, Zui Shan!

Yet, could it be that such a strong opponent was cut down by the young man with the knife in front?

They hadn't even been able to perceive how high that young man's cultivation was.

Xu Wang's eyelids twitched violently.

With such strength, it was terrifying to hear about; no wonder he could kill the zombie that caused Yooi Zhen's team to suffer heavy casualties and injuries and rescue Yuan Xiang.

And with such a person's presence, the stronghold, even if willing, was simply unable to guard against him.

They could finally be sure that this visitor who had come to the stronghold today harbored no ill will towards them.

Short bursts of combat followed ahead, each flicker of fiery blade light signified the death of an enemy.

As the group proceeded along the path, they occasionally encountered corpses strewn about.

Even the unrestrained cultivators of Pure Land were frightened by this display. They had been blocking the way, intending to trap their prey, but they hadn't expected to encounter a fierce shark that devoured people without leaving bones behind.

In just a short moment, several had fallen, and the remaining cultivators from Pure Land no longer dared to linger, retreating one after another.

Lu Ye continued on at his steady pace, followed by the cultivators and ordinary people from the stronghold, forming a long yet quiet and orderly procession.

After walking for more than half a Shichen, there finally appeared a faint light ahead.

Clearly, they were approaching the exit of the secret passageway.

About a hundred zhang from the exit, Lu Ye halted and instructed the people behind him, "Stay here and don't move. Don't come out until I call you."

"Yes!" The cultivators from the stronghold, who had initially been arranged by Xu Wang to monitor and guard Lu Ye, instinctively responded with a clanging affirmation.

On their way here, the people following behind might not have noticed what exactly had happened up front, but those few who had been closely following Lu Ye had discerned something.

Which is why they held the utmost respect in their hearts.

Stepping into the light, Lu Ye slowly emerged from the secret passageway.

In an instant, a multitude of auras surrounded him from all sides.

Narrowing his eyes slightly, Lu Ye saw more than a dozen figures encircling him, each as tense as if facing a great enemy.

One of the figures, a tiny cultivator about the size of a three-inch nail, squawked in a duck-like voice, "Hey, boy, was it you who killed our people?"

Although the deaths of their comrades had made them aware of Lu Ye's strength, they still showed no intention of backing down.

Combat in the passageway was inconvenient, so they simply waited outside, not believing that so many of them united could not take down their opponent.

Feeling puzzled, the intelligence they had gathered indicated that the only formidable person at this stronghold was someone called Zui Shan.

But the ages did not match; Zui Shan was a middle-aged man, while the person in front of them was a young man, neither too old nor too young.

Lu Ye remained silent. Amber, crouched on his shoulder, opened his mouth, ready to roar.

"Shh..." Lu Ye put a finger to his lips.

In this apocalyptic world, it was better not to make too much noise; for all they knew, a roar from Amber could attract some new trouble.

Amber yawned, complying out of laziness, and lay down again.

He couldn't help but feel that on this trip to the Unparalleled Continent, he had no opportunity to show his worth.

Never mind, he thought, I am a tiger, why worry about so much.