Sage of Humanity

Another slash fell, and with a clink, sparks flew in every direction. Surprisingly, Lann Yudie, who should have been forced back by this attack, didn't retreat and was instead holding a dagger in her hand, unknown when she had grasped it; it was that very dagger that parried Lu Ye's strike.

Lu Ye hastily drew back his blade and slashed again.

Lann Yudie scoffed, "Too many openings!"

Her small fist punched out. Even though Lu Ye saw the punch coming, he couldn't prepare for it. In a hurry, a layer of Defense Spirit Runes appeared in front of his abdomen.

With a booming sound, spirit force exploded outward, and the punch sent Lu Ye flying back seventy to eighty feet, his stomach churning so much he could hardly catch his breath.

Lann Yudie was astonished, "What is this?"

She felt something shatter under her punch, but in the heat of the battle, she hadn't seen it clearly.

She had no time for further contemplation as Lu Ye, who had just regained his stance, rushed at her like a swift wind, immediately filling her vision with the bright light of his blade.

Lann Yudie twisted her body to dodge, her aura becoming more elusive and unpredictable, her speed a notch faster than before.

The sounds of clashing metal, ding ding dang dang, wove a continuous melody in the night as the long sword collided with the dagger.

"Roar!" Amber suddenly pounced from behind Lann Yudie. This woman seemed to have eyes on her back, easily dodging the attack while simultaneously landing a kick that sent the robustly built Amber tumbling away.

But midair, Amber's long tail curled like a whip and lashed out at Lann Yudie, catching her off-guard. Grinding her teeth, she cursed, "What a ferocious beast!"

She quickly retreated.

Meanwhile, Lu Ye had already leapt onto Amber's back and was preparing to make a run for it. Although the exchange had been brief, he was certain that he was no match for this woman. If not now, when would he escape?

However, his expression quickly became grave, for several waves of spirit force from all around were rapidly converging on his location, arriving in the blink of an eye.

"How did this fight start?" A young man stared at the chaotic battlefield in amazement.

They were originally hidden not far away, protecting them according to the plan, but when they heard the sounds of battle here, they thought the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge's people were attacking and hurried to provide support. They hadn't expected to stumble upon this scene.

"Stop fighting, stop! Don't fight anymore." Someone yelled.

Another called out, "Junior Brother Lu, please, hold your anger. This is a misunderstanding!"

Riding on Amber's back, Lu Ye looked around coldly. There were six people approaching. Among them, three were at the Level 6 realm, and the other three were at Level 5. If he wasn't mistaken, among those who had just shouted were the ones who had previously been chasing after Lann Yudie.

These people were all together.

Surrounded by a squad of such caliber, Lu Ye would have to break through the Level 5's if he wanted to escape, and even then, success wasn't guaranteed!

What concerned Lu Ye, though, was that these people did not display any hostility toward him, and one of them had even addressed him as Junior Brother Lu!

Since entering the Spirit Stream battlefield, aside from those from the Independent Wanderers Society and Yiyi, no one else knew his surname. When interacting with strangers, he had always referred to himself as Yiye.

How did this person know his surname was Lu?

Then there were the strange encounters of the past few days... He couldn't help but feel that these events were connected.

The Level 6 cultivator who had spoken earlier approached Lann Yudie and asked in confusion, "Why did you start fighting him?"

Weren't they supposed to stick close and protect him? Was this how they protected?

Lann Yudie also regained her composure, her face a little embarrassed, "I couldn't hold back!" Mainly because it was too infuriating; this kid had actually drugged her, and to make matters worse, she had fallen for it.

However, their recent fight allowed her to realize how formidable Lu Ye, at his mere Level 5, was. This guy fought with aggressive ferocity and merciless attacks. She had never seen a Level 5 like him before.
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Compared to him, her own Level 5 was gentle like a little white rabbit.

No wonder that squad from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge was flipped over like slicing melons and chopping vegetables during the daytime. His overwhelming aggressiveness and brutal attacks easily intimidated cultivators of the same level, leading them to fall under his blade.

"Who are you all?"

Lu Ye kept his guard up, his gaze flickering toward one of the Level 5s, assessing his chances of breaking through in that direction.

The young man who had spoken earlier inwardly winced. He recognized the wariness and distrust in Lu Ye's eyes, which was understandable. If the roles were reversed, he wouldn't easily trust a group of strangers either.

Instead of answering Lu Ye directly, to avoid further misunderstandings and to ensure smooth talking, he raised a hand and solemnly said, "Zixia Mountain's Qi Xin beseeches Heaven's Augury; the seven of us bear no ill will towards Junior Brother Lu, merely fulfilling our sect's mission. May Heaven's Augury bear witness!"

Some force seemed to settle from the beyond.

Qi Xin then said to Lu Ye, who was still atop Amber, "Junior Brother, please stay calm."

Lu Ye frowned slightly and slowly sheathed his longsword. A Heaven's Augury oath was not to be taken lightly, and if the other side dared to invoke it, it meant they truly bore him no malice.

Qi Xin's expression turned serious, "I know Junior Brother must have many questions, but this is not the place to discuss them. Could you please accompany us to find a quiet place? How does that sound?"

After a brief silence, Lu Ye nodded, "That would be acceptable."

He indeed had many questions.

"Please," Qi Xin gestured with his hand, leading the way, and the others followed suit.

"Wait a moment," Lann Yudie raised her hand.

"What is it, Senior Sister?" Qi Xin turned back and asked.

Lann Yudie looked somewhat embarrassed, "I've been poisoned. I can't get my spirit force to circulate and I can't walk!" Although she had managed to suppress the poison forcefully earlier, it had resulted in even more violent outbreaks. At this moment, her spirit force was as still as dead water, completely impossible to mobilize.

Everyone was shocked: "Who did this?"

Lann Yudie turned her head to look at Lu Ye, who looked away into the night.

A wave of strange expressions swept over the group. Some wanted to laugh but dared not, their shoulders shaking, struggling to hold it in. They finally understood why their Senior Sister, despite having gone to provide close protection, had ended up fighting instead.

This was something no one would be able to tolerate.

Qi Xin asked quietly, "Shall I carry you then?"

"Roll over, I definitely don't want you to carry me!" Lann Yudie refused outright, and then looking at Lu Ye, she said, "Whoever caused it is responsible for it; have your mount carry me!"

Lu Ye thought for a moment and then patted the tiger's back.

Lann Yudie stepped forward, climbed atop the tiger's back, and Amber seemed somewhat reluctant, but still endured.

"Let's go." Qi Xin continued to lead the way at the front, and the party moved forward in silence at a very rapid pace.

An hour later, everyone found a cave and hid inside.

Lu Ye waited for the others from Zixia Mountain to enter before he led Amber inside. His little ruse was obviously no secret, but everyone pretended not to see.

The cave was dry, and several people sat down cross-legged.

Lu Ye was the first to speak, "How did you know my name?"

Upon hearing this, Qi Xin couldn't help but laugh, "Junior Brother really has no idea of his own situation?"

"In what sense?"

"It seems Junior Brother truly doesn't understand his own situation," Qi Xin sighed and said, "Junior Brother's identity has already been exposed. Now, not only do we know you're a disciple of the Righteous Blood Sect, but many people in the Spirit Stream battlefield know as well."

Lu Ye's brow furrowed.

His identity had been exposed? How? And what did he mean by many people with intentions?

Ever since entering the Spirit Stream battlefield, he had always been extremely careful, cautious at every step, because before coming here, the sect master had warned him to never reveal his identity as a disciple of the Righteous Blood Sect.

Even though he didn't know why the sect master had given such a warning, he trusted that his master wouldn't harm him.

In his interactions with others, he only called himself Yiye, and even people like Hua Ci, who knew his name, shouldn't have been able to find out about his background.

There was only one person who recognized him, a former mining slave from Evil Moon Valley, whom he had encountered at the gate of Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union in Yi'an City.

It was a coincidence, and Lu Ye didn't say much at the time. Once he was recognized, he quickly left the area.

However, after he left Yi'an City, he was pursued by Dong Shuye...

Suddenly, he remembered that Dong Shuye had sent out a message using the battlefield marking before dying. At the time, he thought Dong Shuye was calling for help, but since no one came after him, the matter was left unsettled.

Dong Shuye was undoubtedly going to die, so even if he had called for help, it would have been too late. But what if sending out a message wasn't for calling help?

Could it have been Dong Shuye? That disciple from Burning Moon Mountain whom he met in Yi'an City might have been seen by Dong Shuye, who could have used some means to learn about his background from that person...

Before his death, Dong Shuye said he would wait for him on the road to Hell, which seemed like the powerless barks of a dying man. But what if he truly believed that?

"Is there a problem with my identity?"

This was the point Lu Ye found most puzzling. The sect master had specifically warned him before he entered the Spirit Stream battlefield, letting him know that having his identity exposed would definitely not bode well for him.

He had speculated that the Righteous Blood Sect might have committed some unforgivable act, causing their disciples to be in a tough situation in the Spirit Stream battlefield.

"I'm not quite sure what the exact issue is, as it relates to some old secrets," Qi Xin replied, "but what I know is that the entire Spirit Stream battlefield is in turmoil because of you. Many sects from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge want you dead, while numerous sects in the Haotian Alliance are trying to protect you. We from Zixia Mountain are among them, and we were sent by our master to find you."

Lu Ye listened, completely bewildered, "The Spirit Stream battlefield is in turmoil because of me?"

As a Level 5 cultivator, he lacked the stature to shift the entire situation on the Spirit Stream battlefield.

The root cause must not have been due to him, but rather the identity of being a disciple of the Righteous Blood Sect.

If Qi Xin wasn't lying, then the sect he had reluctantly chosen as his last resort seemed to hide some considerable secrets.

"We young people don't know the specifics about the past, but as far as I'm aware, the Righteous Blood Sect was a 1st grade sect a few decades ago," Lann Yudie, who had been working on dispelling the pill poison, suddenly spoke up.

She had the highest cultivation and knew a bit more, "Later, for some unknown reason, its grade fell year by year, until it became a Ninth Grade, and now it's on the verge of being abolished. The Righteous Blood Sect hasn't taken in any disciples for thirty years, and if no disciples join the sect within the next two months, their name will be completely erased during the sect grade assessment."