NOVEL WEB Chapter 51:
Chapter 51: The Enlightenment Tree:
“Trash! Absolute trash!”
On the demon race’s side, complaints echoed incessantly.
They had methods to track the life force of their comrades, and the results were grim—the demons had suffered devastating losses.
The much-anticipated Broken Sword Demon had already died. Other prodigy-level demons were falling one after another, the carnage truly shocking.
But now, the tide could finally turn for the demons.
This time, they had sent three of their most terrifying prodigies into the battlefield in one go:
Tu Wuying, a master of lethal precision and shadow stealth.
Xing Ye, with apocalyptic combat power capable of destroying worlds.
Ye An, the son of the Heavenly Demon Emperor.
These three were the strongest prodigies of the demon race. Even if they couldn’t dominate the entire battlefield, they were powerful enough to make all factions wary.
The demon race’s morale surged, their momentum unstoppable, and their demonic energy roared to the skies.
The glory of the demons was destined to return.
Ye An was the first to step through the teleportation channel into the Ancient Battlefield of Prodigies.
Scanning his surroundings, his eyes immediately landed on Lu Ye, who stood calmly with a sword in hand.
He froze slightly.
A human?
What was going on?
What was this lone human doing here?
Tu Wuying emerged next.
Ye An was just about to speak when a dazzling sword light burst forth in an instant.
In Ye An’s eyes, the world disappeared at that moment, leaving only that single sword light.
His body trembled, every hair standing on end. His hand, gripping his weapon, felt powerless.
Fast.
Precise.
Ruthless.
A gentle breeze ruffled Ye An’s hair.
Tu Wuying’s body split cleanly in two, his eyes still filled with confusion.
‘Who am I?’
’Where am I?’
’What am I doing?’
’Wait, you’re not killing the son of the Heavenly Demon Emperor, but me instead? What grudge, what enmity? Have we even met before? You were waiting here just to kill me? I just got here!
Who would understand this? Facing a lunatic who killed him on sight, Tu Wuying had no answers.’
In a flash, Lu Ye had slain Tu Wuying.
He then calmly glanced at Ye An but did not attack him.
Although killing Ye An would have been equally simple.
Lu Ye’s figure disappeared into the distance, vanishing several kilometers away in the blink of an eye.
At this moment, beads of sweat dripped from Ye An’s forehead. The glance Lu Ye had given him made death feel so close, as if he could reach out and touch it.
Xing Ye, the third demon prodigy, arrived through the teleportation channel, his face still brimming with excitement. The smell of blood hit his nose, and his expression shifted as if struck by lightning.
“How did Tu Wuying die?” Xing Ye exclaimed in disbelief.
What nonsense was this?
He had been right behind Tu Wuying, teleported through just seconds later, yet Tu Wuying was now split in two.
Ye An stood motionless, his gaze vacant, clearly questioning his existence.
“Ye An, how did Tu Wuying die? Did you kill him?”
There was no one else here but Ye An, making him the most likely suspect. But why? Why would Ye An kill Tu Wuying?
“A… a human,” Ye An replied, taking a deep breath to suppress his inner fear and shock.
He was utterly terrified.
If that sword had been aimed at him, he would be dead. If that sword had followed Tu Wuying’s death with another strike at him, he would still be dead.
“A human!” Xing Ye exclaimed.
“Where is he?”
Ye An pointed in the direction where Lu Ye had left, his voice dry and hoarse.
“I think I understand now why the demons have been dying so miserably.”
As more demon prodigies arrived, one by one, they froze in place, dumbfounded.
What? In such a short time, someone had killed Tu Wuying right in front of the Heavenly Demon Emperor’s son?
Some demons glanced up at the vortex above. Should they, perhaps, retreat?
This battlefield seemed far more dangerous than any before.
Having dealt with Tu Wuying, Lu Ye felt refreshed.
In his previous life, Tu Wuying had been a constant thorn in his side. Many of his senior brothers and sisters had fallen to Tu Wuying before his eyes, leaving Lu Ye deeply resentful.
Killing him once wasn’t enough—he needed to kill him again to feel satisfied.
From the fourth layer, Lu Ye headed straight for the sixth.
He was familiar with the terrain and avoided troublesome areas with little value.
The middle three layers held no treasures he needed. When the final three layers opened, he would claim a treasure known as the Pure Blood Sea Pearl, crucial for refining his second life, effectively granting him a third.
For now, he sought to meditate beneath the Enlightenment Tree.
He hoped no one would disturb him.
Otherwise, he would have to take action, which would be bothersome.
In the distance, a lush green tree came into view.
As Lu Ye approached, a phantom appeared to block his way. Without a word, Lu Ye swung his sword, shattering the phantom instantly.
The Enlightenment Tree swayed gently, its emerald leaves emitting specks of light. Phantoms continued to appear.
“Three Thousand Dao Sword!”
With a single strike, the sound of three thousand swords resonated.
The phantoms shattered into pieces.
Lu Ye walked beneath the Enlightenment Tree and looked up.
The tree’s light fell gently upon him, and his mind became tranquil.
It felt like a still, clear lake undisturbed by the wind, surrounded by the heavens and earth, with not the slightest ripple.
“Activate Enlightenment!”
[Ding! Enlightenment activated!]
Meditating under the Enlightenment Tree, enhanced by the tree’s power, Lu Ye felt as if he had transcended humanity itself.
As soon as he questioned this thought, it dissipated entirely.
The Dao.
Only the Dao.
…
Various races continued to pour into the Ancient Battlefield of Prodigies.
The newcomers were much stronger than the previous entrants. The earlier group had generally been at the Nascent Soul Realm, with most barely reaching the third or fourth levels.
But this new batch included those at the 6th stage or even 7th stage Nascent Soul Realm. Some were even on the verge of entering the Void Refinement Realm.
In the First Heaven, the Dao Integration Realm was considered the pinnacle of power. Though Void Refinement Realm cultivators were rare here, they could still qualify as prodigies.
The Nine Heavens allowed movement upward but not downward.
This rule was established by the Sacred Sovereign of the Nine Heavens, who had once lamented the plight of the weak and created the Nine Heavens as a sanctuary.
Although the Sacred Sovereign had fallen, some powerful factions had developed methods to temporarily descend to lower realms.
Among the human race, the newcomers were stunned to see their kind dominating most of the lower three layers.
What? These younger prodigies were this fierce?
Meanwhile, the other races’ powerhouses struggled to find their factions and were visibly enraged.
They had to unite. Cooperation was the only way forward.
The Buddhist monks, relieved to find their disciples relatively unscathed, quickly made a decision.
They needed to claim the Enlightenment Tree first, surround it with a formation, and protect it.
With the tree under their control, their progress in Buddhist teachings would skyrocket.