Chapter 1030: I am Feng Wujiang

"Who is Taishan...?" Lu Ye asked, looking at the middle-aged man before him.

"You don't know him?"

Lu Ye shook his head. He had genuinely never heard the name Taishan, nor did he understand why this person would suddenly ask about him.

The middle-aged man frowned. The young man's expression didn't seem feigned. Under his powerful spiritual sense, a True Lake Realm cultivator couldn't possibly lie to his face. It appeared the young man truly didn't know Taishan.

However, not knowing didn't mean he hadn't met him.

Aside from him, only Taishan knew the crafting method for that Dao Soldier. Years ago, he had studied this method alongside Taishan.

But at the time, he felt this crafting technique was too harmful to the natural order, so he abandoned it.

Now, it seemed Taishan had indeed used that method. The Dao Soldier seated before him was undoubtedly crafted by Taishan. That was why he could subdue Dao Thirteen so easily; otherwise, even with his great strength, he couldn't have put Dao Thirteen to sleep with a single finger.

For people like them, killing an enemy was simple, but subduing one often required several times the effort.

With a Dao Soldier crafted by Taishan and having recited the next line of "Azure Blood flows through the ages," the young man's origin was practically revealed.

However, his cultivation… seemed a bit low. Was this the assistance provided by their homeland?

"Where in the Nine Provinces are you from?" the middle-aged man asked.

Lu Ye's pupils contracted, his eyes filled with disbelief. He stared blankly at the middle-aged man, almost thinking he had misheard, and asked with uncertainty, "What did you say?"

The middle-aged man smiled and asked again, "Which province of the Nine Provinces are you from? And which sect?"

Even with Lu Ye's steady temperament, he was greatly shocked by this.

He had never imagined he would hear someone mention the "Nine Provinces" in this Blood Refinement Realm. Various thoughts churned in his mind, and he instantly realized, "Senior... are you from the Nine Provinces?"

The middle-aged man nodded, "Not just me; they are all from the Nine Provinces."

Behind him, Sword Guhong and the others looked at Lu Ye with knowing smiles.

They had already clearly guessed that Lu Ye was from the Nine Provinces because Dao Soldiers, especially a Divine Sea Realm Dao Soldier, could not appear in the Blood Refinement Realm.

Only in the Nine Provinces could such Dao Soldiers be born. They hadn't confirmed this before, so they hadn't told Lu Ye, intending to question him in detail after bringing him back.

Now, seeing Lu Ye's reaction, they knew their guess was correct.

This young man truly was from the Nine Provinces.

In this foreign land, suddenly seeing someone from his homeland, Lu Ye couldn't help but feel a sense of kinship, and his emotions stirred.

Upon further thought, if the Heavenly Mystery of the Nine Provinces could send him to the Blood Refinement Realm, it could naturally send others as well.

It now seemed that the Nine Provinces cultivators sent here were mostly at the Divine Sea Realm, which was the basis for this place. To resist the Blood Tribe, they had established a human faction, continuously fighting against them.

Lu Ye finally lowered his hand from his saber hilt, exhaled deeply, suppressing the excitement in his heart. He cupped his fists and bowed, "Lu Ye of the Azure Blood Sect from Bing Province, greets all seniors."

At his words, Sword Guhong and the others were all momentarily stunned, turning to look at the middle-aged man.

The middle-aged man was also startled. He stepped forward and grabbed Lu Ye's arm. "You're from the Azure Blood Sect in Bing Province? The Azure Blood Sect of Xiang Mountain?"

"Yes," Lu Ye replied, noting that the man's reaction was quite strong.

By all accounts, a cultivator of his level should possess an unwavering temperament, capable of remaining composed even if the sky were to fall. Yet, in that instant, his breathing became unsteady, a clear sign of intense emotional turmoil.

"Who leads the Azure Blood Sect now?" the middle-aged man asked, his voice trembling slightly.

"Our Sect Master, Tang Yifeng!"

"Is he well?"

"Yes, he is well," Lu Ye replied, frowning slightly as the man's grip on his arm was a bit painful.

The middle-aged man apparently realized this and quickly released Lu Ye's arm, nodding repeatedly. "It's good that he's well, so good!"

Lu Ye was filled with doubt and surprise, faintly guessing that this man had some deep connection to his sect. Otherwise, someone of his cultivation wouldn't be so flustered. But who was he to be so concerned about his sect and Sect Master?

"Senior, you are..."

The middle-aged man took a deep breath, a warm smile spreading across his face. "My name is Feng Wujiang. I wonder if you've heard of me."

Lu Ye froze for a moment, then blurted out, "Impossible!"

Feng Wujiang, what a thunderous name! He had heard this name shortly after embarking on his cultivation path, and as he grew, he increasingly recognized the weight of it.

It could be said that the name Feng Wujiang represented an era. Not just him, but who in the entire Nine Provinces nowadays didn't know it?

The Azure Blood Sect's rise and fall were both attributed to Feng Wujiang.

Back then, the sect rose to become a first-rank sect under the leadership of this Senior Brother. After his demise, the sect gradually declined, leaving behind lingering effects even today. In the Spirit Stream Battlefield and Cloud River Battlefield, Lu Ye was frequently targeted and besieged by the Myriad Demon Ridge faction. Even after joining the Bing Province Guard, he was suppressed by his own Divine Sea Realm cultivators due to Feng Wujiang.

Lu Ye's feelings towards this Senior Brother were complex. While there was admiration, there was more a sense of frustration and disappointment.

He didn't know the specifics of what happened back then, as no one had explained it clearly to him, but the sect's current predicament was undeniably linked to this Senior Brother.

In fact, before he even joined the Azure Blood Sect, it was almost removed from the records by Heavenly Mystery.

His mind racing, Lu Ye looked at the man before him and frowned. "My Senior Brother died almost forty years ago. Don't try to deceive me."

Sword Guhong interjected, "Everyone before you used to be dead."

"What do you mean?" Lu Ye asked, looking at him.

Sword Guhong replied, "I am the Fifth Sword Master of the Northern Profound Sword Sect."

The female spell cultivator beside him smiled subtly. "I am Moon Ji, the Seventh Sect Master of the Myriad Spells Sect from Lei Province."

Even the silent body cultivator spoke, "I am Meng Jie, the Third Gate Master of the Righteous Qi Gate from Bing Province."

The ghost cultivator, Wuchang, chuckled. "I'm not a Gate Master or Sect Master. I'm a rogue cultivator; you wouldn't know me even if I told you." It was uncertain whether his words were true or false, but ghost cultivators were always low-key and mysterious, and it wasn't uncommon for them to deliberately conceal their origins.

Lu Ye's mind was shaken by these simple words.

He didn't know when these third, fifth, and seventh generations had lived, but it was clear that the current Sect Masters and Gate Masters of these major sects in the Nine Provinces had passed on their lineage for more than just a few generations. In other words, every person before him was an ancient figure, having lived for at least several hundred years, perhaps even longer.

The Northern Profound Sword Sect and Righteous Qi Gate were familiar to Lu Ye, both first-rank sects of the Vast Heaven Alliance in Bing Province.

Lu Ye had also dealt with the Myriad Spells Sect from Lei Province; back in the core area of the Spirit Stream Battlefield, which Myriad Demon Ridge sect hadn't he extorted?

The Myriad Spells Sect belonged to the Myriad Demon Ridge!In the world of the Nine Provinces, the two major factions constantly clashed and fought. Yet, here in the Blood Refinement Realm, top experts from opposing factions could coexist peacefully, serving under the same person. How peculiar!

Yet, it felt natural.

Because this was not the Nine Provinces. This was the Blood Refinement Realm, ruled by the Blood Tribe. Whether from the Vast Heaven Alliance or the Myriad Demon Ridge, here in the Blood Refinement Realm, they shared only one identity.

Human cultivators!No wonder Sword Guhong, Wuchang, and Meng Jie all looked somewhat aged. They had lived for an unknown number of years. Only Moon Ji, being a woman, had mastered the art of preserving her appearance, so her age wasn't apparent, though her true age might not be less than the others.

These people were undoubtedly sent by the Heavenly Mystery of the Nine Provinces.

And they certainly weren't sent all at once; they must have been sent one by one at different points in time.

This suggested that the Heavenly Mystery of the Nine Provinces had long since located the Blood Refinement Realm and had been employing means to save the human race here. While there had been some success, it was still difficult to change the overall situation in the Blood Refinement Realm.

In fact, one thing had always puzzled Lu Ye.

That Divine Sea Realm cultivators generally had very long lifespans, easily living for over a thousand years. Even if their lifespan was reduced for various reasons, living for several hundred years was still simple.

It was true that the two major factions in the Nine Provinces frequently clashed, and there were many precedents of Divine Sea Realm cultivators perishing. However, it wasn't as if every Divine Sea Realm cultivator in every era would die out completely.

Especially those Divine Sea Realm cultivators who could lead an era, like his Senior Brother.

If they hadn't died, where had they gone?

Perhaps some were in secluded cultivation, comprehending the mysteries beyond the Divine Sea.

But it was also possible that they were chosen by the Heavenly Mystery of the Nine Provinces and sent here!Lu Ye suddenly understood. No wonder Sword Guhong and the others were so powerful, daring to cause rivers of blood within an army of hundreds of thousands of Blood Tribe soldiers with just a few people.

Because they were not ordinary Divine Sea Realm cultivators; each of them had once been a powerful expert who suppressed all rivals and dominated an era.

Only such individuals were qualified to be sent here by the Heavenly Mystery of the Nine Provinces.

Although Lu Ye didn't know the cost of sending someone from the Nine Provinces to this place, it certainly wouldn't be small, so not just anyone could be sent here.

No one had ever known this; everyone believed they were dead.

Looking again at the person who claimed to be Feng Wujiang, Lu Ye finally understood why he had found him somewhat familiar at first glance.

Because of Feng Yuebi.Feng Yuebi was his daughter, so naturally, she carried some of his features.

As he was lost in thought, Moon Ji suddenly pointed to the side. "Look over there."

Lu Ye turned his head and saw a white-haired old woman, stooped at the waist and leaning on a crutch, shuffling past not far away. Her figure trembled, as if she might fall at any moment.

"Don't be fooled by her appearance. That's Granny Jiu, the second Valley Master of Medicine King Valley. She's the oldest among us, over a thousand years old. Never offend her, or you won't even know how you died. Even I grew up hearing tales of her formidable reputation."