Chapter 1139: Heaven's Punishment

Following this train of thought, if the Yunluo Plains, which lie beyond the Twin Peaks of the Sky-Scraping Jade Pillars, represent the torso's lower abdomen, then what about the Divine Palace Sea embedded in the Yunluo Plains?

The navel.

Lu Ye was startled by his sudden thought. This must be a coincidence, because if such a thing were true, it would be utterly terrifying. For a vast realm like the Blood Refining Realm to be merely the torso of some female being, how enormous would she be in her complete form? And what being in this world could have decapitated and dismembered such a creature?

However, in common understanding, the term "Divine Palace" indeed refers to the navel.

Amidst his doubts and suspicions, his elevated mind suddenly plummeted, as if falling from the clouds into an abyss. By the time Lu Ye regained his senses, he was already in a grand hall, with a Celestial Mechanism Pillar standing tall before him.

The Celestial Mechanism Hall on the Sacred Mountain. Lu Ye immediately understood his location. This was expected; he had returned to Kyushu from here previously, so naturally, his return now brought him back to this very spot.

This was different from when Little Nine first sent him to the Blood Refining Realm. The first time, the Celestial Mechanism Pillar was dormant and could not be used for teleportation coordinates. Furthermore, Little Nine seemed to have intentionally sent him to a random location in the Blood Refining Realm, wanting him to experience its customs and landscapes. His subsequent adventures in the Blood Refining Realm unfolded from there.

A muffled rumble of thunder echoed overhead, accompanied by crackling sounds. Lu Ye distinctly felt a strong sense of malevolence surrounding him. The entire atmosphere of the world felt exceptionally oppressive, causing his hair to stand on end and an inexplicable feeling of impending doom to creep over him.

Unsure of what was happening, he quickly darted out of the Celestial Mechanism Hall.

As he looked up, his pupils contracted.

The sky was heavily overcast with dark clouds. Numerous streaks of lightning flickered and moved about, like thunder dragons writhing within the clouds. That intense malevolence originated from here.

The moment Lu Ye stepped out of the Celestial Mechanism Hall, a clap of thunder exploded, and a lightning dragon snaked down from the clouds, striking directly towards his location.

Lu Ye couldn't help but feel a sense of impending disaster. Even though he had now advanced to the fifth stage of the Divine Sea Realm and possessed profound cultivation, he seemed fragile in the face of such an attack. This was not an ordinary attack at all; it was a Heavenly Punishment! It was a manifestation of the world's will of the Blood Refining Realm!

In a brief moment, Lu Ye understood his predicament.

He had long known that the Blood Refining Realm possessed a world's will. Thus, any external power would be met with hostility by this will. This was why Little Nine had sealed his and Dao Thirteen's full strength when sending them over, as only by doing so could they deceive the Blood Refining Realm's world's will and prevent Lu Ye from being targeted.

Seniors like Senior Brother, Moon Ji, and Jian Guhong had all sneaked into the Blood Refining Realm using this method. Upon their arrival, everyone's strength had been sealed.

But this time was different. Lu Ye had directly teleported here via the Celestial Mechanism Pillar. His presence was clear, and his cultivation was completely intact. If the last time was considered sneaking in, then this time was a brazen invasion.

The Blood Refining Realm's world's will detected him immediately, and thus, it unleashed Heavenly Punishment.

To the Blood Refining Realm, Lu Ye was an external invader, and an invader harboring immense malice towards the entire realm. Naturally, he could not be allowed to exist. From this perspective, the Blood Refining Realm's world's will was extremely clear. It might not possess the intelligence of Little Nine, nor would it communicate with the beings of the Blood Refining Realm, but its existence itself was intensely strong and distinct.

At this very moment, it was using its own method to deal with Lu Ye, the invader.

A lightning dragon descended, carrying the power to destroy everything.

Above the Sacred Island, a transparent barrier suddenly formed, enveloping the entire island in a crescent shape. Simultaneously, throughout the Sacred Island, powerful auras of the Divine Sea Realm began to surge. The cultivators of the Azure Blood Sacred Land had sensed danger, and activated the Sacred Island's protective formation.

With a thunderous roar, the lightning dragon struck the barrier of the protective formation. Under the worried gazes, the barrier severely caved inwards, and the unleashed lightning raced along its edges. In a blink, bright lightning clung to the outer surface of the entire Sacred Island's protective barrier.

Fortunately, the protective formation withstood this Heavenly Punishment. As the lightning dissipated, the indentation in the formation's barrier gradually smoothed out. However, in the sky above, the dark clouds grew even thicker and denser. A more powerful force was rapidly gathering. It was foreseeable that the next Heavenly Punishment would be even stronger than this one. The Blood Refining Realm's world's will clearly seemed determined to eliminate Lu Ye, the invader, immediately, right now.

Lu Ye's eyelids twitched nervously. The oppressive feeling and sense of dread intensified. An unprecedented, profound crisis enveloped him entirely, making him feel as if thorns were pricking his back. He tried to conceal his aura, but it had no effect whatsoever.

He was utterly speechless. He never expected that this trip to the Blood Refining Realm would lead to such a crisis. Not only was his own life now in extreme danger, but he would also implicate the entire Azure Blood Sacred Land.

Amidst a tremendous roar, the second bolt of lightning struck down. Both its speed and power were clearly far greater than the first. Roars echoed from various parts of the Sacred Island. Powerful spiritual energy fluctuations surged wildly, clearly indicating that the Divine Sea Realm cultivators were exerting their full strength to activate the protective formation's power.

When the lightning dragon struck, the formation's barrier once again severely caved inwards. Outside the barrier, lightning surged, making the entire Sacred Island appear like half an electrified sphere from a distance. The mortals on the Sacred Island were terrified. No one knew what was happening, or why it looked as if the end of the world had arrived.

Lu Ye was suspended in mid-air at this moment. His Concealment and Aura-Suppression Spirit Runes, activated simultaneously, were utterly useless. Thoughts raced through his mind as he searched for a way to break free from this predicament.

Given the intensity of this Heavenly Punishment, the Sacred Island's protective formation could at most withstand one more strike. It would then inevitably be broken. Once the formation was breached, if he continued to stay, he would bring catastrophe upon the entire Sacred Island. Not only would he perish, but countless mortals and cultivators on the island would likely suffer heavy casualties.

Retreating to Kyushu... This was not a bad method, but if he didn't resolve the issue of being targeted by the Blood Refining Realm's world's will, even if he could retreat to Kyushu this time, he would face the same situation upon returning.

The last time he and Dao Thirteen snuck in, their strength recovery was a gradual process, which was why they weren't targeted by the Blood Refining Realm's world's will. The key to recovering strength was to acquire things that carried the realm's information, such as consuming the flesh and blood of this realm's demonic beasts or refining the blood crystals of this realm's blood kin. Conversely, consuming spiritual elixirs or other items stored in Lu Ye's own storage bag was useless.

At this thought, a flash of inspiration struck Lu Ye, and he vaguely grasped the crucial point. The Blood Refining Realm's world's will was indeed clear and strong, but it hadn't reached the point of developing sentience. To some extent, a world's will itself could not develop sentience. Little Nine was a special existence, a spirit artifact that had merged with a portion of Kyushu's world's will. Without sentience, no matter how clear and strong it was, it could still be easily deceived. Therefore, acquiring things that carried the realm's information was a means of deception. It would lead the Blood Refining Realm's world's will to make the mistaken judgment that this person belonged to the realm. If so, the targeting would naturally disappear without a trace. This was also why, during his last visit, Lu Ye had to consume the demonic beasts of this realm to recover his strength.

The most straightforward understanding was that Lu Ye, as an external invader, was currently permeated, inside and out, with the aura of Kyushu. Even with billions of human cultivators in the Blood Refining Realm, his presence was as conspicuous as a lamp in the dark, naturally making him an easy target. However, if he could find a way to transform his own aura, he could blend in with the crowd. Lu Ye already had a plan for how to transform his aura.

While the Heavenly Punishment was still brewing its third, more ferocious lightning strike, he leaped up and darted straight out of the Sacred Island.

"Junior Brother!" an exclamation of surprise came from Senior Brother behind him. He had already noticed Lu Ye's arrival, but with Heavenly Punishment descending, he had no time to greet Lu Ye. He was currently busy activating the protective formation's power alongside the other senior cultivators guarding the Sacred Island. Seeing Lu Ye suddenly rush out of the Sacred Island, he couldn't help but be greatly alarmed. He naturally understood who the Heavenly Punishment was targeting. If Junior Brother remained hidden within the Sacred Island, there might still be a glimmer of hope for survival. But if he left the island and lost the protection of the formation, how could he possibly survive? Even he wouldn't dare to directly confront such Heavenly Punishment.

"Don't worry, Senior Brother, I'll be back soon," Lu Ye replied simply. He was already outside the Sacred Island, diving headfirst into the Blood Sea. To be safe, he immediately activated his Blood River Art. Within the Blood Sea, he spread out his own Blood River. Simultaneously, the power of his Talent Tree was activated, furiously devouring and refining the energy contained within the Blood Sea.

For others, absorbing the realm's information and its power might require a gradual process, impossible to achieve in a short time. But for him, it was unnecessary.

In the sky, dark clouds swirled like ink. On the Sacred Island, worried eyes looked up, expressions tense. Lightning streaked through the inky clouds, seemingly about to coalesce into the third Heavenly Punishment, yet it was delayed in descending. After a while, the lightning began to dissipate. The dark clouds accumulated above the Sacred Island actually started to slowly disperse. After another short period, the dark clouds completely vanished. The oppressive, heart-pounding sensation also disappeared. Above the Sacred Island, the sky was clear blue, and sunlight shone brightly.

The dramatic shift made everyone feel as if they were in a dream. The Divine Sea Realm cultivators on the Sacred Island then knew that this crisis had passed. They all breathed a heavy sigh of relief. The scene of the Heavenly Punishment descending earlier had been truly terrifying, something even they had never witnessed.

Figures darted out from various parts of the Sacred Island. Led by Feng Wujiang, they collectively rushed towards the place where Lu Ye had vanished.

Waiting quietly, after a moment, the waters of the Blood Sea surged, and a figure emerged from the waves.

"Junior Brother!" The worry on Feng Wujiang's face vanished, and he greeted him with a smile.

Lu Ye flew forward and respectfully bowed to everyone. "Greetings, Senior Brother, greetings, esteemed seniors. I have returned."