Chapter 1242: Du Lang's Difficulties (Contains Notice)

**The Rise of Kyushu**

When Lu Ye, having concealed his presence, arrived at the adjacent mining tunnel, he saw the fellow cultivator fully activating his spiritual power, darting around a small area while chasing a shimmering orb of spiritual light.

It was unclear what the light orb was; it didn't seem to possess the aura of a living being. Yet, its speed was astonishingly swift, and even though the cultivator was nimble, he couldn't catch it.

The orb repeatedly attempted to break through towards the spirit jade mine, but each time it was intercepted.

After observing for a moment, Lu Ye realized that a formation had been laid out here. However, the one who set it up wasn't particularly skilled, leaving some gaps. These gaps were precisely in the direction of the spirit jade mine.

This was also why the orb was attempting to break through in that direction; it had clearly sensed that this was its only way out.

After further observation, Lu Ye realized that with the cultivator's current methods, capturing the orb would be difficult. If this continued, a single mistake could allow the orb to break free from the formation's coverage and escape completely.

With a thought, he swept forward. Even before he reached the spot, several formation flags had already been cast out.

They instantly landed at the formation's flawed points. Spiritual power surged around him, spreading in all directions.

Du Lang wasn't particularly surprised by his arrival. Given their proximity, Lu Ye would easily detect any activity on his side.

Upon seeing Lu Ye's actions, Du Lang immediately understood his intention and promptly activated his spiritual power, connecting with the formation he had set up.

Despite no verbal communication and their unfamiliarity, a tacit understanding formed between them.

Lu Ye took control of Du Lang's incomplete formation, supplementing it with the flags he had just deployed and making his own adjustments. The formation quickly became perfected, now possessing a significant restraining effect.

When he activated the formation's power, an invisible, intangible restraining force suddenly descended. The rapidly moving light orb visibly stiffened and slowed significantly.

Du Lang was overjoyed and quickly rushed forward. He opened a bag he had been holding in one hand and swiftly covered the light orb, collecting it inside. Tying the bag's opening, a look of delight spread across his face.

At the same time, Lu Ye dispelled the grand formation's power, withdrew from its control center, and retrieved his formation flags.

Du Lang laughed heartily, "Many thanks, junior brother! If not for your assistance, it might truly have gotten away this time."

He mused to himself, *Indeed, being kind to others truly benefits oneself.*

A few days prior, he had shared some Jade-eating Ants with Lu Ye, and now Lu Ye had repaid his kindness. This current gain was far more valuable than any spirit jade the shared ants could have gathered.

Lu Ye nodded slightly, said nothing further, and returned to his own mining tunnel to resume his work.

Days passed, and within the spirit jade mine, the two independently toiled to extract spirit jade.

His clone continued to wander outside, but even though the Grand Beginning Realm had already shrunk its scope once, finding anything valuable proved difficult. Furthermore, the clone and the main body couldn't be too far apart; they always needed to remain within teleportation range to allow for instantaneous aid. This severely limited the clone's range of activity.

Consequently, there were almost no gains.

Ten days later, the heavens and earth hummed once more. Simultaneously, Lu Ye felt the repulsive force emanating from a certain direction significantly intensify.

This repulsive force continued to grow stronger with time.

He realized that his time in this place was running out. These changes in the Grand Beginning Realm were urging cultivators still within its bounds to converge inward. When the repulsive force reached a certain intensity, even those who wished to stay would be unable to.

Lu Ye decided to depart the day before the Grand Beginning Realm's third contraction.

A few more days passed, and Du Lang walked over from his mining tunnel, carrying a few pots of wine.

He had come to express his gratitude. When Lu Ye had helped him earlier, he hadn't shown much appreciation, partly because everyone was engrossed in the joy of mining spirit jade and it wasn't a good time to waste much time.

Now, with little time left and a sufficient harvest, his mood had completely relaxed.

Given Du Lang's generous invitation, Lu Ye naturally couldn't refuse. So, they sat down to chat casually over wine.

It was only then that the two exchanged names. During their conversation, Lu Ye learned that Du Lang hailed from a realm called the Scarlet Sky Continent. Unlike the revitalized Nine Provinces, the Scarlet Sky Continent had begun its gradual decline a thousand years ago.

Originally, the Scarlet Sky Continent, while not a top-tier realm, was a respectable large realm where many Constellation Realm cultivators were born regularly. However, starting a thousand years ago, the number of Constellation Realms emerging there steadily decreased, becoming exceedingly rare in the last century.

This was a consequence of the world's inherent foundation eroding and its tier gradually declining.

According to Yang Qing, when a realm's inherent foundation is sufficiently powerful, the world's will instinctively responds to cultivators' desires for advancement. This leads to the descent of spiritual light, bestowing upon Spirit Sea Realm cultivators the power to connect with the starry sky and subsequently ascend to the Constellation Realm.

In the Nine Provinces, of course, Little Nine actively facilitates this process.

However, if a world's tier declines, its will instinctively shifts to self-preservation, making it difficult to satisfy cultivators' aspirations for advancement.

This is because every bit of power that allows a cultivator to advance to the Constellation Realm causes a considerable drain on the world's inherent foundation.

It's foreseeable that if this situation continues, the Scarlet Sky Continent might, within a few years, fall to the previous level of the Nine Provinces and become increasingly weaker.

Therefore, the Scarlet Sky Continent urgently needed a substantial amount of spirit jade. Its powerful cultivators hoped to use the energy released from spirit jade to slow down their realm's decline.

This was merely a concept; no one knew if it would truly work, but they felt compelled to try.

Currently, there weren't many cultivators above the Constellation Realm in the Scarlet Sky Continent, and even if they all searched for spirit jade in the starry sky, their gains would be limited.

Thus, Du Lang wanted to contribute. He happened to possess a map left by an elder from his realm, which he had used to search for this spirit jade mine ever since entering the Grand Beginning Realm. The results, he admitted, were quite satisfactory.

Especially the orb of spiritual light Lu Ye helped him capture a few days ago. While he wasn't certain if the energy from spirit jade could truly slow down his realm's decline, his elders had assured him that spiritual light absolutely could. However, such orbs were exceedingly rare and sought after.

Therefore, in a way, Lu Ye's actions at that moment had been a tremendous help.

"So, Brother Du, you're not planning to participate in the upcoming Spirit Sea War?" Lu Ye realized.

Du Lang's primary goal for this trip was to mine spirit jade. Now that he had achieved his harvest, the rest became inconsequential.

Du Lang smiled. "I also wish to participate, but the risk is too great. Honestly, while I have some confidence in my own strength, there's still a gap compared to cultivators from top-tier realms. The Spirit Sea War is incredibly perilous. If I were to accidentally perish, this entire month's effort would be for naught. It's not that I, Du Lang, am afraid of death."

Lu Ye nodded in understanding.

He suddenly understood why Du Lang hadn't attacked him when they first met: Du Lang's goal wasn't the Spirit Sea War at all, so killing or not killing people had no bearing on his objectives.

After all, this spirit jade mine was vast; whether one person mined or several, it wouldn't significantly impact his own harvest.

Of course, this might also be due to Du Lang's nature. From their few interactions, it was clear that Du Lang had a good disposition and wasn't the type to bully the weak.

He had even been willing to share his Jade-eating Ants.

"My situation is unique, so Junior Brother Lu needn't take me as an example. If you feel confident, you should still fight. However, your cultivation level... is indeed a significant weakness. If it becomes apparent to others, it could easily draw unwanted attention and targeting."

Everyone knows to pick on the weak. A cultivation level of the eighth stage is remarkably low here, and anyone would likely want to take advantage of it.

Du Lang didn't try to persuade Lu Ye further. Among cultivators, it's generally advised not to delve into deep conversations with casual acquaintances. They were all Spirit Sea Realm cultivators, and each knew what they needed to do. If Lu Ye dared to come here with an eighth-stage cultivation, he surely had some reliance. Du Lang would mind his own business; there was no need to worry about others.

The time for the Grand Beginning Realm's third contraction was drawing nearer. The most noticeable effect was the intensifying repulsive force, which grew so strong that cultivators had to actively channel their spiritual power to resist it, lest they be pushed away.

Lu Ye stood up. "Brother Du, I should be setting off."

Du Lang nodded, cupped his fist, and said, "Then I wish you a smooth journey ahead, Junior Brother, and may you achieve your desires."

"I'll take those auspicious words!" Lu Ye turned his head and looked aside. "These Jade-eating Ants..."

Du Lang waved a hand. "Since they were given to you, Junior Brother, there's no reason to take them back. They're not troublesome to raise; just provide them with spirit stones."

There were still many Jade-eating Ants back on the Scarlet Sky Continent, so Du Lang could replenish his stock if he wished, but Lu Ye couldn't.

Lu Ye thanked him, walked to the side, collected the Jade-eating Ants, and also gathered the spirit jade they had mined. With that, he flashed away towards the outside.

He didn't need to deliberately discern the direction; he simply followed the path indicated by the repulsive force, as his clone had already gone ahead.

In the dark mining tunnel, only Du Lang remained, drowning his sorrows in wine.

It was the greatest opportunity for Spirit Sea Realm cultivators, occurring only once every century. To be fortunate enough to participate, yet unable to see it through to the end due to special circumstances, was undoubtedly a profound regret for someone like him.

Missing this opportunity meant there would be no next time in his lifetime.

He had spoken with Lu Ye with a carefree demeanor, but only he knew the bitterness in his heart.

On one hand, it was his personal opportunity, and on the other, a potential future for his home realm. Even though he had made his decision long ago, at this crucial juncture, he couldn't help but feel a flicker of doubt.