Chapter 1252: Ancient Vine, Gourd

Wind Rises in the Nine Provinces

Wind Rises in the Nine Provinces

If the sword gourd could consume high-quality spirit treasures, the clone's strength would undoubtedly increase, perhaps even surpassing the main body. However, the cost for that would be significant. The clone has always served as a diversion, not a fundamental asset, so there's no need to push its capabilities too hard. The main body's various methods are still primary for eliminating enemies.

But at this moment, the sword gourd at the clone's waist reacted unusually, gently vibrating and even transmitting a joyful aura to the clone. Lu Ye didn't know what was happening. There was no doubt that the sword gourd was of extremely high quality, far surpassing any treasure Lu Ye had seen to date. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been able to easily consume those spirit artifacts and magic tools. Moreover, its internal restrictions were numerous and complex; Lu Ye had only refined a portion of them, unable to unleash the sword gourd's full power. Lu Ye wasn't sure what kind of treasure it truly was. Perhaps he could ask Yang Qing later. Such treasures naturally possessed spiritual properties, usually dormant. Their current unusual activity was certainly noteworthy.

The clone silently sensed, then quickly looked up in one direction. He perceived that in that direction, the sword gourd seemed to be resonating with something from afar. This was the Primordial Realm. What could the sword gourd, which he obtained from the Sword Sect's secret realm, be resonating with here? A bold suspicion quietly formed in his mind, but he couldn't confirm it. He could only set off to investigate.

With a decision made, the clone flew into the air and headed in that direction. The main body trailed thousands of miles behind, maintaining a distance that allowed for instant teleportation to the clone's side at any moment.

After flying for half a day, the clone suddenly halted. Looking up, he saw brilliant treasure light overflowing and shimmering in the sky ahead, creating an imposing spectacle. Various lights in the sky shifted mysteriously, indicating that a great treasure was about to emerge. Through his divine sense, he also detected several faint yet powerful auras converging on that location. This was normal. The commotion was so obvious that any cultivator nearby would likely see it and be drawn to investigate.

It was clear that the anomaly there had a mysterious connection to the sword gourd. Normally, the clone carrying the sword gourd while roaming around wasn't an issue; there were many gourd-shaped treasures. For example, in the Nine Provinces, Fourth Senior Brother Li Baxian had a gourd-shaped treasure at his waist where he stored many flying swords and also used it for wine. So even if cultivators in the Primordial Realm had previously seen the sword gourd at the clone's waist, they wouldn't have thought much of it. However, if the anomaly there had a mysterious connection to the sword gourd, it wouldn't be appropriate for the clone to bring the sword gourd there at this time.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, something might be exposed. Thinking this, the clone raised his hand and constructed a void spirit pattern. The next instant, a figure appeared before him – the main body had arrived and continued to fly forward. Since the clone was not suitable for appearing, the main body would take over. As for the clone, it could simply find a place to conceal itself. The main body would first investigate the situation.

Indeed, many people were drawn by the anomaly. When Lu Ye arrived, he looked up and saw figures standing around two spirit peaks. Some were in groups of two or three, others alone, all with different appearances and powerful auras. There were over two hundred people!

The total number of cultivators participating in the Divine Sea Competition was two to three thousand. Half the time had passed, and roughly a thousand had been lost, leaving only one to two thousand alive. Yet, over two hundred had gathered here, and Lu Ye didn't know where they had all come from. When the main body and clone searched earlier, they hadn't found many. But thinking about it, it wasn't strange. The anomaly was obvious and grand; any cultivator nearby who saw it would certainly come to investigate. This was just the visible number; there were certainly others lurking in secret.

The source of the anomaly was an ancient vine suspended between two spirit peaks. It was gnarled and powerful, exuding a distinct aura of ancient wilderness, sparsely adorned with only a few green leaves. And on that old vine, astonishingly, hung three gourds! One large, two small! The two smaller ones were fist-sized, completely green, clearly unripe. But the large one was different, about the size of a human head, enveloped in flowing treasure light, appearing perfectly ripe and ready to fall. The celestial phenomena in the sky were triggered by this large gourd.

Upon seeing the gourds, Lu Ye knew his earlier guess was correct and was fortunate he had been cautious enough not to let the clone investigate. Otherwise, their mutual resonance might indeed have exposed something. The sword gourd he obtained from the Sword Sect's secret realm undoubtedly originated from this place! Otherwise, the sword gourd wouldn't have reacted so unusually. The Sword Sect was a powerful sect from the pre-Nine Provinces era. It was likely that a strong cultivator from the Sword Sect participated in the Divine Sea Competition in the Primordial Realm back then and obtained a sword gourd here. Ten thousand years later, by coincidence, Lu Ye brought the sword gourd back to the Primordial Realm, leading to these recent events.

If the sword gourd was a treasure, then these three gourds were undoubtedly treasures as well. The two smaller ones were still unripe and probably useless, but the large one was almost mature. The many cultivators attracted by the anomaly had also noticed this, so everyone's gaze at the large gourd was intensely fervent. However, because the timing wasn't right and too many people had gathered, everyone was exercising restraint. Otherwise, with so many people assembled, a chaotic fight would have long broken out, leaving no peace whatsoever. The sword gourd could consume treasures and transform them into sword qi to slay enemies. What was the purpose of this large gourd? Could it also consume treasures and turn them into sword qi? If so, it wouldn't be of much use to him.

Eyes all around converged on Lu Ye's location, making him the immediate focus of everyone's attention. No other reason: his cultivation being a level lower than everyone else's naturally attracted attention. Among the many gazes, there was surprise, astonishment, amusement, and mostly, a sense of eagerness. When the portal opened, Lu Ye had departed later than most, so those who entered the Primordial Realm before him didn't know that an eighth-level cultivator was participating in this Divine Sea Competition. Seeing him now, they couldn't help but be somewhat astonished. But in a place like this, no one would show leniency because of lower cultivation. It was certain that at this very moment, many had set their sights on him, but due to the presence of a great treasure, they were holding back to avoid causing a dispute. Lu Ye remained calm and fearless, appearing utterly unconcerned. If he wanted, he could naturally disguise his cultivation as ninth-level, blending in with the crowd. But since it was rare to encounter so many cultivators together, he had intended to make a statement with his cultivation level and thus wouldn't bother with a disguise. One could only say that whoever targeted him would be unlucky. After numerous battles, he had gained a generally clear understanding of the overall strength of the prodigies from various realms.

Suddenly, a familiar voice came from beside him: "Junior Brother Lu, over here!" Lu Ye looked in the direction of the voice and immediately saw a familiar charming face—it was Yu Yaorao from the Nine Profound Realm. What a coincidence; he hadn't expected her to be here. With her were two other men who had previously participated in ambushing him, though none of them knew who they were attacking at the time. One of them was an ordinary-looking man, showing no particular characteristics from his attire, but his aura was contained and refined—this was the body cultivator. The other stood ramrod straight, with an arrogant demeanor and an aura as sharp as a sword; this was the sword cultivator! Among the three who attacked him then, the sword cultivator had been the most ruthless. However, Lu Ye wasn't blaming him; sword cultivators were like that—extremely lethal. If they weren't ruthless, they wouldn't be sword cultivators. Lu Ye, of course, wouldn't hold a grudge. The three of them had been ambushing a lone Blood Clan member at the time, and what did that have to do with him?

Since Yu Yaorao had initiated the greeting, Lu Ye naturally moved towards her. He also had many questions. From their previous encounter in the Fey Tree Realm, Lu Ye had a general understanding of Yu Yaorao's temperament; she was a rather decent woman. Among other things, her knowledge of various common facts about the starry sky was far superior to his, and she might know some of the secrets of this place.

"Senior Sister Yu!" Lu Ye stepped forward to greet her. Yu Yaorao smiled and nodded: "We meet again." The two had parted ways after dealing with the insectoid nest in the Fey Tree Realm, each choosing their own path, so there was no need to dwell on it. At the time, Yu Yaorao felt it was too dangerous to venture deep into the insectoid tree realm and thus didn't follow. Now, with Lu Ye standing here, it undoubtedly indicated something. She was a perceptive person; some things were better understood unspoken.

She then introduced her two companions to Lu Ye: "This is Fellow Daoist Ding You from the Profound Crossing Realm, and this is Fellow Daoist Zhao Yunliu from the top-tier realm of Hegemon Star." She then introduced Lu Ye to the two men. Lu Ye politely bowed: "Greetings, Fellow Daoists!" Ding You nodded slightly and returned the greeting. Zhao Yunliu, however, kept his gaze fixed straight ahead, staring only at the large, shimmering gourd hanging on the old vine, as if he hadn't heard anything. Yu Yaorao felt a little awkward. She naturally knew what Zhao Yunliu was thinking, just as he knew what she was thinking. Although they hadn't been familiar before, after spending time together, they had generally come to understand each other's dispositions. Zhao Yunliu's attitude was undoubtedly his response.

Fortunately, Lu Ye seemed unconcerned by this, whether due to his broad-mindedness or insufficient cultivation and presence. He turned to ask, "Senior Sister Yu, what's the story behind this gourd, and why is it causing such a huge commotion?" Yu Yaorao subtly sighed in relief. Everyone who came here, regardless of their cultivation, was a top prodigy from their respective realms, proud and arrogant. She knew Zhao Yunliu's character. From their previous interactions, Lu Ye's personality was undoubtedly very strong-willed, persistent, and daring. She had warmly invited Lu Ye over, and if any friction arose between the two men, she would be in an awkward position. Fortunately, this didn't happen, so she immediately began to explain to Lu Ye.