Chapter 1407: Starting Off Unfavorably

Wind Rises in Kyushu

The contests within the Starcourt were not limited to simple duels; there were many strange and peculiar scenarios, a fact Lu Ye had long been aware of.

When cultivators passed through a portal into the contest grounds, they had no control over the form of challenge or the type of scenario they would encounter; everything was governed by the rules of the Starcourt.

For the past half month, Lu Ye had consistently encountered only arena battles, and his opponents were always solitary.

But this time was clearly different.

This time it was a multi-person contest.

As the cheerful voice echoed in his mind, Lu Ye clearly perceived the presence of four other individuals. This perception wasn't a spiritual sense or visual observation, but an ability temporarily granted to him by the Starcourt.

As long as he remained in this scenario, he could effortlessly sense their approximate locations and easily establish contact with them.

These four individuals were, for all intents and purposes, his temporary companions.

In other words, for this contest, the five of them were a team, needing to temporarily join forces, advancing and retreating together. This presented a challenge for everyone.

Cultivators found it difficult to cooperate with strangers, as human hearts are unpredictable and mutual trust is hard to build. Yet, in a place and scenario like this, the five had no choice but to act in concert.

They had enemies, and these enemies were also in groups of five. As for how many enemy groups there were, Lu Ye didn't know, as this detail wasn't mentioned in the information provided by the Starcourt upon entry.

So, on this desolate star, besides Lu Ye's group of five, there were at least another five individuals, perhaps ten, fifteen, or even twenty...

Being in this place, the most pressing task for everyone was naturally to quickly find a place to gather. Only by gathering could they find strength in numbers.

As the cheerful voice rang out, a gentle, water-like female voice also spoke up, "Then let's find a place to gather? One person stays put, and the other four approach, how about that?"

Without a map and unable to precisely provide location information, this method was the most practical and best solution. This was undoubtedly a suggestion from someone experienced; if expectations held true, this woman must have experienced such contests before.

Another robust voice rang out, "Alright! So... who should we gather around?"

Lu Ye remained silent, still quietly extending his spiritual sense to scout the surroundings.

Finally, a slightly aged voice spoke up, "I am old, and my legs are not as nimble. So, I ask you all to show some virtue of respecting the old and cherishing the young, and converge towards me. Be careful on your way, and don't expose your whereabouts."

The cheerful voice replied, "Then let's listen to the elder."

The others had no objection, and Lu Ye immediately set off, moving towards the location of the aged voice.

However, before converging, he first needed to determine the aged voice's precise location. While he could sense the approximate locations of his four temporary companions, he had no idea which location corresponded to which person.

But if one person remained still while the other four moved, the determination would be simple.

Soon, Lu Ye perceived that he and his three other temporary companions were all converging towards one location. That location was undoubtedly where the owner of the aged voice was situated.

A moment later, while Lu Ye was still hurrying on his way, a startled cry suddenly echoed in his mind. It was clearly the robust voice: "Everyone, I've been ambushed! I'm a bit injured and can't break free. Who can help?"

"How many enemies are there?" the woman's soft voice asked.

"Two, one late-stage, one mid-stage! Hiss, that late-stage one is truly powerful, I can't hold on..."

Before he could finish speaking, this person vanished from Lu Ye's perception.

Clearly, he wasn't killed, but had voluntarily conceded and withdrawn from the area.

Lu Ye's movements didn't stop; he continued to press forward, his expression calm. They hadn't even gathered yet, and his side had already lost one member. This was undoubtedly a bad start, but not a major problem.

That wasn't all. As that person withdrew, the aged voice immediately followed, tinged with a hint of helplessness: "Everyone, I must also leave. I recently subdued a fated spirit beast, but it suddenly went berserk for some reason, and I need to deal with it."

After speaking, the elder immediately vanished from Lu Ye's perception.

He immediately stopped. They had originally agreed to converge towards the elder's location, but now that he had already left, there was naturally no need to proceed further.

A group of five, and it had just begun. One was eliminated, and another voluntarily left due to their fated spirit beast. Suddenly, two members were lost, leaving only three...

Lu Ye hadn't expected to be so unlucky in his first experience with such a scenario; the teammates assigned to him by the Starcourt were truly a bit unreliable.

The cheerful voice was clearly somewhat dumbfounded: "This... what do we do now?"

The woman also let out a gentle sigh; the sorrow in that sigh was so palpable it could evoke a sense of poignant grief even from a great distance.

Receiving no response, the cheerful voice spoke again: "No matter what you all do, I intend to see this through. I can't just concede and leave without even fighting; that would be disgraceful."

"What's your cultivation level?" the woman asked weakly.

"Early-stage!"

"Oh, then I'm slightly stronger than you; I'm mid-stage!" The woman's voice remained soft, and she stated this plainly, without any hint of pride. Anyone who heard her voice would envision a gentle, delicate, and tender woman.

"Forget about mid-stage or early-stage, what do we do now? Wait, there's still another Daoist brother who hasn't spoken. He can't be a mute, can he? Daoist brother, do you have any good suggestions?"

Lu Ye pondered for a moment and transmitted his voice: "Find a hidden spot and stay put; we'll come to you."

"Why should I stay put? Are you looking down on me? Afraid I'll expose myself? Let me tell you, though my cultivation isn't high, I have treasures on me, and you might not be as good as me at concealing my presence."

"Then the female Daoist friend should stay put!" Lu Ye couldn't be bothered to argue with him and immediately changed his mind.

"Alright then..." The woman was quite obedient; upon hearing this, she settled down, searched for a hidden spot, and obediently hid.

Lu Ye traveled on without incident. Approximately half an hour later, he finally arrived at the woman's location.

This was a desolate mountain hollow, with traces of an array concealing it. When Lu Ye arrived, the woman clearly sensed him and actively opened a gap in the array, through which Lu Ye slipped in.

At a glance, he saw two figures.

One was surprisingly an acquaintance: Chu Shen, the young master of Myriad Cloud Sect from the Cheling Realm.

No wonder his voice had sounded a bit familiar earlier...

He had clearly been let out, and it made sense. With the Starcourt offering such a grand opportunity, how could Chu Shen, a native cultivator of the Myriad Manifestations Star System, miss it? Even if the Sun-Stage cultivator named Jiuyan was reluctant, she would understand that a flower in a greenhouse can't grow strong. The Starcourt was undoubtedly a place where one could quickly broaden their horizons and accumulate combat experience; missing this opportunity would make it difficult to find another like it.

He had also said earlier that he possessed treasures, and Lu Ye believed this, especially since he himself had almost fallen for this kid's tricks back then.

Chu Shen was closer to this location, so he naturally arrived earlier than Lu Ye.

Standing beside Chu Shen was a woman who appeared soft and delicate. She was exceptionally beautiful, but for some reason, she exuded a sense of sorrow, as if she had encountered something heartbreaking.

Lu Ye even saw a look of self-reproach in her eyes, though he had no idea what she was blaming herself for.

Lu Ye gave her a few more glances, not because she was beautiful, but because there were several symmetrical lines on her smooth, delicate cheeks. These lines were clearly natural, and instead of detracting from her delicate beauty, they added a touch of mystery.

Sensing her aura again, Lu Ye immediately realized that this woman was not human, but a demon cultivator!

He just didn't know what her true form was. This was not easy to inquire about, especially for a female demon cultivator who had transformed into human form; the secret of their true form would not be easily revealed, otherwise they could easily be targeted.

Inside the concealing array, after Chu Shen confirmed that Lu Ye's cultivation was only at the mid-stage Starcourt realm, he couldn't help but sigh: "Unreliable, utterly unreliable."

Their initial five-person lineup had already lost two members right at the start. If Lu Ye had been a late-stage Starcourt cultivator, they might have had a chance to struggle, but now he discovered that Lu Ye was also only mid-stage, equivalent to the woman's cultivation.

Now, with two mid-stage and one early-stage cultivator gathered... what could they possibly accomplish? Even if he possessed many treasures, cultivators' battles, in the end, relied on strength as their foundation. He did have treasures like red talismans, but in this kind of contest, he couldn't possibly use them.

However, despite his young age, Chu Shen had one advantage: he was indomitable. He quickly composed himself and, without the slightest awareness of being the weakest in cultivation, spoke boldly: "Since we're fighting side by side, we should at least get to know each other. Let's exchange names, shall we? It'll make addressing each other easier."

"Oh... okay." The woman clasped her small hands in front of her abdomen, twiddling her thumbs, and quickly nodded.

Chu Shen lightly coughed and cupped his fists, "Greetings, Daoist brothers and sisters. My name is Overlord's Aura Leaking!"

Lu Ye's expression remained unchanged...

This was mainly because in the past half month, he had encountered all sorts of strange names, so he was already accustomed to them.

He wasn't the only one who used an alias to participate in the Starcourt contests. While cultivators eager to make a name for themselves and be recruited by major powers would certainly use their real names to gain recognition, many others found it inconvenient or intentionally chose to conceal their identities. Since the Starcourt allowed participants to choose their own names freely, a large number of peculiar and bizarre names naturally emerged.

"Overlord's Aura Leaking" was still relatively conventional. Lu Ye had even met someone named "Military Cultivators Grow Up Eating Shit," and in that battle, he had given that person a terrible beating.

Lu Ye turned to look at the delicate woman beside him.

The woman's voice was as faint as a mosquito: "I am Unrivaled Lucky Star."

Her face was red as blood...

Lu Ye nodded slightly: "Fa Wuzun!"

The three individuals with aliases looked at each other, and the atmosphere grew silent for a moment.