Chapter 1432: Qingli Palace

Outside the Starry Palace, a palace-shaped treasure stood erect. Treasures of this design typically lack strong offensive or defensive capabilities; they serve merely as temporary residences for powerful individuals during their travels. Their creation is extremely costly, making them unattainable for those without significant power and resources.

This particular Cyan-Azure Palace was quite famous in the Myriad Forms Galaxy, because it was the traveling palace of Jiuyan, a Daybreak cultivator from the Chime World.

The presence of the Cyan-Azure Palace here signified Jiuyan's presence!

By the time the four cultivators from the Mystic Sect regained their composure, Lu Ye had already gathered the spoils of war, mounted the tiger's back, and disappeared into the distance.

"Just now... he..."

Among the quartet, a young woman stammered a sentence; even her companions couldn't quite grasp what she was trying to say.

Everything they had just witnessed had been too impactful for them.

Lu Ye's cultivation at Spirit Stream Realm, third level, was impossible to conceal. Two of their own group were also at the third level of the Spirit Stream Realm. Yet, none of them had imagined that a cultivator at the third level could possess such formidable aggression. In merely ten breaths, he had slain three opponents they couldn't possibly contend with; one of them was even at the fourth level of the Spirit Stream Realm!

This was considered overcoming a higher realm opponent, something usually only accomplished by disciples from major sects.

It was certain that if the tiger-riding youth had decided to attack them, they would have died even faster than the cultivators from the Nine-Star Sect.

As they stood stunned, the distant tiger suddenly changed direction and galloped back towards them.

The burly man at the third level changed his expression, quickly shielded his three junior disciples behind him, and watched ahead warily.

A moment later, Amber stopped before the four. Lu Ye sat upright on the tiger's back, looking down at them. The distance between them was less than five zhang.

The intense pressure caused the female cultivator in the group's chest to heave, making it difficult for her to breathe.

"Do you have any Spirit Pills?" the youth on the tiger's back suddenly asked.

"Ah... yes!" The burly man quickly replied. "Do you want some?"

Lu Ye nodded. "I need Spirit Pills."

The burly man quickly unfastened the storage bag from his waist, opened its restrictive lock, and after a moment's thought, whispered to his three junior disciples, "Give me your Spirit Pills."

The three dared not object. They hastily took out their Spirit Pills from their respective storage bags and fumbled to hand them to the burly man.

The burly man then took out his own belongings and transferred them to someone else's storage bag.

A short while later, he tossed the storage bag filled with Spirit Pills towards Lu Ye. Lu Ye caught it in one swift motion.

"Thank you," Lu Ye said, then threw out the spoils he had collected earlier. Amber turned around and departed once more.

It wasn't until Lu Ye's figure vanished that the four Mystic Sect cultivators collectively let out a sigh of relief. When Lu Ye had returned to ask for Spirit Pills earlier, they had thought they were about to be robbed.

Even so, they could only grudgingly accept it. Not to mention they were no match for Lu Ye; regardless, Lu Ye had, after all, saved their lives.

Comparing their lives to Spirit Pills, their lives were naturally more important. When the burly man had tossed the bag of Spirit Pills to Lu Ye, he had already prepared his words, ready to offer the Spirit Pills as a token of gratitude.

Who knew that Lu Ye hadn't taken them for free, but had instead thrown them the spoils he had just acquired.

Looking at the three storage bags on the ground, two low-grade spiritual artifacts, and a tattered small shield, the four Mystic Sect cultivators were speechless for a moment.

After a quick calculation, the four realized they hadn't lost anything, and had even made a small profit. They were left feeling both amused and bewildered.

Bending down to pick up the items on the ground, the burly man pondered briefly, then decisively declared, "Return to the outpost!"

Almost all of them were injured. More importantly, they had no Spirit Pills left, making it difficult to sustain further combat. Given their current condition, it was undoubtedly wisest to return to the outpost to recuperate first. Furthermore, they couldn't open the storage bags of the Nine-Star Sect cultivators. They would have to return to the outpost, hand them over, and ask their sect elders for assistance.

Meanwhile, Lu Ye, riding Amber, found a tunnel to inspect his gains.

If he took any more, he'd have nowhere to put them. Keeping them all on his person would also affect his combat ability.

Moreover, these storage bags had restrictive locks, which he couldn't open. Rather than keeping them with him like this, it was better to exchange them for Spirit Pills with the Mystic Sect cultivators.

The four Mystic Sect cultivators hadn't given many Spirit Pills. Their cultivation levels weren't high, and they weren't particularly wealthy normally, so any Spirit Pills they acquired would quickly be consumed.

The four individuals pooled sixteen Spirit Pills for Lu Ye, five of which were healing pills. When Lu Ye had asked for Spirit Pills, he hadn't specified the type, so they had given him both Spirit Cultivation Pills and healing pills.

The haul was decent.

Lu Ye felt his impromptu method was quite good. This way, he might be able to obtain a large amount of cultivation resources in Sky-Rending Gorge.

The merit points in his battlefield imprint had also changed, increasing from thirty-four to fifty-six, a gain of twenty-two merit points.

The increase in these numbers was a mystery to him. Last time, after killing the Nine-Star Sect's young master and his three companions, he gained twenty-six points; this time, it was twenty-two. He still didn't know the exact criteria for these increases.

He resolved in his mind that the next time he killed someone, he would carefully observe the change in numbers, perhaps discerning some pattern.

He wasn't gravely injured in this battle, merely a sword stab to his lower abdomen from a third-level cultivator. After a quick bandage and a brief rest, he set off again. With ample spiritual power in his body, he could continue fighting.

Traces of intense battle could be seen occasionally along the gorge path. Many spots bore dried bloodstains and mutilated corpses, evidence of the fierce conflict between the Mystic Sect and the Nine-Star Sect here.

Not long after, Yiyi, who was scouting ahead, reported that a team of two was approaching. Lu Ye immediately told Amber to hide, while he walked towards the two.

Moments later, Lu Ye came face to face with the duo. Both sides became vigilant, observing each other.

Spiritual light shimmered in Lu Ye's eyes as he assessed the opponents' cultivation levels: two at the Spirit Stream Realm, third level. Such a combination wasn't too weak. And judging by their injuries, they had clearly been through a battle; perhaps there had been more than two of them originally.

What puzzled Lu Ye was that the battle imprints on the backs of their hands emitted no light, leaving him unsure of which faction they belonged to, and making it impossible to act for a moment.

To his surprise, after sizing Lu Ye up for a moment, the duo relaxed. One of them even walked forward with a smile, saying as he approached, "Fellow cultivator, you're quite brave to operate alone here, aren't you?"

Lu Ye's mind swiftly turned, and he knew the other party had probably mistaken him for one of their own. His hand, resting on the saber hilt, relaxed slightly. He said calmly, "I was scattered in a fight." The man then replied, "Then you're truly fortunate, fellow cultivator. If you don't mind, you can join us. Three people can better look out for each other."

"Of course," Lu Ye nodded, maintaining a silent demeanor.

The man raised his hand and said, "Although I don't think it's entirely necessary, perhaps you should still verify your identity with us, fellow cultivator."

As he spoke, a red light glowed on the back of his hand.

Lu Ye's eyebrow lifted. His gaze confirmed it. These were people he could slay!

He took deep breaths of fresh air, his chest heaving.

Confusion, bewilderment, and various other emotions flooded his mind.

Where was this?

Then, Shi Yu subconsciously surveyed his surroundings and became even more bewildered.

A single dorm room?

Even if he had been successfully rescued, he should be in a hospital ward now.

And his body... how could it be completely uninjured?

Filled with doubt, Shi Yu's gaze quickly swept across the room, finally settling on a mirror by the bedside.

The mirror reflected his current appearance. He looked around seventeen or eighteen years old and quite handsome.

But the problem was, this wasn't him!

His former self had been a handsome young man in his twenties with an extraordinary demeanor, who had been working for some time.

But now, this face looked no older than that of a high school student.

This change left Shi Yu stunned for a long time.

Please don't tell him that the surgery was a success...

Both his body and appearance had changed. This was no longer a question of surgery, but rather divine artistry.

He had completely become another person!

Could it be... he had transmigrated?

Besides the mirror by the bed, which was clearly placed inauspiciously according to Feng Shui, Shi Yu also discovered three books nearby.

Shi Yu picked them up and looked. The titles instantly rendered him speechless.

"Essential Beast-Rearing Manual for Novice Breeders""Postpartum Care for Companion Beasts""A Guide to Appraising Beast-Eared Girls of Other Races"

Shi Yu: ???

The titles of the first two books seemed normal enough, but what was with the last one?

"Cough."

Shi Yu's gaze sharpened. He reached out his hand, but his arm quickly stiffened.

Just as he was about to open the third book to see what it was, his brain suddenly throbbed with a sharp pain, and a flood of memories surged forth.

Icefield City.Companion Beast Breeding Base.Apprentice Companion Beast Breeder.Beast Tamer?