Chapter 1445: Empty Star Lodge

Throughout history, the Stellar Palace has opened countless times. An unknown number of cultivators have entered this grand hall, and many have, of course, died here in battle.

When cultivators died, their storage rings were left behind. General Drybone didn't bother collecting these items; the spirits found them all.

The storage rings now laid out before Lu Ye and Puke were in piles, each containing at least thirty or forty rings. Their seals were unbroken, so no one knew what treasures they held.

Lu Ye casually picked one pile, while Puke took another.

"Thank you for your help this time," the spirit said, looking at Lu Ye with genuine sincerity. "If you ever need anything in the future, just call on me."

If it hadn't been for Lawless, they would have certainly faced a dire outcome. She primarily hadn't anticipated encountering a Lunar Brilliance cultivator within this exclusive scenario.

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she added, "Except for ghost patterns!"

The words were already out. If Lawless were to request to examine the ghost patterns on her related to breath concealment, she would be in an awkward position.

Lu Ye nodded without a word and quietly exited the grand hall.

When General Drybone died, the tightly shut hall doors slowly opened. Now, exiting was unrestricted.

Back in the Stellar Palace, Lu Ye glanced up at the Contribution Rankings. After several days of delay, his ranking had dropped significantly. It seemed that with the deadline for the Stellar Palace Ranking Battle approaching, cultivators on the list were working harder than ever.

He wasn't particularly concerned. He had always planned to climb the ranks gradually, especially given the rules of the Ranking Battle. If cultivators ahead of him accumulated more contribution points, the benefits he would gain after defeating them would be even greater.

This reminded him of raising pigs; typically, one waits until the pigs are fat before slaughtering them.

The Ranking Battle should be imminent. Lu Ye didn't intend to participate in further skirmishes. After such an arduous battle with General Drybone, Lu Ye felt that engaging with other Stellar-level cultivators would no longer bring him significant benefits.

He decided to simply wait for the Ranking Battle to commence.

He found a corner, set up a formation, and sat down quietly, beginning to deduce the Concealment Spirit Mark using the power of his Talent Tree.

He had spent 300,000 spirit jade to observe the Concealment Ghost Pattern from the spirit, so he couldn't let it go to waste. Furthermore, based on past experience, deducing spirit marks with the Talent Tree was a very time-consuming process; previously, each new spirit mark had taken him at least half a year to deduce.

Therefore, it was naturally better to start as early as possible.

On the burning leaves of the Talent Tree, patterns began to flicker into and out of existence, and various inspirations burst forth in Lu Ye's mind. At such moments, his accumulated knowledge and understanding of spirit marks became crucial. With sufficient accumulation and refinement, more ingenious ideas could emerge during the deduction process, potentially leading to a stroke of genius where a minor modification to a fundamental element could significantly enhance the spirit mark's effectiveness.

Throughout history, spirit marks have fundamentally been created in this manner.

The improvement of strength requires a gradual, step-by-step process. Even with his Talent Tree, rapid power advancement was impossible, as too much haste could easily lead to an unstable foundation.

Therefore, deducing the Concealment Spirit Mark was imperative. This way, if he encountered an insurmountable opponent in the future, he could hide if he couldn't win.

Slowly, he divided a part of his concentration and began to break the seals on the storage rings he had brought from the grand hall.

He had just managed to string his own numerous storage rings together around his waist when he suddenly acquired dozens more. Naturally, he had to deal with them quickly, as carrying them around otherwise would be inconvenient.

As he successively broke the seals on the storage rings, Lu Ye emptied out the useful items, sorting and arranging them. While there were some good things inside the rings, none were exceptionally valuable. After all, these were relics left behind by deceased Stellar Realm cultivators, so it was unlikely to find any heaven-defying treasures. Given Lu Ye's current wealth, very few items could truly impress him anymore.

He also took out the Sword Gourd, stuffing all the spirit treasures he didn't need into it for consumption. Even General Drybone's colossal sword artifact was devoured.

When he first obtained the Sword Gourd, Lu Ye only found it peculiar, lacking the knowledge at the time to truly understand its power.

It wasn't until he participated in the Divine Sea Conflict that he realized this item was actually a subordinate treasure of a supreme artifact.

Since it was a subordinate treasure of a supreme artifact, devouring artifact-level treasures was certainly not an issue. Lu Ye had previously speculated this, and now, upon testing it, his suspicions were confirmed.

As he silently sensed, he clearly perceived nine incomparably sharp sword qi within the Sword Gourd. These sword qi were deep and restrained, and even a slight perception of them sent shivers down his spine.

It was clear that the power of these nine sword qi would be terrifying.

In the future, should his swordsman clone act again, its strength would undoubtedly undergo a monumental transformation compared to its last appearance, which filled Lu Ye with considerable anticipation.

As the seal on yet another storage ring was broken, Lu Ye took out its contents.

Suddenly, he stared at an item in his hand, his expression one of surprise.

For the item in his hand was actually a White Spirit!

There was a White Spirit found inside the storage ring of a Stellar Realm cultivator who had died countless years ago.

While storage rings could preserve items for extended periods without spoilage, they couldn't infinitely maintain freshness.

Ordinary food, for instance, would spoil within three to five years if kept inside.

A White Spirit was a star beast. Even if it could be preserved longer than ordinary food, ten to twenty years would be its limit; any longer and it would surely rot.

However, the White Spirit in Lu Ye's hand, despite lacking any vitality, looked as if it had just been fished out of the Stellar Sea.

But Lu Ye quickly realized something was amiss. The White Spirit didn't feel like flesh and blood; its touch was cold, as if it were carved from a special kind of jade.

He channeled spiritual power into it, hoping to investigate.

A bizarre scene unfolded: the spiritual power Lu Ye channeled was completely absorbed by the White Spirit in his hand!

He raised an eyebrow slightly. This reaction indicated that the White Spirit in his hand was not merely an ornamental object but a treasure, as only treasures would absorb a cultivator's spiritual power to activate their true power.

This piqued his interest, and he exerted himself even more, pouring spiritual power into the White Spirit, eager to discover its level of treasure and its specific abilities.

However, something astonishing occurred: as Lu Ye continued to infuse spiritual power, the White Spirit in his hand seemed to come alive. Its gills slowly began to undulate as if breathing, and its tail twitched and flicked.

Lu Ye frowned slightly. This thing... was somewhat eerie!

He immediately stopped channeling spiritual power. Originally, he had only wanted to see its power, but its unsettling development made him wary.

He needed to first figure out what this item truly was.

Lu Ye had thought that stopping the spiritual power infusion would resolve the issue, but to his surprise, he couldn't stop it at all! The White Spirit actively began to devour the spiritual power within his body, and at an astonishing speed!

Lu Ye tried to shake the White Spirit off, but it clung to his hand as if it had grown there, impossible to dislodge.

With a *clang*, the Scarlet Dragon Blade was unsheathed, and Lu Ye swung it towards the White Spirit stuck to his palm.

The White Spirit truly seemed alive. Its tail flicked, and it sprang up, skillfully evading the blade. Immediately after, it began to swim around Lu Ye.

In an instant, the sound of surging waves and rising tides filled Lu Ye's ears, as if he had suddenly found himself by the ocean.

As the sound intensified, the White Spirit's tail trailed an ethereal glow. When the light dissipated, actual seawater appeared.

In no more than two breaths, Lu Ye was enveloped by a layer of seawater, and the White Spirit surged playfully within the swirling water around him.

The situation grew increasingly bizarre. Lu Ye suspected he had activated some strange object, but regardless of what it was, it was best to escape first without understanding it, to avoid any unpredictable consequences.

As for whether it was truly a treasure... Lu Ye no longer cared.

With a thought, he immediately entered another grand hall.

Looking closely, he saw that the seawater no longer enveloped him, nor was the White Spirit swimming nearby. He had clearly escaped it.

However, before Lu Ye could even sigh in relief, he sensed that something was amiss.

In the past, no matter which numbered hall he was in, there were always cultivators gathered, coming and going. But now, as far as his eyes could see, there was not a single soul.

In the empty grand hall, only the Contribution Rankings stood. There were no cultivators, nor were there any of the numerous portals around the hall that allowed cultivators to enter and participate in various challenges.

Which hall was this, to be so utterly silent and deserted!

Lu Ye estimated this might be a very late-numbered hall, but when he looked up, he was stunned.

The dome above was empty; there was no number!

He stared blankly at the dome for a moment, then lowered his gaze to the Contribution Rankings.

He hadn't noticed when he first saw the rankings, but upon closer inspection, he discovered something strange: there were no names on the Contribution Rankings!

Within the Stellar Palace, every hall, regardless of its number, displayed the names of powerful individuals on its Contribution Rankings, and the ranking order was always identical in each hall.

However, not only was there no number here, but the Contribution Rankings also seemed to have lost their original function.

Lu Ye was momentarily unsure of what was happening.

Ever since he had pulled out the White Spirit from that storage ring, a series of bizarre occurrences had left him utterly perplexed.

Nevertheless, he had weathered many storms and possessed a calm demeanor in the face of change. No matter how unusual this hall was, investigating it first was always the right course of action.

For now, he could only be certain of one thing: he was still inside the Stellar Palace. And since he was within the Stellar Palace, he would be protected by its rules, so he wasn't overly nervous.