Chapter 1490: Half Farewell

The Wind Rises in Kyushu

As Lu Ye and his two companions tore through the enemy's defenses, the Moonfall cultivator suddenly looked their way. Seeing her own cultivators spill blood across the sky, her heart twisted in pain.

Her eyes were sharp, and she immediately discerned the power of Lu Ye and his companions, realizing that these three were no ordinary Star Constellations. They were likely all renowned figures on the Accumulation List; otherwise, a simple Three Talents formation could not wield such terrifying power. Without hesitation, she raised her hand and unleashed an artifact, sending it crashing down upon Lu Ye and his companions.

It was an artifact resembling a seal, a tiny object that, once activated, instantly transformed into a small mountain. The seal's base was crimson, like cinnabar or perhaps stained with human blood, and bore four large characters: "天地无极" (Heaven and Earth Without Bounds).

As the seal descended, Lu Ye, Poker, and Ghost all felt their bodies sink, as if an invisible mountain had pressed down on their shoulders. Lu Ye's expression turned grim, recognizing the seal's potency. Even before it landed, it possessed such might; if it were to strike them, they would surely be pulverized in an instant. Connected by their Qi, he could clearly feel that Poker and Ghost were enduring the same pressure.

His expression unwavering, the Pan Mountain Sabre danced, sending out a continuous stream of saber light. This was his first time directly experiencing the power of an artifact. It was indeed profound and incredibly strange. The woman was merely an early-stage Moonfall cultivator, yet a single artifact was so formidable. If she unleashed more artifacts, none of them would fare well. Compared to the Skeleton General he had defeated previously, this woman's strength was significantly greater.

Amidst the swirling saber light, something was severed. Lu Ye's body suddenly felt lighter. On the other side, Poker and Ghost also used unknown means to break free from the seal's binding force. In an instant, the three moved swiftly, darting out of the seal's formidable range.

The seal crashed down, hitting nothing. Before Lu Ye and his companions could catch their breath, the seal soared high again, descending towards their new position. The trio could only find new ways to evade.

The woman was not only dealing with Lu Ye and his companions but also activating defensive artifacts to help her Star Constellation subordinates withstand the counterattack from Unrivaled Isle. Though alone, she foiled several attacks from Chu Shen and others. The remaining attacks that weren't blocked were anticipated by the Star Constellations, making them difficult to succeed.

Unrivaled Isle's counterattack was ineffective, yet the enemy's assaults were relentless. The protective formation's barrier visibly dimmed, estimated to be broken soon. Once the defensive formation was breached, the fate of the early-stage Star Constellations on the island would be precarious.

There was only one way to resolve this situation: either contain the Moonfall cultivator, preventing her from assisting, or bypass her and slaughter the invading Star Constellations.

Lu Ye led Poker and Ghost, repeatedly attempting to reach the woman, but they were always blocked by the seal. This artifact appeared clumsy but possessed immense power. He also tried ignoring the artifact's attacks and targeting the Star Constellations, but was similarly blocked by the seal. This was still the result of the Moonfall cultivator not being able to fully focus on them. If she were to fully engage them, their situation would undoubtedly worsen.

Compared to the Moonfall male cultivator he had led to the mermaid tribe's territory last time, this woman was much more troublesome. Although her cultivation was weaker, her artifacts were formidable. The Moonfall male cultivator had not used any artifacts when pursuing him.

He saw Elder Tang Jun locked in an intense battle with Nan Xingzhen, and the three Grand Elders scrambling to dodge the enemy's artifact attacks. He saw the fierce assaults on the great formation, which was tottering, and knew the tide had turned. Unrivaled Isle was likely doomed this time.

Suddenly, a gaze turned back to him. Chu Shen frowned, for the one looking back was the woman named Ban Ci. He still couldn't fathom her origins, nor why she had remained standing there, neither assisting him nor forming a unit with Grand Elder Fa and the others.

He saw Ban Ci's lips move. He heard no sound, but from her lip movements alone, he discerned the words, "Don't worry!"

At a time like this, what was there to "not worry" about? Chu Shen was filled with doubt. Then he saw Ban Ci lightly fly out of Unrivaled Isle, approaching the Moonfall cultivator alone.

As Ban Ci drew closer, the Moonfall cultivator clearly sensed her. She didn't pay much attention, merely pointing her hand towards Ban Ci's position. A streak of light blossomed and effortlessly pierced Ban Ci's body.

"Overestimating yourself!" the Moonfall cultivator scoffed. She felt nothing about casually killing a late-stage Star Constellation, as if crushing an ant. Just as she was about to withdraw her gaze, her expression suddenly changed. Ban Ci, who had clearly been pierced, showed no sign of pain, nor did she stop moving. Not even a drop of blood flowed from the wound.

A faint smile still graced her face.

"How is that possible?" The Moonfall cultivator was astonished. Another streak of light shot out, creating another hole in Ban Ci's body, yet still no blood flowed. Before she could employ any other means, her expression suddenly changed. She abruptly turned her head towards Lu Ye and his companions.

At this very moment, Lu Ye, leading Poker and Ghost, dodged an attack from the seal and then swiftly moved above it. The black Pan Mountain Sabre glowed brightly, and streaks of gravitational spiritual runes rapidly formed. Lu Ye had never attempted to construct so many gravitational spiritual runes within the Pan Mountain Sabre. The moment the numerous runes took shape, Lu Ye felt as if he held not the Pan Mountain Sabre, but a mountain range!

Taking advantage of the Moonfall cultivator's distraction by Ban Ci, he ferociously slashed down at the seal! The seal was an artifact; Lu Ye had no intention of shattering it—that was unrealistic. Even with his strength, it was impossible to destroy such an artifact.

He merely wanted to strike the artifact into the All-Encompassing Ocean! This thing was too annoying. To deal with the Moonfall cultivator or bypass her, they had to eliminate this artifact! The waters of the All-Encompassing Ocean were a natural aid; once this artifact was struck into it, even if it was an artifact, it would be rapidly eroded and would certainly be unable to exert its proper power.

The Moonfall cultivator, having discerned Lu Ye's intention, how could she let him succeed? Just as she was about to control the seal's power, she heard Ban Ci say, "You'd better not look elsewhere!"

Suddenly, a peculiar power emanated from Ban Ci. The Moonfall cultivator was startled and quickly looked towards Ban Ci. She saw Ban Ci placing her hands over her chest, forming an extremely profound mudra. As her power surged, a black glow blossomed from her front. That black glow was merely a black dot, but when it appeared, the world seemed to lose its color. The black dot rapidly expanded, enveloping everything.

The Moonfall cultivator realized something was amiss and quickly tried to retreat, but to her horror, no matter how she moved her body, she couldn't outpace the black dot's engulfment. In an instant, a colossal black sphere appeared out of nowhere beside Unrivaled Isle. Ban Ci and the Moonfall cultivator were both enveloped within it, vanishing from sight!

Nan Xingzhen and Tang Jun, who were locked in fierce combat, both wore expressions of shock and uncertainty. Even with their extensive knowledge and experience, they couldn't discern what that black sphere truly was. It seemed like a secret technique, yet also like the power of a treasure.

With a loud boom...

The enormous seal was struck by Lu Ye's saber and plummeted into the All-Encompassing Ocean, stirring up monstrous waves. Initially, the seal showed no change, but in a flash, its light flickered wildly, clearly a sign that its restrictions were being eroded and destroyed. As the seal sank, it rapidly shrunk, disappearing from sight in an instant.

Lu Ye and his companions were finally freed from their constraints and no longer needed to deal with the Moonfall cultivator. They immediately turned and charged into the crowd that was fiercely attacking the defensive formation. Unaware, even Lu Ye and his companions had not expected such an event to occur. When the three of them charged in, these people finally realized the situation was dire. They had all witnessed a late-stage Star Constellation body cultivator being instantly cut to pieces by Lu Ye earlier. Who would dare to face him directly now?

They all used various means to try and intercept him, but what met them were streaks of continuous saber light. Occasionally, a nearly undetectable thin line would be intertwined within the saber light. Once entangled by that thin line, they would instantly lose their freedom of movement, either being cut down by Lu Ye's saber light or having their hearts ripped out by the lunging Ghost.

In an instant, death enveloped this area.

Within a three-hundred-mile radius near Unrivaled Isle, many people were observing the battle from afar. Nan Xingzhen's group was not the only one eyeing Unrivaled Isle; however, the Koi Isle faction was the most impatient and acted the fastest, believing they could take Unrivaled Isle, and thus were the first to attack.

It was no secret that Unrivaled Isle had Tang Jun, a mid-stage Moonfall cultivator, but besides him, there were no other Moonfall cultivators, and the entire Unrivaled Isle had limited personnel and modest overall cultivation. No one thought Koi Isle would fail this time; everyone believed they were about to gain a great advantage.

However, the result shocked all the observing cultivators! Tang Jun against Nan Xingzhen, their strength difference was not significant, so even if Tang Jun was at a disadvantage, it would be difficult to determine a victor quickly—this was within the observers' expectations. But the performance of Lu Ye and his companions was astonishing. The three of them were now cutting through the Koi Isle Star Constellations like slicing vegetables, utterly routing them. It was truly breathtaking.

Soon, some recognized Ghost and Poker as powerful figures on the Accumulation List, which brought a slight sense of relief.