Chapter 1534: Guessing

The advantages of having a leader in such situations became evident. As soon as Luo Shenzi gave the command, many people immediately came to assist.

One by one, various uniquely shaped exotic treasures were unleashed. Spiritual energy surged, and colorful lights began to radiate, enveloping the two fleeing Star Beasts.

The power of exotic treasures is generally much higher than that of artifacts of similar quality. This is because exotic treasures are typically single-use items, and anyone who acquires one would treat it as their ultimate trump card, not to be used lightly.

However, no matter how precious an exotic treasure was, it couldn't compare to a single red talisman. Since Luo Shenzi had already used a red talisman, how could any cultivator possessing an exotic treasure be stingy with their own?

This round of attacks had a significant effect. Both Moon-Tier Star Beasts were clearly badly wounded, their movements slowed, and their power diminished. One Moon-Tier Star Beast even had its tail severed, bleeding profusely.

At that moment, the red light in Luo Shenzi's hand burst forth, transforming into an earth-shattering strike that descended upon one of the fleeing Moon-Tier Star Beasts. The might of this strike was astonishing, nearly reaching the level of a mid-Moon-Tier cultivator's attack!

The Star Beast targeted by him was already severely injured from the previous encirclement. Facing such a strike, it had no time to dodge. Suddenly, a moonlight-like glow emanated from the Star Beast, enveloping it like flowing water—clearly its self-preservation method.

However, this defense proved largely ineffective against the red talisman's strike. The moonlight shattered, revealing a massive wound on the Star Beast's back. Through the gash, its wriggling internal organs were clearly visible. This single blow nearly cut it in half.

Yet, it was still not dead. As if knowing its fate was sealed, it surprisingly turned back and charged into the fray again.

"Kill!" Luo Shenzi roared. Numerous cultivators attacked in unison, quickly slaying the Star Beast on the spot.

However, everyone watched helplessly as the second Star Beast made its clumsy escape. Although heavily wounded, it ultimately got away, and even attempts to intercept it were unsuccessful.

In this major battle, many cultivators were killed or injured, yet only one of the two Moon-Tier Star Beasts was slain. This outcome, achieved even at the cost of Luo Shenzi's red talisman, could hardly be considered a success. But with things as they were, everyone could only accept it.

Ultimately, even though these thousands of cultivators had answered the call, they were still a disorganized mob. If they had truly come from the same sect and worked together, two Moon-Tier Star Beasts could have been defeated by a force of a thousand Star-Tier cultivators.

After the battle, some people immediately flew towards the Celestial Hound Star.

Although one Moon-Tier Star Beast had escaped, its severe injuries meant its remaining strength was questionable, posing little threat. With the greatest obstacle now removed, cultivators were naturally eager to search for opportunities on the Celestial Hound Star.

Many cultivators departed. Luo Shenzi sat down to recover; activating the red talisman had consumed a significant amount of his spiritual energy. Several figures stood by his side, presumably his fellow disciples.

One of them watched the departing cultivators and snorted coldly, "A disorganized rabble!" He was clearly displeased with the cultivators' recent performance, certain that many had held back their true abilities. If more exotic treasures had been unleashed earlier, the second Star Beast might not have escaped. Luo Shenzi had even used a red talisman, yet those individuals were reluctant to part with even one exotic treasure, which naturally stirred anger.

Another person chuckled softly, "Human nature is unpredictable; there's no need to force it. Besides... this is good for us."

The person who had spoken earlier frowned. "How is it good that a Moon-Tier Star Beast is still alive?"

That person replied, "Although that Moon-Tier Star Beast isn't dead, it's severely wounded. Even if we accidentally encounter it, it won't pose much of a threat. But if *others* encounter it..."

Their group was very strong, and with a figure like Luo Shenzi among them, they certainly had the power to fight the heavily wounded Moon-Tier Star Beast. However, others lacked their foundational strength.

The cultivator who had spoken earlier suddenly understood. "I see!" His gloomy mood instantly vanished.

While the cultivators from the various star systems had seemingly worked together moments ago, once inside the Celestial Hound Star, they would all be rivals unless they originated from the same realm. If they could eliminate more competitors, their chances of success would increase.

While Luo Shenzi was still recovering, Lu Ye had already piloted a Star Beast, bringing Li Shang and Du Lang to the Celestial Hound Star.

Plunging through the thick cloud layer, Lu Ye looked down from high above and saw that the environment within the Celestial Hound Star was incredibly harsh. On such a desolate star, no living creature other than Star Beasts could survive for long.

Lu Ye had previously wondered why Star Beasts would make a barren star their lair, but upon arriving, he discovered that this particular barren star was special.

The surface of the Celestial Hound Star was covered with massive sinkholes. Their depths were unknown, and inside, they were pitch black. Such sinkholes were innumerable across the entire surface of the Celestial Hound Star.

Du Lang stood beside Lu Ye and explained, "The interior of the Celestial Hound Star is like a beehive, with an extremely complex terrain. And that Moon-Tier Star Beast must have escaped back here; we don't know where it's hiding, so Brother Lu, you must be careful."

Lu Ye nodded, carefully observing the barren star from above. He vaguely felt that its shape, resembling a giant Celestial Hound, was not merely a coincidence... Because he had seen similar realms before.

When Lu Ye first arrived in the Blood煉 Realm years ago, he felt it resembled the headless, limbless body of a giantess. Later, it was confirmed that it was indeed the corpse of a giantess, who had been dead for untold years, slain by an unknown assailant, her body transforming into a realm after her death.

If the Celestial Hound Star's situation was similar to the Blood煉 Realm's, didn't that mean it was also a realm formed from the corpse of an extremely powerful Star Beast? The Blood煉 Realm had given birth to creatures like the Blood Clan, while the Celestial Hound Star had produced Celestial Hound Star Beasts. The two shared many similarities.

If this were the case, then it was understandable why the Celestial Hound Star Beasts considered this their lair—this was, after all, the very place that had given birth to them.

There was no sign of other cultivators; those who had come here had already entered the underground through the sinkholes on the surface.

Lu Ye was very curious about what kind of opportunity could be considered exclusive to weapon cultivators. He hadn't originally intended to get involved, but given the various coincidences that had brought him here, there was no harm in joining the excitement. As for the Moon-Tier Star Beast that had escaped back, Lu Ye naturally had no fear.

Piloting his Star Shuttle to a random sinkhole, Lu Ye put it away and entered first. Du Lang and Li Shang, who was carrying the little girl, followed closely behind.

They descended nearly ten thousand zhang before reaching the bottom of the pit. The bottom was not sealed; passages branched out in all directions. As Du Lang had said earlier, the interior of the Celestial Hound Star was like an intricate beehive.

Lu Ye wasn't sure which way to go, so he arbitrarily chose a direction and led the way forward, observing his surroundings as he walked. From time to time, there were forks in the path. Lu Ye proceeded impulsively, with no discernible pattern.

He soon discovered a problem: within the Celestial Hound Star, his spiritual sense was greatly suppressed, only able to extend about ten zhang from his body. This struck him as odd, as he didn't detect any peculiar power here. It was understandable for his spiritual sense to be suppressed in the Mist Dragon, as that was a celestial wonder, but what was strange about the interior of the Celestial Hound Star?

Gradually, Lu Ye's expression became a mix of surprise and uncertainty, as he realized that these interconnected passages didn't seem to be mere tunnels... Combining this with his previous conjecture about the Celestial Hound Star, Lu Ye was startled. Could these passages be blood vessels?

The passages varied in size, with numerous branches. The more branched the area, the smaller the passages became, strongly resembling blood vessels. Occasionally, sounds of struggle could be heard, but due to the complex nature of the passages, Lu Ye couldn't discern their exact direction.

After walking for a while, they suddenly entered a relatively spacious area. In that space, pairs of crimson eyes suddenly glowed, staring directly at Lu Ye and his companions. Following this, roars of beasts erupted, and Celestial Hound Star Beasts charged forward. Lu Ye's perception indicated that these Star Beasts were not particularly strong; the most powerful were at the Star-Tier level, and some were only equivalent to Divine Sea or True Lake cultivators. He naturally didn't take them seriously.

With a few flashes of his Mountain-Splitting Saber, Lu Ye quickly annihilated all the Star Beasts.

Continuing onward, they occasionally encountered Celestial Hound Star Beasts, but none were strong, and they were easily dealt with. However, Lu Ye noticed something interesting: these Celestial Hound Star Beasts seemed to possess a unique ability here. They could perfectly conceal themselves, making them very difficult to detect before they launched a sneak attack. On several occasions, Lu Ye only became aware of the Star Beasts when they initiated their attacks.

This was clearly not an inherent ability of the Celestial Hound Star Beasts themselves. Most likely, the unique environment of this place had endowed them with this skill. After all, this was where they were born, so it was not surprising for them to exhibit special powers here.

Sounds of conflict occasionally echoed from all directions, clearly indicating cultivators engaging in battle. Yet, despite walking for so long, Lu Ye hadn't encountered a single cultivator. Luo Shenzi had gathered a thousand cultivators. Even after some casualties in the previous battle, eight or nine hundred still entered the Celestial Hound Star. The fact that so many people were inside but couldn't meet showed the complexity of the internal environment.

Lu Ye searched continuously for two days, but aside from encountering some Star-Tier Celestial Hounds, he found nothing else. If this situation continued, Lu Ye estimated that even if he searched here for several months, he might not discover anything.

After careful thought, if the opportunity truly lay within the Celestial Hound Star, it should be in a very particular location, perhaps where the heart would be? Or the brain? With this thought, Lu Ye felt he had a direction. Reaching the heart's location wouldn't be difficult; he just needed to follow the largest passages all the way. Lu Ye remembered that his entry point into the Celestial Hound Star was in the direction of the spine, so the heart's location shouldn't be too far.