Chapter 163: Thirty-Two Matches

The strong cultivators on the Spirit Creek List all had keen eyes and could naturally discern what was happening.

This time, Lu Ye voluntarily stepped forward to challenge the various sects of the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge. Although it was a natural progression after being forced into a corner, it was actually an opportunity to build an invincible reputation.

However, he himself was unaware of this.

Of course, to achieve that reputation, he first had to survive.

Despite Lu Ye striking fear into the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge throughout the day, and now no one dared to step forward and fight, the situation hadn't actually improved much for him and had even worsened.

A full day of combat had allowed the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge to largely understand Lu Ye's fundamental capabilities, enabling them to formulate better countermeasures.

No one was stepping forward at the moment because there were disputes and disagreements among the various sects of the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge. Several experts from the Spirit Creek List were currently mediating.

Ultimately, one of the top twenty experts spoke up: “So it's decided. No matter who kills Lu Ye, they will receive a two-tenths share of the reward exclusively. The remaining reward will be equally divided among the sects that contributed to the effort. Does anyone have any objections?”

As he spoke, he cast a cold glance at the representatives of the various forces around him.

The main source of disagreement and dispute within the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge revolved around the rewards for killing Lu Ye. Everyone had witnessed the daytime battles; few of those who stepped forward survived. Furthermore, each sect could only participate in the fight once. If a dispatched disciple died, they would lose the chance to receive any reward.

This led to everyone wanting to hold back and reap the benefits later.

Unless this issue was resolved, it would be difficult for the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge to unite their efforts. After all, the combined value of the rewards was immense, making everyone envious. No one wanted to be someone else's stepping stone.

The decision that the one who killed Lu Ye would exclusively receive two-tenths of the reward, with the remainder equally divided among the sects that contributed, was supported by everyone.

This way, even if their own disciple didn't manage to kill Lu Ye, as long as they contributed, they would still receive a share of the benefits.

“If there are no objections, then arrange your personnel accordingly. Find a way to break his fangs. Whoever manages to break his fangs will receive an additional one-tenth share of the reward afterwards!” the expert stated coldly.

The strength Lu Ye had displayed had made the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge abandon any plans of killing him in a single battle. It was unrealistic. Though he was only at the fifth-level cultivation, he was far stronger than typical sixth-level cultivators. Unless a seventh-level cultivator intervened, no one could be his match. Therefore, the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge decided to divide the task of killing Lu Ye into two steps.

A short while later, Lu Ye, who had been sitting cross-legged on the arena, heartily eating dried meat, slowly rose. He swallowed the dried meat whole.

Eating was, firstly, to replenish his physical strength. Secondly, it was for 'Refining Essence into Qi' [a cultivation method]. His spiritual power consumption couldn't be entirely replenished by spirit pills. His talent tree had lost its ability to burn off pill toxins, and taking too many spirit pills would make his spiritual power murky and affect his combat effectiveness.

His spiritual power was already less pure than before due to the many spirit pills he had consumed during his escape.

Although Refining Essence into Qi was much less effective, it was better than nothing. Moreover, with the auxiliary cultivation method, Gluttony Meal, he digested food quite quickly.

Another cultivator from the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge jumped out. Lu Ye looked closely; it was a weapon master wielding a long spear.

As usual, they exchanged their sect names. The opponent then charged at him. The long spear in their hand shimmered with spiritual light, and spear-flowers directly attacked Lu Ye's vital points.

Dozens of breaths later, the weapon master was cut down.

Lu Ye didn't fight consecutively. He had realized that his intimidation tactics from the day weren't very effective, so he simply decided not to waste his energy. The cultivators from Ten Thousand Demon Ridge who jumped out didn't seem to fear death much.

This might be related to the unique environment of the Spirit Creek Battlefield. Here, the two major factions constantly opposed each other year-round. Every cultivator who reached the sixth level had fought their way up, and life-or-death struggles with enemies were commonplace for them.

Recalling the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge cultivators he had killed before, it seemed very few had begged for mercy before dying. Most would utter threats before their demise. For instance, Dong Shuye had told Lu Ye he'd wait for him on the Yellow Springs Road before he died, though it was utterly useless.

Because everyone knew that if defeated by a cultivator from the opposing faction and unable to escape, begging for mercy was futile.

This fostered a ruthless attitude among Kyushu cultivators, characterized by 'disregarding life and death, and fighting if dissatisfied.' This tendency became more pronounced with higher cultivation levels.

Rest, kill the enemy, rest again, kill the enemy again...

Round after round, one vibrant life after another jumped into the arena. Most of them became corpses, with only a few escaping death.

As dawn approached, the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge's losses continued to mount. However, this didn't seem to significantly deter the newcomers. Though those who stepped forward were also afraid, their fear didn't hinder their resolve to fight.

Another night fell.

The arena floor was covered in blood. A pungent, bloody smell permeated the air, so thick it seemed impossible to disperse.

Near the Hao Tian Alliance's camp, Lu Ye sat cross-legged, holding a spirit stone in each hand. He still had some dried meat in his mouth that he hadn't swallowed, and his head was bowed, taking a short nap.

After fighting for two consecutive days and one night, he was utterly exhausted. Thus, after each battle, he had to rest. He seized this rare opportunity for a brief nap.

As for recovery, with Gluttony Meal running automatically, he didn't need to do much after consuming a spirit pill.

Wei Yang watched him from the side, her eyes filled with heartache. After such a prolonged battle, Lu Ye inevitably sustained injuries. Under normal circumstances, Wei Yang could easily treat these wounds. However, due to the constraints of the Heavenly Secret Pact, Lu Ye couldn't rely on any external assistance. Even his wounds had to be bandaged by himself.

His clothes, already stained crimson with blood, had been discarded. His bare torso was wrapped with some cotton cloth, and his wounds were covered with the healing powder prepared for him by Hua Ci.

“How many matches has it been?” Someone asked Li Baxian.

Li Baxian moved his dry lips: “Thirty-two matches!”

“Thirty-two matches!” The questioner gasped softly, gazing with a complex expression at Lu Ye, whose head was bowed before them. What an astonishing record this was.

It was important to note that these were thirty-two cross-level battles. At the current pace, he should be able to complete forty battles by dawn!

When both sides had signed the Heavenly Secret Pact earlier, only forty-three sects had inscribed their names on it.

No one believed Lu Ye could complete forty-three battles. Even Li Baxian hadn't considered it. His hope was that Lu Ye could endure for the three-day limit and thus secure victory.

What Li Baxian couldn't imagine, the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge cultivators naturally couldn't imagine either. What kind of person could fight forty-three cross-level battles and remain undefeated? Such a feat had never occurred in the cultivation world of Kyushu. In the eyes of the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge experts leading this matter, Lu Ye was certainly doomed to die.

However, everyone had underestimated Lu Ye's killing speed. The sixth-level cultivators who engaged him were often cut down by Lu Ye in a very short time.

Only half of the three-day limit had passed, yet thirty-two battles had already been fought. On the Heavenly Secret Pact, only eleven sects remained who had not yet sent a representative.

Even though more cultivators from both factions had now gathered after hearing the news, causing the number of people on Golden Light Peak to exceed four thousand, as long as Lu Ye fought all forty-three battles and remained alive, he would win.

Even if the later arriving Ten Thousand Demon Ridge cultivators were unwilling to accept this, they dared not interfere. Because under the Heavenly Secret Pact, if they were to act against Lu Ye, they would not only face the full retaliatory force of the Hao Tian Alliance, but the forty-three sects who signed the Heavenly Secret Pact, and even the experts on the Spirit Creek List, would all have to move against them.

This was the fairness of the Heavenly Secret Pact, which absolutely forbade anyone from challenging it.

Only eleven more battles remained until final victory, but Li Baxian's heart grew increasingly uneasy. He didn't know if his junior brother could persevere. The spiritual light on his junior brother's body already appeared somewhat dim, a result of consuming a large number of spirit pills. This undoubtedly had a significant impact on his junior brother. Murky spiritual power would affect his strength. The most obvious sign was that Lu Ye's killing speed had slowed down. His blade was not as sharp as before, and his movements were not as swift.

Each battle was also taking longer and longer. The longer the battle, the greater his expenditure of energy, and the more spirit pills he needed to replenish it. This would lead to a vicious cycle.

When the time for one incense stick to burn out arrived, Wei Yang, though her heart ached, still gently poked Lu Ye: “Junior Brother.”

Lu Ye abruptly lifted his head, his eyes filled with exhaustion. He was momentarily disoriented before he finally reacted. He swallowed the unchewed dried meat in his mouth. Leaning on his long blade, he stood up, and gazed at the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge cultivator opposite him. He uttered the phrase he had already spoken over thirty times: “Crimson Blood Sect, Lu Ye!”

The great battle resumed. On the arena, the gleam of blades flickered, figures surged forward, and blood spattered.

One major battle after another began and subsided. The sky brightened once more.

On the arena, a petite figure moved like thunder and lightning, leaping and darting around Lu Ye with incredible speed.

Lu Ye now had several new wounds on his body, flesh torn open. These were inflicted by his current opponent. He stood silently in place, holding his long blade.

After so many consecutive battles, he had finally encountered his first truly troublesome opponent.

It was a demon cultivator. It had two fluffy ears on its head, looking just like a cat. If it only looked like a cat, that would be fine. The crucial point was that this creature was truly as agile as a cat.

In terms of pure speed, Lu Ye, even at his peak, probably couldn't match it. Such a formidable opponent was undoubtedly one of the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge's trump cards. They hadn't sent her out earlier because Lu Ye's condition was still good. Now that Lu Ye was severely depleted, the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge likely felt it was the right time to deploy this cat demon.

With this trump card deployed, Lu Ye indeed fell into a passive state. He wasn't as fast as his opponent. Several slashes from his blade not only failed to kill the opponent but instead exposed his own weaknesses. His current wounds were a result of this.

Another round of dazzlingly fast exchanges occurred. As Lu Ye's long blade descended, it merely cut through an afterimage, and at the same time, a sharp pain shot through his waist and abdomen.

He lashed out with a kick. The cat demon blocked the kick with both hands, and with the momentum, leaped away, landing gracefully.

Lu Ye stumbled backward, his long blade propped on the ground. He nearly collapsed to his knees, eliciting a cry of alarm from Wei Yang.