Chapter 1631: Earned Big

Lu Ye had two journeys planned. First, he was to escort Li Shang back to her Soul Clan ancestral land, a promise made long ago. Second, the Samsara Tree had instructed him years ago to visit the Yin-Yang Millstone before advancing to the Moon-Illumination realm. Though Lu Ye didn't understand the deeper meaning, he trusted the old tree's guidance, believing it wouldn't harm him.

The Samsara Tree, having existed for an incredibly long time, clearly possessed knowledge of secrets unknown to ordinary cultivators. It was highly probable that the Yin-Yang Millstone held some benefit for Lu Ye's advancement to the Moon-Illumination realm.

However, these plans depended on Three Realms Island achieving temporary stability. Leaving now would be irresponsible, so Lu Ye couldn't depart yet; he needed to wait for some time.

Yet, with the Lesser Star Palace already installed beneath Three Realms Island, it was bound to become active. Once it reached the level of a medium-sized spiritual island, it would surely attract attention. If attacked, they might not be able to defend it.

Unfortunately, the Merfolk could not be relied upon, otherwise, they would have been the best allies.

Lu Ye couldn't help but feel regret. How wonderful it would be if the Merfolk tribe beneath the Myriad Manifestations Sea weren't afflicted by the curse poison? But then again, if they hadn't been cursed, that tribe wouldn't have lived perpetually beneath the Myriad Manifestations Sea, and Lu Ye would never have had the chance to meet them.

Wait a moment...

A flash of inspiration suddenly struck Lu Ye. He considered it carefully: the reason that Merfolk tribe couldn't leave the Myriad Manifestations Sea was their inherited curse poison, passed down through their bloodline for generations.

If that were the case... could his Talent Tree be effective?

Lu Ye had never considered this before. Moreover, when he first encountered the Merfolk, his Talent Tree had only undergone its second evolution, making it impossible to use on others.

But now, his Talent Tree had completed its third evolution. He could even help resolve the power that the Dancer infused into others. The so-called curse poison was merely a form of external corrosive power; perhaps the Talent Tree could burn it away?

If so, he could completely resolve the curse poison for the Merfolk, allowing them to leave the Myriad Manifestations Sea and live elsewhere!

If the Merfolk could leave the Myriad Manifestations Sea, they could be invited to assist when Three Realms Island was attacked. Wouldn't that make the island impregnable?

The more Lu Ye thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. It was a pity he hadn't considered it earlier; if he had, he could have already tried it.

There wouldn't be much to lose by trying. If it succeeded, his persistent problem would be solved. Even if it failed, the loss wouldn't be significant, though the Merfolk used as a test subject would likely suffer some harm.

He had previously agreed with Yan Miao to retrieve Bai Lu and the others from the Star Palace in half a month, so he could only attempt this then.

Lu Ye also recalled some things Bai Lu had told him when they chatted years ago. She said the Merfolk were so friendly to him, almost always fulfilling his requests, entirely due to an ancestral instruction. One of their ancestral maxims stated that anyone favored by the Divine Palace would be the path to their tribe's future and could help them resolve the curse poison.

At the time, Lu Ye had scoffed slightly, as he had no idea how to resolve the so-called curse poison. Who would have thought that he would now have a clue?

In this light, the Merfolk ancestor who passed down that instruction seemed to possess remarkable insight.

As for whether it would work, he would have to try it himself during his next visit.

Lu Ye secretly made up his mind.

However, his immediate priority was to quickly enhance his own foundation.

Although it had been a few years since he advanced to the late-stage Star Constellation realm, and his intermittent cultivation efficiency had been quite good, it still couldn't compare to cultivating in the Myriad Manifestations Sea. He needed to raise his foundation to the peak of the Star Constellation realm before setting off for the Yin-Yang Millstone.

With little time remaining, Lu Ye dared not delay.

Leaving his clone to manage affairs on the island, his main body quietly slipped out of Three Realms Island. Finding a secluded, uninhabited spot, he plunged into the Myriad Manifestations Sea.

Cultivation, cultivation!

As he entered the sea, just as before, there was no need to guide the refinement process. The immense energy within the seawater surged wildly into his body. Lu Ye didn't need to do much; his Talent Tree automatically refined the impurities within the invading energy. Instantly, the Talent Tree flared with light, and grey mist rose.

This method of cultivation was indeed more suitable for him. The only drawback was the immense consumption. Fortunately, he still had leftover Talent Tree fuel from before, which should be enough to raise him to the peak of the Star Constellation realm.

Even if it wasn't enough, he still possessed two million spirit jades, which he could use to purchase more when needed.

He also needed to find ways to earn money, as there would inevitably be times in the future when he needed to use the Talent Tree. Without spirit jades, where would he buy fire-attribute treasures?

Speaking of treasures, Lu Ye's heart stirred, and he suddenly recalled a particular one.

Years ago, on his way back to Kyushu with Li Shang, he had used a bone flute to attract a group of Armored Qilins. After defeating them, he obtained a treasured coin from inside one of the beasts.

After several attempts, he had confirmed the coin's miraculous power: it could absorb and store stellar energy, then unleash it as a profound light when needed.

Back then, the Armored Qilin had spat out a copper light that nearly incapacitated Lu Ye. Later, Lu Ye placed the coin in his storage ring, only to find several million spirit jades missing, and the coin had turned silver. Inside the Heavenly Dog Star, he had used this treasured coin to instantly kill a Moon-Illumination realm stellar beast.

Killing a Moon-Illumination realm beast at the cost of several million spirit jades was undoubtedly a huge loss. Therefore, from then on, Lu Ye kept the coin in a storage ring that contained no spirit jades, to prevent any further unforeseen losses.

Lu Ye had once wondered if this item, if it absorbed enough spirit jades, could pose a threat to Sun-Illumination realm powerhouses.

He hadn't dared to try, mainly because he lacked the resources.

But now... he looked around. The surrounding seawater was entirely composed of concentrated stellar energy. Strictly speaking, the Myriad Manifestations Sea's water was no different from spirit jades; it was just too corrosive and contained too many impurities, which was why no one dared to absorb and refine it deeply.

However, the treasured coin didn't seem to care about impurities. Could it perhaps absorb the seawater?

With that thought, Lu Ye couldn't help but take out the treasured coin. The moment it appeared, Lu Ye's expression shifted, for just as he had guessed, the coin was indeed frantically absorbing the surrounding seawater. It was like a ravenous beast that had starved for countless years; its entire body transformed into a bottomless pit, devouring at an unimaginable speed. Around the coin, the seawater visibly flowed rapidly.

The treasured coin had dulled after unleashing that silver light years ago, but now it quickly turned copper. As it continuously absorbed the seawater, the copper color grew brighter and brighter until, a moment later, it suddenly transformed into silver!

Lu Ye couldn't help but feel ecstatic. The last time the treasured coin turned silver, it had cost him several million spirit jades.

Now, by absorbing the Myriad Manifestations Sea's water, it had reached the same state, giving Lu Ye the sensation of having simply gained several million spirit jades for free.

A massive profit!

And that wasn't all. The silver's brightness quickly surpassed its previous level. After a while longer, Lu Ye even noticed faint traces of gold appearing along the coin's edge, as if the entire coin were adorned with a golden rim.

His heart pounded. It seemed his guess was correct; the coin turning silver was by no means its limit, it possessed even greater potential!

The golden rim rapidly spread towards the center. In just a dozen breaths, a shimmering golden coin appeared before Lu Ye's eyes. At first glance, it glowed with a bright, fiery orange, as if forged from the purest gold. Had he not witnessed it himself, it would have been hard to believe its original dull appearance.

The coin stopped absorbing seawater. Lu Ye held the golden coin, his expression solemn.

He felt a hidden, terrifying power emanating from the coin, one that was countless times stronger than what he had sensed when it first turned silver.

Could this thing... pose a threat to a Sun-Illumination realm cultivator?

Lu Ye couldn't be certain, but it was highly probable.

He would only know for sure after trying it once, but there was no way to test it. He couldn't just find a Sun-Illumination cultivator; the resident Sun-Illumination cultivators of the Myriad Manifestations Sea belonged to this star system. If he actually summoned them, he probably wouldn't be able to keep the treasured coin.

It seemed that turning golden was the limit for this treasure, as Lu Ye no longer detected any signs of the coin absorbing seawater.

Even so, it was still incredible.

This item should be considered an exotic treasure! As for its grade... Lu Ye felt that ordinary grading systems couldn't classify it. It was highly likely connected to something at the level of a supreme treasure of the starry sky.

In other words, it was either a supreme treasure of the starry sky itself, or a subsidiary artifact of such a treasure, similar to the Sword Gourd.

Holding such a significant treasure, Lu Ye yearned to find a suitable target to test its power, but unfortunately, he had no such opportunity and could only restrain himself.

Later, when he left the Myriad Manifestations Sea, this treasure could be entrusted to Hua Ci, serving as Three Realms Island's trump card!

As for himself, he still had a red talisman bestowed by Su Yuqing, so he wasn't too concerned.

After years of nurturing, his own strength had significantly increased compared to before. The power that the red talisman could unleash was likely beyond what a Moon-Illumination realm cultivator could withstand.

Once he advanced to the Moon-Illumination realm, the talisman's power would enable him to threaten Sun-Illumination realm cultivators.

Reluctantly, he put away the treasured coin and resumed his cultivation.

However, cultivating alone was somewhat monotonous. Lu Ye thought for a moment and then took out his Boulder Blade.

When he had cultivated here before, he had never dared to take out the Boulder Blade because ordinary spirit treasures couldn't withstand the sea's corrosion. But now, the Boulder Blade was ultimately transformed from Liao, so perhaps it could resist the corrosive power of the seawater?

Even so, Lu Ye kept a close eye on the Boulder Blade, ready to put it away immediately if anything seemed amiss.

Fortunately, he was right. Liao, being an ancient weapon clan, meant that the Boulder Blade it transformed into was indeed far superior to ordinary treasures. The powerful corrosive force of the Myriad Manifestations Sea had no effect on it whatsoever.

This was perfect. Lu Ye didn't need to worry about cultivation; the Talent Tree would automatically burn away impurities invading his body, and his foundation would rapidly strengthen. He could fully seize this opportunity to continue refining himself in the green hall. With this dual approach, his cultivation efficiency would be incredibly high!