Chapter 1661

Under the protection of the Saint Guard, Lu Ye completely ignored the secret arts of the two Soul Clan members and charged straight at them.

The two Soul Clan members were startled, as they had never encountered such an unusual soul technique. Despite its strangeness, they recognized it as a defensive soul art. They believed that with their combined strength, and assuming an equal cultivation realm, their opponent wouldn't be able to withstand it; he would surely be blocked, and possibly even injured.

However, when their soul technique struck the Saint Guard barrier, an incredible scene unfolded.

The barrier merely trembled slightly, completely unharmed. Immediately after, Lu Ye passed right through them.

If one were to simply compare souls, Lu Ye would be inferior to the Soul Clan at the same cultivation level. After all, Soul Clan members are inherently soul bodies, and their cultivation primarily focuses on these bodies, a feat unmatched by cultivators of any other race.

However, due to his cultivation, Lu Ye had used numerous treasures to strengthen his soul.

From the Soul Cleansing Water he used in earlier years to the Spirit Refining Grass he began using recently, all these were substances that could nourish and strengthen the soul. Spirit Refining Grass, in particular, had an exceptionally potent effect on soul enhancement. When Lu Ye was training in Liao's inner space, his soul was repeatedly injured, and he consistently relied on Spirit Refining Grass for recovery.

In this cycle of injury and recovery, his soul naturally became even stronger.

It could be said that while Lu Ye's current soul strength might be inferior to the Soul Clan's, it was unmatched by any other race.

Furthermore, soul confrontations don't solely depend on the strength of the soul, but also on the effective use of secret arts.

While the Soul Clan's secret arts are indeed exquisite, the Saint Guard, derived from the Talent Tree, was certainly not inferior. When condensed and outlined by Lu Ye's soul power, no Soul Clan member of the same realm could possibly break through it with a single strike.

The two Soul Clan members were stunned on the spot, their eyes wide with disbelief. They secretly suspected that Lu Ye might have used some defensive soul treasure, wondering how else the barrier could be so resilient.

"Impossible!" Seeing Lu Ye rapidly approaching the Four-Colored Spirit Lotus, the two Soul Clan members finally reacted. They roared in anger and quickly chased after him.

But just as they made their move, Lu Ye had already brushed past the Four-Colored Spirit Lotus, and simultaneously, its four-colored radiance vanished.

The Soul Clan members, poised to give chase, involuntarily froze in place, staring in astonishment as Lu Ye's figure rapidly departed. It took them a good while to react.

"Where was the Four-Colored Spirit Lotus? Where did the Four-Colored Spirit Lotus, for which they had been fighting for so long, go?"

"Don't tell us it was refined by that person just now! They hadn't seen him perform any refining actions. One should know that refining a Four-Colored Spirit Lotus wasn't something that could be done in an instant; even at the fastest, it would take at least the time it takes for an incense stick to burn."

"But what was the situation now? That person merely swept past the Four-Colored Spirit Lotus, and it was gone!"

Above the Lotus Pond, Elder Xuyuan had a headache.

He didn't know what was happening with Lu Ye; his mindset seemed to have changed. Previously, Lu Ye would try to avoid areas where Soul Clan members were contending, but for some reason, this time he actively intervened and even snatched the Four-Colored Spirit Lotus.

This human boy's speed in refining spirit lotuses was incredible. At this rate, the Soul Clan members wouldn't have any competitive edge at all.

With this opening of the Lotus Pond, their own clan members probably wouldn't gain much benefit.

At this moment, Lu Ye was observing the Five-Colored Spirit Lotus in his Sea of Consciousness. After refining another four-colored one, this Five-Colored Spirit Lotus had undergone even greater changes.

Lu Ye could completely confirm that the Five-Colored Spirit Lotus was indeed not the end; it still had the potential to evolve into a six-colored one!

This greatly excited him. The Five-Colored Spirit Lotus's effect on nourishing the soul was already very powerful, so what would a higher-quality one be like?

He originally thought three days would be more than enough, but now, it might not be! After all, the higher the quality of the spirit lotus, the more spirit lotuses would be needed for its evolution, and this increase would be geometric.

What to do?

After a brief ponder, Lu Ye came up with an idea. Whether it would work still needed to be verified, but if it did, things would become much simpler.

He needed to find a target for verification first.

Lu Ye began searching around and soon found a single-colored spirit lotus that no one was paying attention to.

Standing before this single-colored spirit lotus, Lu Ye didn't rush to refine it. With a thought, he flicked his finger, and a drop of precious blood flew out. The precious blood immediately glowed with a deep red light, and when the light dissipated, a Precious Blood Clone appeared.

Immediately after, divine sense surged within the Precious Blood Clone, and it quickly refined the single-colored spirit lotus.

After the Precious Blood Clone refined the spirit lotus, Lu Ye recalled it, while carefully observing the changes in the Five-Colored Spirit Lotus in his Sea of Consciousness.

An inexplicable power flowed into the Five-Colored Spirit Lotus, causing it to undergo a barely perceptible change!

It really worked!

The Precious Blood Clone was similar to the Talent Tree Clone, essentially inheriting all the characteristics of Lu Ye's main body. Of course, due to the limited power contained within the clone, it wasn't suitable for prolonged battles. Furthermore, compared to the Talent Tree Clone, the maximum distance it could maintain from the main body was significantly less.

Although this Lotus Pond was large, it wasn't so large that the Precious Blood Clone would lose contact with the main body. Therefore, Lu Ye could allow the Precious Blood Clone to move freely within it.

If three days weren't enough for just one person, then he needed a few more.

He currently had three drops of precious blood in his body, meaning he could create three Precious Blood Clones. If he wished, he could also create one Talent Tree Clone!

Of course, this was the Soul Clan's territory, and Lu Ye wasn't sure if their Sun-Glimmering cultivators were paying attention. While the Precious Blood Clones were fine, the Talent Tree Clone shouldn't be exposed. After all, the process of condensing a Talent Tree Clone was different from a Precious Blood Clone; it required first separating a part of the Talent Tree itself.

Three Precious Blood Clones plus his main body—four of him—that should be enough, right?

"Scatter!" Before the three Precious Blood Clones, Lu Ye waved his hand. Immediately, he and his clones transformed into four streams of light and sped off in four different directions.

"This..." The Soul Clan's Sun-Glimmering Elders were all stunned.

Lu Ye's efficiency in refining spirit lotuses was already astounding; in just over half a day, he had refined an unknown number of them.

But since the Ancestral Land's will had instructed them to take good care of him, the Sun-Glimmering Elders had let him be.

But what was the situation now?

Had this human boy gotten a taste for it and couldn't stop? Was refining with one person not enough, so he created three clones?

Moreover, these three clones... even from the perspective of Sun-Glimmering experts, they were incredibly profound. They didn't even know what kind of secret art this was, that could instantly condense three perfectly lifelike clones.

"Patriarch!" A beautiful, woman-like Sun-Glimmering cultivator turned to look at Hun Que, her expression resentful.

"This is too much, Patriarch, aren't you going to do something about it?!"

They had originally thought that with this opening of the Lotus Pond, even if that human boy gained significant benefits, the Soul Clan's own members would also gain a lot.

But if the situation continued to develop like this, wouldn't it lead to a situation where the human boy got the meat, and the Soul Clan members only got some broth?

Or even, if that human boy went even further overboard, the Soul Clan members might not even get any broth.

Even Hun Que, who had lived for countless years, found this situation rather vexing.

Control him? How could he?

The Ancestral Land's will had already given instructions, and the early opening of the Lotus Pond this time was precisely because of Lu Ye's arrival. Should they forcefully remove him from the Lotus Pond now?

Didn't they see how easily those spirit lotuses were refined as soon as his divine sense touched them?

Each of those spirit lotuses was a manifestation of the Ancestral Land's will. If the Ancestral Land's will didn't allow him to refine them, how could it be so easy?

If they were to forcefully remove him from the Lotus Pond, wouldn't that be going against the Ancestral Land's will? Would he still be their patriarch, and would the Soul Clan still be able to survive here?

For a moment, Hun Que's feelings were complex. The Soul Clan had always prided themselves as children of the Ancestral Land, protected even during the ancient war that swept across the starry sky. But now, in comparison, Hun Que realized that Lu Ye, this human, was the true favored son, and their Soul Clan were merely illegitimate children...

"It's not a big problem," Hun Que said faintly, his eyelids twitching uncontrollably. "Let's just observe."

Lu Ye's side moved swiftly. Everywhere his main body and three clones passed, all spirit lotuses were refined. In a single day, he gained a bountiful harvest.

On the main body's side, the Five-Colored Spirit Lotus already showed a tendency to evolve into a Six-Colored Spirit Lotus; it would probably be enough after refining two or three more three-colored ones.

The progress of the three clones was similar; the spirit lotuses they refined were all evolving towards five-colored, currently still at the four-colored stage.

Lu Ye wanted to find a five-colored one.

Because during this refining process, he could clearly feel that a ready-made Five-Colored Spirit Lotus was worth half a day of his effort.

Unfortunately, so far, the highest quality spirit lotuses he had found were only four-colored. He didn't know if five-colored ones hadn't appeared yet, or if they had already been refined by the Soul Clan.

The number of active Soul Clan members he encountered was also decreasing, because those who had made gains would no longer refine spirit lotuses. Instead, they would find a peaceful spot to refine the pond water for cultivation and strengthen their soul bodies.

Even for the Soul Clan themselves, the opening of the Lotus Pond was a rare opportunity.

At a certain moment, Lu Ye, who was searching around, suddenly turned his head to look in one direction. In that direction, one of his Precious Blood Clones had made a discovery—precisely what he had been hoping for.

The next instant, spatial spirit patterns outlined his body, and he vanished from his spot in an instant.

When he reappeared, he was already next to the Precious Blood Clone. The clone didn't stop and swept into the distance, while Lu Ye's main body looked ahead.

In that direction, several streams of soul power were colliding and fluctuating. At the center of the collision, five-colored radiance was dazzlingly blooming.

He had finally found a Five-Colored Spirit Lotus!

And several Soul Clan members were fighting over it.

Lu Ye was familiar with this scene, and he immediately approached the battlefield without hesitation.

Seeing his actions, the Soul Clan's Sun-Glimmering Elders felt their hearts sink. If nothing unexpected happened, that Five-Colored Spirit Lotus would probably be Lu Ye's again.