Chapter 1669: Flower Realm

Mu He, the chief of the Wood Spirits, Hei San, the chief of the Spore Race, and Hua Qianying—Lu Ye was truly surprised to find these three together.

Hua Qianying looked at Lu Ye, puzzled. "How did you end up with those people?" She hadn't interacted with Lu Ye much, but she could sense he wasn't a bad person. So, she couldn't understand why he was involved with those space pirates. The people outside certainly weren't good.

"It's a bit embarrassing," Lu Ye briefly explained his recent predicament. Essentially, it came down to bad luck. He was traveling peacefully when he stumbled into this situation. By the time he realized something was wrong, it was too late to escape; he'd been conscripted and thrown in as a laborer. If it weren't for these three coming to his aid, he would still be outside trying to figure out how to escape.

Hua Qianying nodded slightly. "So that's it!" She had felt Lu Ye couldn't be a bad person and wouldn't stoop to becoming a space pirate; there was a reason for everything.

"What's the situation with this secret realm?" Lu Ye asked, feeling surprised. He could confirm this was a secret realm, yet there were no traces detectable from the outside. If these three hadn't actively opened a portal to let him in, he would never have known there was a secret realm here.

"And why are all three of you here? Is this the new home for the Wood Spirits and the Spore Race?" Lu Ye had many questions now.

Mu He replied, "Sort of, but this is actually the home of the Flower Race."

"The Flower Race..." Lu Ye murmured, then turned to look at Hua Qianying, realizing, "You're from the Flower Race?"

Hua Qianying nodded slightly, acknowledging it.

Lu Ye's expression showed understanding. "I see!"

That explained Hua Qianying's exceptional alchemy skills; she was from the Flower Race! Among the various races in the starry sky, each possessed unique abilities. The Flower Race excelled at cultivating plants, and the spiritual herbs and exotic flowers they grew surpassed normal ones significantly in both quality and efficacy. Furthermore, the Flower Race was prolific in alchemists because their inherent understanding of spiritual herbs and exotic plants gave them a natural advantage in alchemy. It could be said that every member of the Flower Race was an exceptionally skilled alchemist. Looking across the starry sky, while the Flower Race wasn't as rare as the Soul Race or the Mermaid Race, they weren't a large race either. Due to their generally low combat capabilities, they usually survived by depending on other powerful races. These powerful races welcomed the Flower Race's reliance, as no cultivator could progress without elixirs. Having a Flower Race contingent for logistical support could significantly boost cultivators' training efficiency.

"As for why we're here..." Mu He began to recount the events after they parted ways with Lu Ye years ago.

Back then, they had settled their clansmen below the Star Constellation realm within the Reincarnation Tree's realm. The remaining Star Constellation clansmen then embarked on a journey to find a new home. However, the process was far from smooth. While the Spore Race was relatively safe, the Wood Spirits, known for producing Wood Crystals, were easily coveted. They searched for a long time but couldn't find a suitable realm to live in. Even though they tried their best to conceal their whereabouts, their activities in the starry sky still attracted the attention of opportunistic individuals. They encountered several battles, big and small, and lost some clansmen. The number of Star Constellation clansmen in both races was already small, and now it was even less. Until one day, they met a member of the Flower Race. Guided by them, they arrived at this realm and entered this secret realm, finally settling down completely. If other races encountered difficulties, the Flower Race, even if they stumbled upon them, wouldn't intervene, as they weren't a powerful race themselves. But the Wood Spirits and Spore Race were different; these two races shared a natural affinity with the Flower Race, which is why the Flower Race member who met Mu He and Hei San offered guidance. With a specific destination, Mu He and Hei San led their remaining clansmen, enduring many more hardships before finally arriving here. Later, with the help of the Flower Race, both Mu He and Hei San successively advanced to the Moon Splendor stage. Unfortunately, their good fortune didn't last. This place was soon targeted by a group of space pirates, leading to the situation Lu Ye encountered.

Lu Ye listened quietly, feeling that the Wood Spirits and Spore Race had truly arduous fates. Considering the Mermaid Race and the Soul Race, he suddenly realized that it was indeed difficult for these rare and uniquely capable races to survive in the starry sky. They were constantly targeted by powerful individuals, truly a case of "a common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure makes him guilty." In fact, Lu Ye had once intended to guide Mu He and Hei San to bring their clansmen to the Nine Provinces. Both the Wood Spirits and the Spore Race possessed unique abilities, and their numbers were small, so Nine Provinces would have welcomed them. However, due to the immense distance, he hadn't brought it up.

"Are the space pirates outside targeting the Flower Race?" Lu Ye asked. Capturing and selling rare races like the Flower Race was undoubtedly a lucrative path for some pirate groups, just as Li Shang was captured years ago and ended up in an auction. If Lu Ye hadn't spent everything he had to buy her, who knew what her fate would have been. Li Shang's capture was merely bad luck; she encountered a Sun Glow cultivator shortly after leaving the Soul Race ancestral land. What resistance could a Star Constellation offer against a Sun Glow? The Flower Race's situation was different; the space pirates outside were specifically targeting them.

Hearing this, Hua Qianying shook her head bitterly. "They're not just targeting my Flower Race clansmen, but this secret realm itself!" Or rather, this secret realm itself was what the pirate group valued more. While the Flower Race was valuable, their worth couldn't compare to that of this secret realm, not even a thousand or ten thousand Flower Race members combined!

"They want to occupy this secret realm?" Lu Ye was confused, looking around to see what was special about it. He had only glanced around hastily upon entering and hadn't examined it closely. Now, sensing carefully, he noticed the secret realm's environment was excellent, cultivating a large number of spiritual herbs and exotic flowers. Besides some Wood Spirits and Spore Race members, there were also hundreds of Flower Race members living here. However, most of these Flower Race members weren't very strong; Hua Qianying was considered powerful among them. However, the secret realm itself could already rival an average large realm. If he hadn't known this was a secret realm, Lu Ye would have truly believed it was another realm. Moreover, he could sense a unique power within this secret realm, making it highly suitable for cultivating spiritual herbs and exotic flowers. But why would the Divine Wind Pirate Group outside go to such trouble to occupy this secret realm? This place was on the outer edge of the Void Star System. Their stealthy actions showed they didn't dare expose themselves easily, lest they be spotted by powerful cultivators from the Void Star System. Therefore, even if they conquered this secret realm, they couldn't occupy it for long. This place wasn't safe for a pirate group. Unless there was something exceptionally special about this secret realm that attracted them.

Hua Qianying hesitated, clearly unsure whether to reveal certain secrets to Lu Ye. Mu He interjected, "It's fine. Young Friend Lu is favored by the Reincarnation Tree and has been granted its mark. His character is trustworthy."

Hua Qianying was instantly startled, looking at Lu Ye in surprise. "You've been granted the Reincarnation Tree's mark?"

Hei San also explained, "Didn't I tell you before that the Azure Jade Realm, where we lived, was invaded by the Blood Race, and the Reincarnation Tree dispatched Young Friend Lu to save us?" Her two clansmen had indeed mentioned this to Hua Qianying, but she had never imagined that the person who saved both races would be Lu Ye.

Hua Qianying then became somewhat puzzled. "Aren't you Li Taibai?" In her understanding, Lu Ye was Li Taibai of Peerless Isle! But the two chiefs referred to him as Young Friend Lu.

Lu Ye scratched his face. "An alias, an alias!"

Hua Qianying understood. It was common for cultivators to use aliases to conceal their identities when traveling. However, being favored by the Reincarnation Tree and granted its mark meant his character was indeed trustworthy.

With her concerns gone, she slowly explained, "The Flower Race's home is indeed a secret realm, but essentially, it's the internal space of a divine object."

"A divine object?" Lu Ye showed a curious expression.

"The Realm King Flower! Have you heard of it, fellow cultivator?" Hua Qianying asked.

Lu Ye shook his head. Although he had roamed the starry sky for some years and his knowledge and experience were quite rich, there were too many bizarre things in the starry sky, and he naturally couldn't be omniscient.

"Legend has it that the Realm King Flower is the origin of our Flower Race. The earliest Flower Race members were born within the floral realm of a Realm King Flower. In this world, wherever there is a Realm King Flower, there will inevitably be a Flower Race. Our branch of the Flower Race was nurtured from the floral realm of a Realm King Flower."

Lu Ye glanced around, slightly surprised. "So, this secret realm is the floral realm of a Realm King Flower?"

"Yes," Hua Qianying nodded.

Lu Ye thought for a moment and said, "But I didn't find any Realm King Flower outside. Does it have the ability to conceal itself?"

"It's not concealment," Hua Qianying shook her head. "It's attachment! When a Realm King Flower is born, it attaches itself to an external realm. The Realm King Flower is a very unique divine object; it attaches to a realm and draws upon the realm's essence to grow stronger."

Lu Ye reacted. "Like a form of parasitism?"

"Not just parasitism," Hua Qianying shook her head. "Typical parasitism only harms the host without benefiting it, but the Realm King Flower is different. While it parasitizes a realm and draws upon its essence to grow, it also produces a wondrous power of reciprocation. This power can promote the realm's foundational growth, greatly shortening the time it takes for a realm to develop. Their relationship isn't a one-sided taking, but a symbiotic one."

Lu Ye's eyes lit up as he listened. "There's such a divine object in the world?" Then he frowned, "But if that's the case, the external realm's foundation shouldn't be so diminished." The outer realm clearly felt somewhat malnourished. Was he sure this wasn't due to the Realm King Flower's parasitic absorption?

Hua Qianying said, "Since you've come here, fellow cultivator, you must know what's special about this location."

Lu Ye thought for a moment, then realized, "The Great Yin-Yang Millstone!"