Chapter 1677: Yin Yang Great Grinding Wheel

With the battle already decided, Lu Ye, together with Mu He and Hei San, successfully destroyed two Tiger Shark battleships belonging to the Divine Wind Star Pirate Group and eliminated an early-stage Moon Shadow cultivator.

While a pirate group certainly had more members, the rest had been left far behind during the earlier chase. Lu Ye had no intention of wasting time tracking them down.

Their priority now was to leave the area quickly. Although the recent battle had been brief, it had created a significant disturbance, which might draw the white-haired elder to their location.

As this thought crossed his mind, Lu Ye's heart gave a sudden lurch. He quickly glanced in one direction and saw a streaking light rapidly approaching. From the distant aura he perceived, it could only be the white-haired elder.

The elder had indeed been drawn to them.

Lu Ye swiftly called out with his spiritual sense, "Fellow Daoist Qianying!"

Inside the Flower Realm, Hua Qianying had been waiting anxiously since opening the portal to release Mu He and Hei San. Unable to ascertain the situation of the battle outside, she felt extremely uneasy.

She didn't want to disturb Lu Ye, so she could only endure the suspense.

It was only when she heard Lu Ye's call that she quickly responded, "Here!"

"Open the Flower Realm portal and bring in the two patriarchs!"

"Understood!" Hua Qianying quickly complied.

The next instant, as Lu Ye's spiritual sense surged, a portal materialized before him. Following Lu Ye's instructions, Mu He and Hei San swiftly entered the portal, vanishing from sight and reappearing within the Flower Realm.

Lu Ye, meanwhile, teleported beside the fallen Flame Clan Moon Shadow, calmly retrieved his storage ring, and then summoned his star boat before departing.

Moments later, the white-haired elder, who had also arrived on his star boat, immediately spotted the tattered corpse of the Flame Clan Moon Shadow and could barely believe his eyes.

He simply couldn't fathom how his sole Moon Shadow general had died here after such a brief disappearance.

He had also tried to contact the two Tiger Shark battleships, but received no response, no matter how hard he tried. He feared they had met a grim fate as well.

With the Flower Realm seized and his pirate group suffering heavy losses, the white-haired elder's fury erupted like a volcano. Staring in the direction Lu Ye had fled, he roared fiercely, "If I don't kill you, I swear I'm not human!"

His star boat once again transformed into a streak of light, pursuing Lu Ye's escape path at high speed.

Although both were operating star boats, a late-stage Moon Shadow's speed was naturally much greater than Lu Ye's. Yet, Lu Ye remained unperturbed. From previous attempts, he was confident he could shake off his pursuer, primarily because as his cultivation improved, the Void Spirit Rune allowed him to teleport greater distances.

Therefore, he believed one more teleportation would ensure his safety.

It wasn't the right time yet, as the distance between his Treasure Blood Clone and his main body wasn't sufficient.

After another round of chase and escape, Lu Ye was forced to activate the Void Spirit Rune again and vanish within the span of half a cup of tea.

Far behind him, the pursuing white-haired elder witnessed this scene, his eyes almost bursting with rage. He simply couldn't comprehend what miraculous treasure this young man possessed that allowed him to repeatedly escape from his sight.

Fortunately, he possessed the ability to discern the direction Lu Ye had taken.

Appearing next to his Treasure Blood Clone, Lu Ye was about to recall it when he felt a vague sense of unease. While he believed he was likely safe, he decided to remain cautious just in case.

After a brief consideration, he allowed the clone to persist, moving in a different direction from his main body.

A moment later, Lu Ye finally understood the reason for his earlier apprehension: the white-haired elder, whom he had expected to have shaken off, had relentlessly caught up to him once more.

Was it luck?

Lu Ye suspected things weren't that simple. Logically, the distance he had teleported should have exceeded the range of the elder's spiritual sense, making it impossible for the elder to know his true location. Yet, the elder had accurately tracked him down several times already.

This was more than just luck.

Did his opponent possess a method to pinpoint his location?

Lu Ye couldn't help but recall a similar pursuit by a Moon Shadow in the Myriad Forms Galaxy, where he had been unable to escape, no matter how he teleported.

Given that the white-haired elder's cultivation was even stronger than that previous Moon Shadow's, it wasn't impossible for him to possess a similar ability.

Indeed, one should never underestimate others. The cultivation world is filled with countless strange and bizarre secret techniques; even a Sun Illumination realm expert wouldn't dare claim omniscience.

His clone was still outside, maintaining a distance from his main body that allowed for immediate teleportation. Seeing the white-haired elder approach, Lu Ye didn't hesitate and teleported away once more.

After several such instances, with the white-haired elder consistently catching up after each teleportation, Lu Ye finally confirmed that the elder truly possessed the ability to pinpoint his location.

The immense disparity in their strength made it seem unrealistic to shake off his pursuer, unless the elder's power was completely exhausted.

However, for a late-stage Moon Shadow, pursuing on a star boat didn't significantly drain their spiritual power, making it almost impossible to exhaust the elder's strength.

As anticipated, he still needed to reach the Yin-Yang Grand Millstone. Only by leveraging its unique environment could he hope to escape his pursuer.

This had always been Lu Ye's intended destination. While the ongoing pursuit limited his composure, it did not disrupt his overall strategy.

With his mind made up, Lu Ye focused on the direction of the Yin-Yang Grand Millstone, continuously closing the distance with repeated teleportations. Simultaneously, he consumed various spirit pills to replenish his energy. While his spiritual power wasn't heavily drained, the primary consumption was of his soul power.

Although the Realm King Flower, supported by the Seven-Colored Divine Lotus, didn't place a significant burden on Lu Ye, it consumed an immense amount of soul power. He had to replenish his soul power at regular intervals; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to sustain his efforts.

Amidst the chase, a month swiftly passed.

Lu Ye remained relatively composed, merely continuing his teleportation and evasion. In stark contrast, the white-haired elder who had relentlessly pursued him found his resolve gradually wavering.

He had initially believed that a late-stage Star Host, who had inexplicably acquired the Realm King Flower, wouldn't be able to last long, especially since the individual had previously activated a red talisman.

Therefore, he reasoned that as long as he maintained the pursuit, his opponent would have no time to recover, and once their spiritual power was depleted, they would be utterly at his mercy.

Yet, an entire month had passed, and the fleeing late-stage Star Host showed no signs of spiritual exhaustion. Every time he closed in to a critical distance, the opponent would instantly teleport away using that bizarre method.

The elder couldn't fathom what kind of extraordinary treasure allowed such unrestricted use, nor could he comprehend how a late-stage Star Host could possibly possess such an immense reserve of spiritual power.

Even with constant consumption of spirit pills for recovery, it shouldn't be possible to sustain this for so long. It was well known that consuming too many spirit pills was not beneficial, and refining them always required time.

Despite his many unanswered questions, the fact remained that he had pursued someone across an entire realm for a month without success.

A typical late-stage Star Host would naturally be powerless against such a relentless pursuit. However, Lu Ye, relying on the power of the Talent Tree, could prevent his spiritual and soul power from depleting as long as he had sufficient resources and fuel. His only real consequence from a month of being chased was a slight mental fatigue.

It was a minor inconvenience.

Moreover, this faint fatigue quickly dissipated, for... he had arrived at his destination!

The Yin-Yang Grand Millstone, true to its name, appeared from a distance as if a colossal millstone lay suspended in the void, distinctively divided into vibrant red and blue hues.

From afar, these two colors could be seen rotating in opposite directions, as if the millstone were genuinely grinding something.

Around the impossibly vast millstone, streams of red and blue light formed what appeared to be tangible, colorful ribbons, gracefully drifting in every direction.

Even though Lu Ye had witnessed numerous cosmic wonders, he was still awestruck by the magnificent spectacle before him.

Lu Ye noticed the area was quite bustling.

In fact, for several days now, he had intermittently encountered various cultivators, most of whom radiated robust vitality, seemingly present to temper their physical bodies.

This phenomenon became more pronounced the closer he got to the Yin-Yang Grand Millstone. Such a cosmic wonder capable of tempering the body was rare across the entire starry sky, so cultivators seeking to enhance their physique naturally wouldn't pass up this opportunity.

In particular, many cultivators who had been stagnant at the late-stage Star Host for years yearned to find a breakthrough here. If they could temper their bodies to an extreme using the mystical power of the Yin-Yang Grand Millstone, they would gain a chance to glimpse the Moon Shadow realm.

Not only Star Hosts came to this place; Lu Ye even encountered passing Moon Shadows. However, whether Star Host or Moon Shadow, upon noticing Lu Ye was being pursued, none showed any inclination to approach him.

Such situations were common in the starry sky. Generally, when faced with such incidents, cultivators opted to remain aloof and uninvolved, as no one knew who was righteous and who was malicious, and rash intervention would only invite trouble.

As Lu Ye observed the Yin-Yang Grand Millstone, the white-haired elder was doing the same. In fact, he had realized Lu Ye's destination was this place about half a month prior.

Compared to Lu Ye, who was an outsider, the Divine Wind Star Pirate Group, having been active in this part of the starry sky for years, naturally possessed a far greater understanding of the Yin-Yang Grand Millstone than he did.

The elder discerned Lu Ye's intention: the young man was clearly desperate and sought to enter the Yin-Yang Grand Millstone to find an opportunity.

Throughout history, a select few Star Hosts had indeed benefited here, tempering their bodies to an extreme and thereby gaining a chance to advance to the Moon Shadow realm. However, such individuals were rare, and advancing to Moon Shadow was not a simple feat. Even with a body tempered to its peak, many other preparations were required; it wasn't merely a matter of deciding to advance.

The elder, unable to prevent Lu Ye's actions, decided to let him proceed. Furthermore, he believed that once inside the Yin-Yang Grand Millstone, it would be even easier to kill Lu Ye and reclaim the Realm King Flower.

Regardless of what extraordinary treasure the young man used for his prior teleportations, it would be severely restricted in a place like the Yin-Yang Grand Millstone. The young man was clearly mistaken if he thought he could gain an advantage there.

Furthermore, such a cosmic wonder exerted a powerful suppressive effect on cultivators. As a late-stage Moon Shadow, his situation upon entering would undoubtedly be far superior to that of Lu Ye, a late-stage Star Host.

Therefore, as he watched Lu Ye charge directly towards the Yin-Yang Grand Millstone, the elder's heart filled with anticipation.

This was truly a case of choosing the path to hell when a road to heaven lay open!