Chapter 1781: This Is a Misunderstanding

After a while, Lu Ye emerged from the gloom again.

The reason was simple: an invisible barrier lay behind the thick gloom, blocking his path forward. He had tried numerous methods to break through it, but it remained completely unyielding. He realized the situation was as he had suspected: once inside this core world, leaving would be difficult. The barrier was clearly what isolated this world from the outside. Unless he possessed the power to shatter the entire world, there was no hope of breaking through it.

"Perhaps I can talk to the core's intelligence!" Lu Ye mused. Earlier, he had sent a message to the core, but received no reply. Now that he was trapped, the core should respond if he could prove he wasn't a Blood Clan member. The core despised the Blood Clan, and since he had come here at the request of the Little Human Clan's Sun-Lord, he inherently had an advantage in terms of rapport.

With his mind made up, Lu Ye looked around.

There were four cultivators near him: one broad-shouldered and powerfully built, one with an aged but spirited face, and two beautiful women standing side-by-side. The broad-shouldered man appeared human, but from the recent conversation among the group, Lu Ye suspected he was not. He couldn't discern his specific race. In the starry sky, many races are outwardly indistinguishable from humans. As for the elder, he was undoubtedly human.

The two women, with their icy aura, snow-white hair, and pristine pale skin, seemed to Lu Ye to be members of the Snow Clan. The Snow Clan is a minor race in the starry sky, not particularly large in number, but significantly more populous than the Merfolk or Pixie races. They seemed comparable in size to the Five Elements Spirit Clan. Having spent so much time in the Myriad Forms Sea, Lu Ye had encountered cultivators from virtually all races, so the Snow Clan was not unfamiliar to him.

He thought he could gather information about the core world from these cultivators, which was his most immediate need. However, judging from their earlier conversation, it might not be easy to do so.

As he pondered, the broad-shouldered man with crossed arms spoke, "Kid, no matter where you're from or what your status, once you're here, you have to cut ties with your past. Understand?"

Lu Ye merely watched him in silence.

The broad-shouldered man frowned. "Why do you look so spaced out? Never mind, it's hard to explain to you now. Just come back to my dwelling with me for now, and I'll explain in detail when we have time." As he spoke, he reached out to grab Lu Ye.

Lu Ye blinked, unmoving. However, just as the broad-shouldered man was about to seize him, a withered old hand slapped out from the side, and a figure flashed, blocking Lu Ye's path.

The broad-shouldered man frowned. "Wang Taisheng, are you truly tired of living?!"

Wang Taisheng was unmoved. "Things haven't been settled yet, so for you to act so hastily, isn't that a bit improper?"

"To hell with your talk!" the broad-shouldered man cursed furiously. Clearly short-tempered, he immediately launched an attack on Wang Taisheng without further discussion. Both were at the late Moonfall realm. As they clashed, spiritual energy hummed and surged.

Lu Ye drifted back a short distance. After observing, he realized that neither Wang Taisheng nor the broad-shouldered man were fighting seriously; they were clearly holding back, as if guarding against something. Lu Ye soon understood what they were wary of. At that moment, the two Snow Clan women darted towards him from left and right, seemingly intending to whisk him away while Wang Taisheng and the broad-shouldered man were engaged in combat. Their plan utterly failed, however, because as soon as Wang Taisheng and the broad-shouldered man noticed their movements, they immediately ceased fighting and each pounced on one of the Snow Clan women.

In an instant, the four figures split into two separate battles, clashing fiercely. Lu Ye watched from the sidelines with a detached gaze, as if none of it concerned him.

What surprised Lu Ye was that all four were at the late Moonfall realm. However, despite their identical cultivation levels, there were differences in their actual strength. The old man, Wang Taisheng, was undoubtedly the strongest, truly embodying the saying "the older the ginger, the spicier it is." The broad-shouldered man came second, while the two Snow Clan women were relatively weaker. With the battlefield thus divided, the two women were clearly at a disadvantage.

"Sister!" the soft voice suddenly cried out.

The next moment, a scene unfolded that astonished Lu Ye. As the soft voice rang out, a burst of blood mist suddenly emanated from around one of the Snow Clan women, transforming into a spreading sea of blood. Simultaneously, the other cool-tempered Snow Clan woman also activated a Blood Sea art. The two seas of blood rapidly flowed towards each other, appearing poised to merge. Seeing their actions, Wang Taisheng and the broad-shouldered man were not to be outdone and simultaneously activated their own Blood Sea arts.

In the blink of an eye, the entire vast area, including where Lu Ye stood, was engulfed by the sea of blood, plunging it into darkness. Within the blood sea, the battle continued. However, the Snow Clan sisters clearly had a deeper understanding of each other, and their combined effort provided a much greater boost to their strength compared to the simpler coordination of Wang Taisheng and the broad-shouldered man. Thus, in Lu Ye's perception, a delicate balance was maintained among the three intense clashes...

He was greatly surprised, for he could tell at a glance that the four Moonfall cultivators were not employing ordinary blood dao secret arts, but rather very pure Blood Clan secret arts! These four cultivators... are they Blood Clan? Something was off. Lu Ye had overheard their conversation. Leaving aside the other three, Wang Taisheng was clearly human. How could he possibly use such Blood Clan secret arts? Furthermore, if they truly were Blood Clan, why had he not detected any trace of them earlier? Or had they all employed disguise techniques?

As Lu Ye's many questions remained unanswered, the soft-voiced woman's voice echoed from within the blood sea: "Gentlemen, fighting like this won't solve anything. If we prolong this battle, unforeseen complications might arise. Since we can't determine who is superior, I have a suggestion."

"Speak!" the broad-shouldered man's voice boomed.

"How about letting him choose for himself? Whoever he decides to go with, the other two parties must not interfere or obstruct."

As she finished speaking, the intensity of Wang Taisheng's fight gradually lessened, but the broad-shouldered man remained unyielding. "That's a terrible suggestion! This kid looks simple-minded. You two beautiful ladies have an obvious advantage being right in front of him, and Wang Taisheng is of the same race, which is another advantage. I, on the other hand, have nothing! Besides, we already agreed on the rules; we should stick to them. If you don't play by the rules, then don't blame me for being merciless!"

As he spoke, he unleashed a fierce punch, sending his opponent reeling. He then turned and charged towards Lu Ye, shouting viciously, "Kid, if you want to live, throw your storage ring to me, otherwise, today will be your last day!"

Lu Ye was perfectly enjoying the unfolding drama and had intended to gather more information about the core world. He never anticipated that the broad-shouldered man would suddenly turn his aggression directly towards him. Feeling the man's ferocious aura and his clear determination to not relent without gaining something, Lu Ye sighed softly.

As blood energy permeated and surged from his body, an intense, viscous sacred aura erupted, sweeping through the area. The vast blood sea trembled and instantly disintegrated. The visibility cleared. Lu Ye stood quietly in place, his hand resting on his blade, a faint blood energy emanating from his body.

Not far in front of him, the broad-shouldered man who had charged towards him froze rigid, his forehead drenched in sweat and his face contorted in terror. Behind him, the cool-tempered Snow Clan woman also froze, her pale cheeks growing even more ashen, and her body trembling uncontrollably. Wang Taisheng's gaze was filled with horror, while the soft-voiced woman's mouth was agape, wide enough to fit a fist. Several pairs of eyes simultaneously stared at Lu Ye, all filled with utter disbelief. This sudden turn of events was unforeseen by any of them. They had all considered Lu Ye a desirable prize, but who knew this prize would transform into an entity that commanded their profound awe and reverence! It was incomprehensible! Especially terrifying was the sacred aura emanating from Lu Ye, something they had never felt before. Under its suppression, they felt utterly incapable of resisting him.

Lu Ye looked at the broad-shouldered man standing frozen before him. "You want my storage ring?"

The broad-shouldered man swallowed hard, feeling an unprecedented terror engulf his mind and body. He quickly shook his head like a rattle-drum, forcing a strained smile. "Fellow Daoist, this is a misunderstanding."

Lu Ye gazed at him indifferently for a moment, showing no intention of pursuing the matter. Instead, he spoke, "I'm new here and have many questions. Can anyone help me understand a few things?"

The broad-shouldered man dared not utter a sound, and Wang Taisheng was still deep in thought. However, the soft-voiced woman immediately spoke up: "Brother, feel free to ask whatever you wish to know. My sister and I will tell you everything without reservation!" As she spoke, she shot a quick, meaningful glance at her sister. The cool-tempered woman understood and quickly nodded in agreement.

Lu Ye nodded and then withdrew his sacred aura. The Moonfall cultivators immediately exhaled in relief, though their expressions as they looked at Lu Ye remained a mixture of shock and awe. They truly couldn't comprehend how anyone in this world could possess such a sacred aura.

A moment later, Lu Ye sat calmly on a large stone, his hand resting on his long blade. The four late Moonfall cultivators stood in a row not far in front of him, each with a reserved expression. In terms of cultivation, they were all one minor realm higher than Lu Ye, but their recent experience had made them understand that Lu Ye could kill them with no more effort than it took to dispatch a chick. Therefore, even though Lu Ye was seated and they were standing, none dared to voice any complaints.

After a quiet wait, Lu Ye posed his first question: "Are you... Blood Clan?"

All four shook their heads in unison.

Wang Taisheng was the first to speak: "I am Wang Taisheng, and I am human!"

The broad-shouldered man followed, "Zhou Ran, Demon Clan."

The soft-voiced woman said, "My sister and I are from the Snow Clan. I am Xiangyin, and my elder sister is Xuanyu."

Lu Ye frowned. "Then how are you able to use Blood Clan secret arts?"

Xiangyin knew Lu Ye would ask this, so she immediately explained, "Brother, you may not know this, but any cultivator who drifts into this world, regardless of their original race, gradually acquires some characteristics of the Blood Clan after spending a long time here. In fact, we don't even know what race we truly are anymore." She ended with a bitter smile.