Chapter 1877: Two Conditions

"I always felt the name Lu Ye sounded familiar. Now I know, you are the Lu Yi Ye from the Nine Heavens back then." Black Cloud smiled faintly, his gaze somewhat scrutinizing. "Your cultivation speed is truly astonishing. You were only at the Divine Sea realm back then, but now you're already in the Mid Moonfall realm. Even Lionheart is no match for you."

"Just luck," Lu Ye said, gesturing with his hand. "Esteemed Demon Lord, please!"

Black Cloud nodded, still with his hands behind his back, and ascended the bamboo building.

A short while later, host and guest were seated. Black Cloud continued to look around, as if curious about everything. However, Lu Ye's bamboo building was extremely simple, with nothing but a few pieces of furniture, so Black Cloud couldn't discern much of interest.

As the guest was also a Sun-Gleam realm cultivator who had requested an audience, Lu Ye naturally couldn't be impolite. He took out a tea set from his storage ring and slowly began to brew tea.

As the aroma of tea diffused, Black Cloud suddenly spoke. "Actually, I've always been very curious about one thing, Island Master Lu. Perhaps you can enlighten me?"

"What is it, Esteemed Demon Lord?"

"During the Divine Sea struggle in the Primordial Realm back then, how did you manage to kill every single one of those Blood Clan members? Do you possess some special method to target them and locate them precisely?"

"More or less," Lu Ye nodded. Truth be told, he had learned on the fly back then, acquiring the Blood Resonance Art from a certain Blood Clan member; otherwise, how could he have found the others?

"To be able to locate them and then annihilate them entirely—such ability is rare among Divine Sea cultivators. At that time, in the Primordial Realm, the Blood Clan could easily gather due to their unique bloodline. This means you already possessed an unmatched ability to fight multiple opponents of your own cultivation level. And now you still possess it even at the Moonfall realm. The talent of the human race is truly formidable and enviable."

"I dare not claim to be unmatched; Esteemed Demon Lord, you flatter me," Lu Ye replied cautiously. After all, the person opposite him was a Sun-Gleam realm cultivator. No matter how approachable or harmless Black Cloud appeared, Lu Ye dared not let his guard down. Although he was merely a Talent Tree clone here, and any incident wouldn't affect his main body, it was always safer to be cautious.

"There's also another matter that puzzles me," Black Cloud said, this time not asking for Lu Ye's opinion but directly inquiring, "By what means did you breach Purple Mist Island's defensive grand array?"

More than two months had passed since Three Realms Island captured Purple Mist. Black Cloud, having received the news and rushed over, had naturally learned the full story of the battle from Lionheart. Aside from Lu Ye's formidable personal strength displayed throughout the conflict, what Black Cloud truly couldn't understand was why, precisely at that critical moment, Purple Mist's defensive array malfunctioned, giving Lu Ye an opportunity. Was it a coincidence? It seemed far too coincidental. Yet, if it wasn't a coincidence, there seemed to be no other explanation.

If Purple Mist's defensive array hadn't malfunctioned, Three Realms Island wouldn't have been able to breach it even if given a hundred years! The sudden collapse of the defensive array was the root cause of Purple Mist's downfall. All cultivators in the Myriad Manifestations Sea who witnessed that battle thought it was a coincidence, but Black Cloud felt something was amiss.

"Purple Mist's defensive array had an issue; I didn't breach it. I merely happened to be there at the right time," Lu Ye certainly wouldn't admit the specifics. If the secret of the Minor Astral Palace were exposed, he would have no place to stand in the entire Myriad Manifestations Sea. If he could use the Minor Astral Palace to break Purple Mist today, could he perhaps break Myriad Manifestations Island in the future? The defenses of other top-tier spiritual islands would no longer be considered impregnable.

"Esteemed Demon Lord, please have some tea," Lu Ye said, raising his hand to pour Black Cloud a cup.

Black Cloud nodded, about to say something more, but Lu Ye directly interrupted him. "If Esteemed Demon Lord wishes to reclaim Purple Mist Island, Three Realms Island has no objection. However, our island has two conditions!"

Even if the opponent was a Sun-Gleam realm cultivator, Lu Ye couldn't allow them to control the conversation. The issue of Purple Mist's ownership was his trump card. Once he brought it up, Black Cloud would have to respond, unless he no longer wanted Purple Mist Island. Black Cloud clearly realized Lu Ye's difficult nature. The relaxed and easygoing atmosphere he had deliberately cultivated instantly shattered with that single sentence.

Picking up his teacup, he took a small sip and smiled faintly. "Speak."

Lu Ye looked at him, his expression serious. "The first condition is that Three Realms Island demands compensation from Purple Mist of ten billion spirit jades or resources of equivalent value!"

Black Cloud opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Lu Ye directly cut him off. "Let me first explain to Esteemed Demon Lord why we demand this compensation. On that day, I received an invitation from Purple Mist and attended their banquet. During the height of the festivities, your island's demon cultivators planned a blood-food sacrifice, and the offering presented was a newly advanced Moonfall realm cultivator from my Three Realms Island! To save his life, I negotiated with Hu Guang, offering one billion spirit jades for his redemption. Hu Guang agreed, promising that if I delivered the one billion spirit jades, I could safely leave with our cultivator. Esteemed Demon Lord can verify this; many witnessed it that day. Immediately afterward, I arranged for one billion spirit jades worth of resources to be collected and sent to Purple Mist Island. Hu Guang and his people received them, yet in a blink, he reneged on the agreement and embezzled those funds. This loss must be borne by Purple Mist. Does Esteemed Demon Lord find any problem with that?"

Black Cloud pursed his lips, and just as he was about to speak, Lu Ye continued, "While ten billion is a large sum, I believe Purple Mist can afford it. Esteemed Demon Lord need not think of bargaining. The condition I've put forth is Three Realms Island's bottom line. This is merely ten times the repayment from Purple Mist. If I were to truly give Esteemed Demon Lord room for negotiation, I could easily demand twenty billion, thirty billion, or even more."

Black Cloud frowned, losing his calm demeanor for the first time since meeting Lu Ye. Ten billion spirit jades, or resources of equivalent value, was no small sum, even for Purple Mist. He looked up at Lu Ye and said, "But as far as I know, after you captured Purple Mist, you should have recovered that sum of spirit jades. Not only that, but there should have been more spoils in the treasury."

Lu Ye said indifferently, "Esteemed Demon Lord, you said it yourself—those were spoils of war! When my Three Realms Island deployed troops and cultivators fought, didn't it require a consumption of resources? If Esteemed Demon Lord conflates the spoils with the ransom our island paid previously, that is completely unreasonable." His tone became firm. "Only if the first condition is accepted can we continue to discuss further!"

Black Cloud stared at Lu Ye, and after a long moment, said, "You young man are quite impolite. After all, this Venerable One is a Sun-Gleam!" The implication was that Lu Ye showed no humble deference expected of a Moonfall realm cultivator facing a Sun-Gleam.

Lu Ye adopted a matter-of-fact expression. "Esteemed Demon Lord, we are negotiating, not chatting. I trust you came here prepared for this."

Black Cloud let out a soft hmph. He had indeed prepared himself mentally, but he hadn't expected Lu Ye to be so audacious with his demands.

After a moment of contemplation, Black Cloud finally said, "I agree to the first condition. Tell me the second!" They had lost the battle for the spiritual island, and Purple Mist was gone. Now, if they wanted to reclaim it, Three Realms Island's stance was crucial. Thus, as long as Three Realms Island insisted, he would have to agree to this condition, whether he wanted to or not.

A glint of killing intent flashed in Lu Ye's eyes. "I want Lionheart's life!" Lionheart had escaped into Myriad Manifestations Island, and this was a thorn in Lu Ye's side that he was determined to remove. His original intention to sell Purple Mist back wasn't solely because Purple Mist could offer a high price. If it were purely for spirit jades, he wouldn't have needed to sell it back specifically to Purple Mist; Lu Ye would have accepted a lower price from other forces. Killing Lionheart was the primary reason. As long as Lionheart remained in Myriad Manifestations Island, Lu Ye would never have an opportunity to kill him. Of course, Lionheart couldn't hide in Myriad Manifestations Island forever, but Lu Ye also couldn't monitor him indefinitely. Therefore, to kill Lionheart, he had to resort to external means.

Black Cloud said in a deep voice, "Young man, don't be too impolite!"

Lu Ye unhurriedly replied, "Let me explain to Esteemed Demon Lord why I want Lionheart's life."

Black Cloud felt a headache coming on as soon as he heard that, because the phrase sounded so familiar...

"On that day, Hu Guang refused to acknowledge receiving my Three Realms Island's ransom, and then Lionheart, without a word, devoured Wei Po, my newly advanced Moonfall realm cultivator from Three Realms Island. A life for a life, blood debt for blood, isn't that right?"

Black Cloud countered, "One Wei Po from your Three Realms Island died, but Purple Mist's casualties far exceeded those of your Three Realms Island. How do you explain that?"

"If not for Lionheart devouring Wei Po, there naturally would have been no subsequent conflict. Purple Mist's suffering is a consequence of war, entirely self-inflicted. How can it be compared to Wei Po's death?" Lu Ye argued logically.

"Alright!" Black Cloud also became serious. "Leaving aside the damages from the war, as far as I know, Purple Mist captured Wei Po because he had attacked Purple Mist demon cultivators first."

Lu Ye couldn't help but sneer. "Esteemed Demon Lord, do you believe that? With Purple Mist's formidable reputation, even though Wei Po hadn't been in the Myriad Manifestations Sea for long, he at least knew who he could provoke and who he couldn't. Not to mention whether he even passed near Purple Mist, if he did, he would most likely have avoided it completely. How could he have killed a Purple Mist demon cultivator near Purple Mist? Lionheart isn't dead yet; Esteemed Demon Lord can ask him what truly happened. Of course, if Esteemed Demon Lord is pretending to be confused while knowing the truth, then there's no need for us to continue this discussion. I believe Esteemed Demon Lord knows better than anyone why my junior martial brother Wei Po was captured. Purple Mist Island acted as someone's lackey, scheming against my Three Realms Island. Now that it has met this fate, who is to blame? It's just a pity for my junior martial brother Wei Po, who had just advanced to Moonfall realm with a bright future ahead, only to become a pawn in Purple Mist's gamble against our island. What wrong did Wei Po commit?"

"How dare you!" Black Cloud finally lost his temper at Lu Ye's "lackey" remark. "Do you truly believe that just because you are a clone here, this Venerable One won't act against you?"

Lu Ye blinked. "I do have a clone, but since I'm meeting with Esteemed Demon Lord, I wouldn't be so imprudent. If Esteemed Demon Lord wishes to act, then by all means, do so."

It might have been possible for Black Cloud to discern the true nature of a Blood Cultivation clone, but with a Talent Tree clone here, Lu Ye was certain that even Black Cloud couldn't find a flaw. That last remark from Black Cloud was merely a probe under the guise of feigned anger. He secretly wished Black Cloud would indeed act. If so, at most, he would lose a Talent Tree clone. He would simply need to reabsorb the roots split from the Talent Tree, and he would be as good as new. But if Black Cloud were to act here, then Purple Mist Demon Star would no longer have a place to stand in the vast Myriad Manifestations Sea.