Chapter 1918: Not Dead Nor Destroyed?

Booming sounds rumbled. Twisted, snake-like lightning streaked across the sky, and the heavy clouds created an extremely oppressive atmosphere.

Lu Ye looked up at the sky, his eyes slightly narrowed.

“There’s no telling when this dreadful weather will end,” a rough-looking man squatting nearby grumbled, spitting to the side as if to vent his dissatisfaction.

“How long has this weather been going on?” Lu Ye asked.

“For two months now,” the man replied cautiously. Though he was an ordinary person, he knew about cultivation. Lu Ye’s extraordinary demeanor clearly showed him to be a successful cultivator, which naturally filled the man with both longing and awe.

Lu Ye remained silent.

To the rough man, this weather was nothing special, just a bit harsh. His only concern was whether his crops would grow and if he would have enough food for the next year after the autumn harvest.

But what Lu Ye perceived was naturally different.

He clearly sensed intense aftershocks of a battle beyond the heavens. The unusual celestial phenomena were partly due to natural causes, but a larger reason was this conflict.

This realm… is being invaded! Lu Ye immediately made a judgment in his mind.

Lu Ye wasn't sure about the full extent of this realm’s power, but given that he had encountered a Moon-Yao cultivator earlier, it was undoubtedly a large realm. He just didn't know if there were any Sun-Illumination cultivators.

If there were no Sun-Illumination cultivators, he naturally wouldn't have many reservations. But if there were, it would be a different matter entirely.

Considering the ‘misfortune’ character on the Dice of Destiny, Lu Ye estimated there was a high probability that this realm did have Sun-Illumination cultivators.

Therefore, he needed to proceed with caution.

He didn't know which power was invading this realm, but since the war had lasted for two months, it indicated that this realm still possessed the strength to resist.

It seemed the Cloudmist Sacred Land was a very important place. He hadn't received any intelligence about this trial; everything had to be investigated and conjectured by himself.

As he was thinking this, Lu Ye suddenly frowned and turned to look in one direction.

Immediately, he flicked his finger, and a drop of precious blood flew out. Under the rough man’s stunned gaze, it transformed into a human figure identical to Lu Ye, except its clothes were blood-red, as if forged from fresh blood.

Leaving the Blood Avatar to guard the spot, Lu Ye’s true self swiftly departed.

He sensed two powerful auras approaching. What struck him as odd was that these auras felt vaguely familiar, as if he had encountered them somewhere before.

A dozen breaths later, hundreds of miles away, Lu Ye stood still and looked at the two figures opposite him, one tall and one short, his eyes showing surprise.

These two... were precisely the pair he had killed earlier in front of the thatched hut.

The short one had been decapitated by his blade, and the tall one cut in half at the waist. Such injuries would be fatal not only for a Moon-Yao but even a Sun-Illumination cultivator. Yet, they hadn't died; instead, they had pursued him again.

What was going on?

He sensed their auras and confirmed they were indeed the same two individuals he had encountered, not someone else.

At this moment, both stared sinisterly at Lu Ye, their expressions full of anger. They had also activated some unknown secret technique, their auras closely linked, clearly prepared to fight together.

“Fellow Daoist truly possesses remarkable skill,” the tall one spoke.

“We were careless just now,” the short one added.

“Now, let’s fight again!” the tall one continued.

“If you don’t wish to die, you can!” the short one interjected a second time.

“Hand over that infant, and then join my Great Heavenly God Sect.”

“Only then will you find peace!”

The two spoke one after another, transitioning so smoothly it felt as if a single person were speaking, which struck Lu Ye as extremely bizarre.

He frowned slightly: “Great Heavenly God... what is that?”

He vaguely guessed that the so-called Great Heavenly God was the background of these two Moon-Yao cultivators, but he didn't know the specifics. Was it perhaps a very powerful cultivator?

“Presumptuous!” the tall one roared, “The Great Heavenly God is supreme, transcending all races in the world! Do not be disrespectful!”

“So... what exactly is the Great Heavenly God?”

Normally, Lu Ye wouldn't bother with excessive chatter with enemies, but currently, he had too little information, so he naturally wanted to pry for more.

“Also, I clearly killed both of you. Why are you not dead?” He voiced the doubt in his mind.

When cultivators reach the Star Constellation Realm, their cultivation focuses on essence. Therefore, after the Star Constellation Realm, cultivators' vitality and blood undergo a qualitative improvement, making injury recovery and limb regeneration not out of reach.

However, Lu Ye had truly never seen anyone survive decapitation; it was simply illogical.

What confused him further was that he didn't sense the presence of Fangs power on either of them. In other words, they had somehow neutralized the Fangs power at their wounds.

Were these two truly the ones he had killed?

“No need to speak further with him. Such ignorant people will never comprehend the glory of the Great Heavenly God. Kill him!” the tall one roared.

Both simultaneously activated their vitality, blood, and magic power. With their auras connected, their combined momentum instantly reached the level of a late-stage Moon-Yao.

The next instant, the two transformed into streaks of light, crisscrossing from left and right, like a pair of scissors, closing in on Lu Ye’s body.

Lu Ye’s expression became solemn. His Immovable Mountain Saber was unsheathed, and with a slight shift of his body, two streaks of saber light slashed out almost simultaneously from both sides.

A *puchi* sound rang out, blood light flashed, and two blood-soaked figures collapsed behind Lu Ye.

Lu Ye frowned, turning his head for a glance.

These two had put on such an aggressive display, their words dripping with condescension. Lu Ye had thought they were something special.

And the result... was this all?

The confidence that the so-called Great Heavenly God had given them was a bit too inflated.

Learning from the previous encounter, Lu Ye struck with heavy force this time. The two were directly cut into four pieces, deader than dead!

Withdrawing his Immovable Mountain Saber, Lu Ye’s divine sense confirmed that they had no life left, and the Fangs power clinging to their wounds also dissipated.

The existence of Fangs power is dependent on life force. Strictly speaking, it sustains itself by devouring a cultivator’s life force, so without life force, Fangs power cannot exist independently.

Stepping forward, preparing to leave, Lu Ye’s expression suddenly shifted. He looked at the two corpses, and the next moment, his face revealed shock.

He saw faint light blooming from the wounds on both corpses. Guided by this light, the two cultivators’ severed remains actually reconnected. In the blink of an eye, their horrific injuries healed, and astonishing life force erupted from within each of them!

Lu Ye watched, dumbfounded.

If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn't have believed such an outrageous thing could exist in this world. Resurrection from the dead was a term only heard in legends, yet now it was happening right before his eyes!

What... were these two guys?

Lu Ye was certain they were flesh-and-blood beings; the feel of his Immovable Mountain Saber striking them wouldn’t be wrong. But if they were flesh and blood, how could they be immortal?

It seemed they had revived in the same way before.

The moment they revived, the tall and short cultivators lunged at Lu Ye once more. However, having learned from their previous defeat, they likely knew they were inferior to Lu Ye in strength, so their gazes became extremely resolute.

Lu Ye frowned. What he witnessed transcended his understanding, but he still showed no intention of dodging their charge.

He didn't know how these two managed to revive, but such an absurd thing couldn't truly exist in this world. If they couldn't be killed once or twice, what about three, five, ten, or a hundred times?

He wanted to see if these two were truly immortal and indestructible!

His Immovable Mountain Saber slashed out with such speed that the two opponents had no time to react. But just as they were about to die, a surge of fierce magic power suddenly erupted.

Immediately, with two booming sounds, they simultaneously exploded into a cloud of blood mist.

Blood splattered everywhere, and a black mist, almost solid, enveloped Lu Ye completely. It was an extremely concentrated form of the two’s magic power.

Lu Ye immediately noticed something was off, as his Talent Tree now reacted more intensely. The Talent Tree had already been burning away the misfortune power bestowed by the Dice of Destiny, and now it clearly bore an additional burden.

These two’s magic power... was poisonous!

He immediately recalled the injuries of the old man who had entrusted him with the child; the old man had shown signs of poisoning, which must have come from these two.

In a flash, Lu Ye understood the source of these two enemies’ confidence. They indeed weren't his match, but such insidious tactics were impossible to guard against. Once an opponent was hit, they could use their immortality to slowly wear them down and defeat them despite being weaker.

Other cultivators would indeed be helpless, forced to retreat temporarily to recover, but Lu Ye was not afraid of this at all.

The more intense reaction from his Talent Tree had already vanished, clearly indicating that the toxins that had invaded his body had been completely incinerated.

He looked up and saw the countless shattered remains reassembling, quickly forming the outlines of the tall and short cultivators, faintly showing signs of another revival.

Lu Ye didn't make a move; he waited instead.

Three breaths later, a life force unique to living beings suddenly burst forth from their bodies. It was at this moment that a flash of saber light extinguished the life force of the two cultivators who were almost fully revived.

Reviving again and again, dying again and again...

It truly seemed as if they were immortal and indestructible.

But Lu Ye keenly noticed that after each death, the speed of their revival slowed down.

After five times, it had become very slow; it took almost an incense stick of time for signs of life to reappear.

During their revival process, Lu Ye also tried to examine their insides, wanting to see if there was any mystery, but even after he chopped them into mince, he couldn't discern anything special.

After the eighth decapitation, their revival took a full half-hour, and once revived, their internal life force was greatly diminished.

This increasingly confirmed Lu Ye’s suspicion: no matter why these two could revive from the dead, they were certainly not truly immortal and indestructible!

Their revival required some kind of cost.

On the twelfth time they were cut down, the scattered remains suddenly transformed into specks of light, vanishing into thin air.

Lu Ye paused, then realized that these two Moon-Yao cultivators were truly dead.

And they were actually shadows!

The first time Lu Ye killed them, he had thought they were also cultivators undergoing a trial.