Chapter 1960: Ma Bin!

Lu Ye had previously seen a high bounty for Ma Bin in the Asura Arena's Bounty Hall, worth tens of millions of Asura Marks. He wasn't sure if the Ma Bin on the bounty was the one he knew. Later, he wanted to ask the Heavenly Asura clan for help to investigate, but Aqi Duo didn't have enough authority to do so.

He didn't expect to hear Ma Bin's name at this moment.

Could it be that senior from the former Nine Provinces?

The possibility was high. While there might be many people named Ma Bin in this world, how many of them also possessed Sun-Gazing cultivation?

Lu Ye composed himself and carefully sensed, but unfortunately, the clashing auras of the Sun-Gazing cultivators there were extremely intense, making it difficult for him to determine immediately.

"Ridiculous! You weren't so arrogant when I was chasing you that day. Now that you have help, you dare to be so presumptuous? Changfeng, you'd better pray you're never alone, or I'll take your dog's life sooner or later!"

Another powerful voice came, seemingly in response to the previous words.

Upon hearing this familiar voice, Lu Ye instantly knew that this Ma Bin was indeed the senior from the former Nine Provinces whom he had met before!

He had some understanding of this senior's strength. Back on the Myriad Manifestations Sea, he had fought one against three, killing one Myriad Manifestations Sun-Gazing cultivator and successfully escaping. After that, the number of Sun-Gazing guardians of the Myriad Manifestations Sea increased from three to five, essentially forced by him.

However, he didn't know who was pursuing him now, to the extent that even Ma Bin didn't dare to confront them directly. This suggested that the pursuers were either numerous or very powerful.

This senior really... knew how to stir up trouble.

Lu Ye felt quite helpless. He had no intention, nor the ability, to intervene in a conflict at the Sun-Gazing level. Moreover, Ma Bin had stated back then that the former Nine Provinces had no connection to the current Nine Provinces, and he didn't want his affairs to implicate the present-day Nine Provinces. He had arranged for Lu Ye to be brought before him, and after a series of questions and answers, he confirmed the Nine Provinces still existed, which was enough for him. He hadn't even thought about returning to glimpse the Nine Provinces again...

However, even though Lu Ye didn't want to get involved, the situation found its way to him.

Ma Bin's escape route was precisely towards Lu Ye's location. Although Lu Ye tried his best to leave, he simply didn't have enough time.

The powerful and chaotic Sun-Gazing auras were getting closer and closer. Lu Ye sighed. Although reluctant, he would eventually have to activate the red talisman used for escape; otherwise, once caught in such a conflict, he would be unable to protect himself.

Just as he was about to do so, he suddenly felt a powerful divine sense sweep over him. Immediately, that divine sense paused slightly on his body.

The next moment, the Sun-Gazing aura that was rapidly approaching his area suddenly stopped.

Ma Bin's cold voice rang out: "Since you're so eager to die, I shall grant your wish!"

Lu Ye was startled. When he turned to look, he saw a dazzling light returning along the way it came. Just three breaths later, violent and terrifying residual energy from a battle emanated from that direction, shaking the void unstably across hundreds of thousands of miles.

Lu Ye continued to flee without looking back. Only after covering a considerable distance did he turn to observe. He could no longer see any signs of conflict, and even the residual energy was negligible, which undoubtedly indicated that he was temporarily safe.

He sighed inwardly and secretly prayed that Ma Bin would be alright, otherwise he would have been the cause of his harm this time.

This senior from the former Nine Provinces, who was clearly fleeing, suddenly turned back to fight. The fundamental reason was that he had discovered Lu Ye's presence!

Cultivators from the Nine Provinces all bore the mark left by the Heavenly Mystery Compass, and Ma Bin had participated in its creation.

Back on the Myriad Manifestations Sea, he had used this to discover Lu Ye.

This time was clearly no different.

The reason he turned back to fight was that he sensed Lu Ye was on his escape route. If he continued fleeing, it would inevitably implicate Lu Ye, a junior from the Nine Provinces.

Therefore, he abandoned his escape and turned to counterattack.

There was no verbal exchange between the cultivators of two generations of Nine Provinces, yet in that instant of divine sense probing and pausing, Ma Bin made his decision, and Lu Ye understood.

This whole situation...

He had originally intended to use the red talisman to leave, but he hadn't expected Ma Bin to make such a choice, which made him somewhat worried.

However, on second thought, Ma Bin was not weak. Since he dared to turn back and fight, he surely wouldn't be in any mortal danger.

After a brief consideration, Lu Ye decided not to overthink it. His current strength was insufficient, and overthinking would be fruitless. He flew a bit further before opening the portal to his Minor Flower Realm and releasing Yu Yaorao again.

"Senior Brother, is everything alright now?" Yu Yaorao asked.

Lu Ye slowly shook his head, "Everything's fine now."

Yu Yaorao looked at him curiously, keenly noticing Lu Ye's low spirits, but she wisely chose not to ask further.

"Is that Fellow Daoist Lu Ye?" A voice suddenly entered his ears.

Lu Ye was startled. Before the voice, he hadn't noticed anything unusual around him. He quickly looked in the direction of the voice and immediately saw two figures standing on a large meteorite nearby.

Both were women, and their figures looked somewhat familiar. After recognizing their faces, Lu Ye was surprised.

After a moment's thought, he activated his spiritual power and flew towards them with Yu Yaorao. Upon landing on the meteorite, he cupped his hands and greeted, "Fellow Daoist Hetao, Senior Nan Lian."

The two women were none other than Nan Lian and her disciple. Lu Ye hadn't expected them to have such a fate, meeting again here.

No wonder he hadn't detected them earlier. With a Sun-Gazing cultivator present, a simple concealment would naturally prevent someone of his strength from noticing anything. Had Hetao not spoken up, he wouldn't have known anyone was there.

The master and disciple pair had made a substantial profit when Lu Ye was climbing the Moon Bloom ranking list. Lu Ye also gained a lot, making it a win-win situation.

Afterwards, Hetao, according to the Asura contract signed with Lu Ye, shared half of her profits with him, all converted into treasures that could improve the quality of his Spirit Source. Nan Lian, on her part, voluntarily gifted Lu Ye a piece of Azure Moon Spirit Marrow.

"It really is Fellow Daoist Lu!" Hetao seemed very happy.

Nan Lian also nodded slightly at Lu Ye, her expression amiable: "What a coincidence, meeting again."

"This is..." Hetao looked at Yu Yaorao, who was standing behind Lu Ye, unable to tear her eyes away. Such a charming person was rare, and she only had Constellation cultivation, yet she was now by Lu Ye's side. Hetao's expression immediately became ambiguous, a look of "I get it" on her face.

Yu Yaorao's face flushed slightly.

Lu Ye, however, didn't mind and simply made a casual introduction.

As he spoke with Hetao, a sharp glint flashed in Nan Lian's eyes as she gazed into the distance.

Seeing this, Lu Ye's expression changed, "Senior, how is the battle over there?"

Given Nan Lian's demeanor, she was certainly observing the Sun-Gazing battle. She had Sun-Gazing cultivation and seemed to have cultivated some kind of ocular technique. Her presence there was likely for spectating.

"It's a fierce fight," Nan Lian replied casually.

And then, nothing more...

Lu Ye was itching with curiosity. It was rare to encounter a spectating Sun-Gazing cultivator here, especially one he knew. Of course, he wanted to know how Ma Bin was faring, but he couldn't show it, lest his connection be discerned.

It was clear to Lu Ye that Ma Bin had many enemies. If Nan Lian also harbored animosity towards Ma Bin, any hint of his connection would not bode well for him.

So, he casually chatted with Hetao, a sentence here and there.

After a long while, Nan Lian finally exclaimed with admiration, "As expected of Ma Bin, the Azure Demon King! He actually managed to break through the encirclement!"

Lu Ye's heart settled completely!

Although he had previously guessed that Ma Bin wasn't in mortal danger, without being able to observe the battle directly, he had no idea of its progression. Now, hearing Nan Lian's words, it seemed Ma Bin was indeed fine.

Feigning pure curiosity, he spoke, "Ma Bin? Senior, I saw a bounty targeting that name in the Bounty Hall. Could it be..."

Nan Lian said, "Who else could 'Sun-Gazing Ma Bin in the Asura Arena' refer to, if not him?"

"Is he very powerful? I saw the bounty was quite high."

"More than just powerful, it's said he has personally killed over twenty Sun-Gazing cultivators!" Nan Lian said with an expression of profound respect, "Look at me, I'm also a Sun-Gazing cultivator, but if Ma Bin wanted to kill me, it would probably be no harder than crushing a small chicken."

Lu Ye was dumbfounded. "Senior, you're too humble." He had never heard anyone evaluate themselves in such a way, especially a Sun-Gazing cultivator like Nan Lian.

This woman truly had an open and generous nature.

Nan Lian looked at him with a smile. "Even Sun-Gazing cultivators have varying strengths. Take you, for example: if an early Moon Bloom stage cultivator stood before you, provoking and insulting you, how long would it take for you to kill them?"

Lu Ye thought for a moment. An early Moon Bloom stage cultivator... probably just a single strike.

With that comparison, he immediately understood Nan Lian's point.

He knew Ma Bin was strong, but he hadn't realized he was *this* strong!

Hetao, who was listening, was also dumbfounded and couldn't help but ask, "Master, we don't have any enmity with this Ma Bin, do we?"

Nan Lian chuckled, "What enmity could we possibly have with him? Don't worry. Your master might not be good at other things, but my network of connections is quite extensive. If we ever meet him someday, I'll kowtow to him to ensure your safety."

Hetao couldn't help but frown, "Master, please stop talking." It made her lose face.

Lu Ye wanted to ask more about Ma Bin, but it was truly awkward to do so, so he could only hold back.

Fortunately, Hetao's curiosity was strong. Despite telling her master to stop talking, she couldn't resist asking, "What heinous deeds has this Ma Bin committed that provoked several Sun-Gazing cultivators to chase him?"

"He's known as the Azure Demon King. Just hearing that name suggests he's a ruthless killer," Nan Lian remarked, clicking her tongue. "He often ventures alone into various realms, ambushing and killing their Sun-Gazing cultivators. Naturally, this has created many people who want him dead."

"Why would he do that?"

"Of course, it's because of a grudge," Nan Lian waved her hand. "Don't ask me what kind of grudge, because I don't know either. All I know is that this Azure Demon King is very old. He was already a Sun-Gazing cultivator when I first began cultivating, committing all sorts of nefarious acts everywhere. Now I've been a Sun-Gazing cultivator for a thousand years, and he's still alive!"

As she spoke, Nan Lian suddenly had a whimsical thought: "Do good people die young, while villains live for a thousand years?"