Chapter 2048: South Return

In the Star Palace, hundreds of Star Constellations sat cross-legged, their vital energies surging. The transition from Star Constellation to Moon Refinement is a qualitative leap. During this process, cultivators develop their own Dharma Source, and their spiritual energy transforms into mana, leading to an explosive increase in their power.

Lu Ye focused intently on Shui Yuan, given she was his second senior sister, but he didn't neglect anyone else. With his current mental strength, he could easily monitor the status of all hundreds of Star Constellations.

These individuals represented the future of Three Realms Island.

After observing them for a while, Lu Ye felt relieved. As expected of the hand-picked elite Star Constellations, each of them had long been on the verge of advancement, but they had all been suppressing their breakthroughs, awaiting this specific opportunity.

Now that they were here and could fully unleash their power, failure was virtually impossible.

While the Star Constellations were breaking through, Lu Ye supplied fire-attributed resources to the Fire Gourd, nurturing its wondrous flames.

After several days, Lu Ye finally felt that the wondrous flames within the Fire Gourd were fully nurtured. He eagerly activated the Talent Tree to absorb them.

Just like before, the Talent Tree's fuel reserves remained unchanged, but the Talent Tree itself exhibited some peculiar reactions...

But that was all. Lu Ye saw no indication of the Talent Tree transforming, which undoubtedly meant that the absorbed wondrous flames were far from enough.

After a quick estimation of the cost to nurture a single wondrous flame, Lu Ye secretly gasped in astonishment. The spiritual jade required to nourish the wondrous flames in the Fire Gourd was even greater than, or at least comparable to, the cost for sword qi in the Sword Gourd.

Each cluster of wondrous flames cost hundreds of millions of spiritual jade, and the Talent Tree would need to absorb an unknown quantity to truly transform.

It was fortunate that Three Realms Island now controlled the Myriad Manifestations Sea. Previously, Three Realms Island alone truly couldn't have supported the two major auxiliary treasures in Lu Ye's possession.

Even now, Lu Ye wasn't entirely certain he could sustain them.

Lu Ye had thought he would never again worry about spiritual jade in his lifetime. Yet, even after achieving success and renown, he was still enduring the hardship of his former poverty, which seemed utterly unjust.

However, the Talent Tree's transformation was an imperative for him; he could not give up, no matter the cost.

He continued to have the Fire Gourd absorb fire-attributed resources, restarting the process of nurturing wondrous flames.

On Three Realms Island, Hua Ci, according to the initial agreement, blew the Cyan Conch again ten days after Lu Ye and the others departed.

When the portal opened, cultivators who had previously departed with Lu Ye emerged, each radiating the aura of a Moon Refinement realm cultivator, without exception.

Just like Lu Ye had experienced, they had only just advanced and hadn't yet had time to stabilize their realms, so their Moon Refinement aura couldn't be fully controlled.

Their next task was to consolidate their cultivation and stabilize their new realm.

Lu Ye walked at the very end, gave a slight nod to Hua Ci, and headed straight for the palace.

This group of Star Constellations had successfully completed their advancements.

Inside the palace, Tang Jun, having received the news, rushed over and handed a bundle of storage rings to Lu Ye. "All the fire-attributed resources available for acquisition on the Myriad Manifestations Sea are here," he reported.

Lu Ye took them, inspected each one, and shook his head. "It's still not enough. Continue acquiring," he instructed.

"Not enough!" Tang Jun exclaimed, startled. He had no idea what Lu Ye intended to do that required such an immense quantity of fire-attributed resources. He had, in fact, scoured the entire Myriad Manifestations Sea for this acquisition, and only Three Realms Island's ample spiritual jade reserves had made it possible to pay for such a vast amount of goods.

"From now on, all spiritual jade revenue from Three Realms Island, excluding essential expenditures, should have twenty percent set aside as a reserve, with the remaining eighty percent entirely dedicated to acquiring fire-attributed resources."

Lu Ye had realized that the Talent Tree's transformation was a bottomless pit. In the past few days within the Star Palace, he had already had the Talent Tree absorb wondrous flames twice, making it three times in total. Yet, the Talent Tree's changes were not significant. Achieving its full transformation would require far more resources than currently available.

"I understand," Tang Jun nodded solemnly. Although he didn't know why Lu Ye needed such a vast quantity of fire-attributed resources, he would simply follow the command given by Lu Ye.

"You've worked hard!" Lu Ye patted his shoulder, then tossed all the storage rings into his Minor Flower Realm.

Old Tang smiled. "It's no hardship. I'm actually glad to still be of some use." He could no longer advance his cultivation, nor could he contribute much in combat, so he could only exert himself in these minor matters.

Now that the Azure Dawn Realm had merged with the Nine Provinces, his relationship with Lu Ye was one of shared prosperity and shared loss.

Having entrusted this matter to Old Tang, Lu Ye immediately headed towards the Worm Path. The southern region was approaching, and he needed to return and make preparations.

An hour later, Lu Ye appeared at the Nine Provinces Worm Path.

He didn't return to the Nine Provinces, nor did he go to Square Inch Mountain. After briefly sensing the location of the southern region, Lu Ye piloted his Star Skiff directly towards it.

He continued to nurture the wondrous flames while traveling, not wasting a moment.

After more than ten days, he finally saw a colossal arm in the distance.

Even from a great distance, Lu Ye could feel a wondrous resonance between his Blood Clan bloodline and the arm.

That arm was undoubtedly the former Blood Desolation Realm. However, this realm had long lost its vitality, and its entire shape had transformed.

The arm swept across the sky, fingers clenched tightly into a fist. At first glance, it resembled an invisible giant fiercely throwing a punch.

From within that fist, Lu Ye also sensed another connection, distinct from his Blood Clan bloodline.

The Southern Square Inch Mountain!

Back then, Lu Ye had manipulated the Blood Desolation Realm, clenching the Southern Square Inch Mountain within its fist, and used the latter's movement to propel the Blood Desolation Realm.

After observing for a while, Lu Ye put away his Star Skiff, leaped forward, and with a few bounds, arrived above the Blood Desolation Realm. He then entered the Southern Square Inch Mountain through the gaps between the fingers.

The moment his aura emerged, four Sunlit spiritual senses immediately perceived him—clearly belonging to the four Sunlit cultivators of the southern region.

After recognizing his identity, a loud laugh resounded: "I told you Junior Brother Lu would surely arrive within three days, but you didn't believe me!"

This was unmistakably Wu Ji's booming voice.

Lu Ye smiled faintly and flew directly towards Peng Yu Peak, where several Sunlit cultivators from the southern region were currently gathered.

Peng Yu Peak was Yu Qinglou's spiritual peak. Yu Qinglou was also the oldest and most prestigious Sunlit cultivator among the Pygmy race. Lu Ye had visited this place when he came to aid the southern region back then, so he was naturally familiar with it.

A moment later, on Peng Yu Peak, the aged Yu Qinglou led Wu Ji and two other cultivators to greet him.

Lu Ye bowed first. "Greetings, Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters!"

His gaze swept across them: beside Yu Qinglou's left was Wu Ji, beside his right was Xu Pu, and further right was Xia Yingyue. They were all familiar faces who had contributed significantly during the battle with Zi Xuan.

Yu Qinglou looked at Lu Ye with a kind and amiable gaze. "I heard that Junior Brother has advanced to the Sunlit realm, which greatly pleases this old man. It seems your realm is now stable?"

Facing the oldest Sunlit cultivator of the Pygmy race, Lu Ye responded with a trace of respect. "Yes, Senior Brother, my realm has already stabilized."

"That's good," Yu Qinglou nodded. "Please, come inside first."

"Senior Brother, please go first," Lu Ye gestured.

A moment later, inside the main hall, everyone took their seats. After a few casual words, they began to discuss serious matters.

Wu Ji spoke: "Junior Brother Lu, with the upcoming merger of the southern region, the matter of the Blood Desolation Realm needs to be addressed in advance. If the Blood Desolation Realm isn't moved first, then as the southern region approaches, it will undoubtedly collide with Square Inch Mountain."

Lu Ye nodded. "I came precisely for this matter. I will go to Blood Desolation shortly to investigate and make preparations in advance."

"That's good," Wu Ji nodded.

Back then, Lu Ye, in his Moon Refinement realm, was able to manipulate the Blood Desolation Realm. Now, in the Sunlit realm, there was no reason he couldn't accomplish this.

Square Inch Mountain in the Nine Provinces was currently a fusion of the eastern and core regions. The southern region was due to merge with it soon. The several great Sunlit cultivators were eagerly anticipating this; and not just them, even the western region, also en route, had been closely following this development.

Everyone was eager to know what changes, if any, Square Inch Mountain would undergo after this merger.

Subsequently, Yu Qinglou inquired about Lu Ye's Soul Suppressing Secret Art. As Lu Ye had only recently advanced to the Sunlit realm, he naturally had to begin cultivating this art, a common experience for all Sunlit cultivators. Only after hearing Lu Ye say that he had already visited the Soul Clan and had made considerable gains did Yu Qinglou finally relax.

The Soul Clan was an authority in this field; no other race in the starry sky could compare. Since Lu Ye had already made gains with the Soul Clan, they didn't need to offer any awkward advice.

The conversation naturally shifted to the Soul Clan...

Although they had allied once before, Wu Ji and the others were still very curious about Lu Ye's connection to the Soul Clan. Moreover, it was no ordinary relationship. Last time, the Soul Clan had dispatched as many as eleven Sunlit cultivators alone, along with thousands below the Sunlit realm, clearly indicating a willingness to respond to Lu Ye's every request.

Lu Ye then gave a brief explanation...

Lu Ye didn't mention the will of the Soul Clan's ancestral land, as it might have been too astonishing. Instead, he only spoke of Amber, the Soul Clan's sacred beast, attributing all the reasons for their connection to it.

They also discussed the Mermaid Race, the Flower Race, and other groups...

The several Pygmy Sunlit cultivators listened in awe and wonder. In terms of age, each of them far surpassed Lu Ye, but their life experiences and opportunities were vastly inferior.

The marvels Lu Ye had encountered in just a few decades were things most cultivators wouldn't experience in an entire lifetime.

A day later, Lu Ye left the Southern Square Inch Mountain and arrived alone at the Blood Desolation Realm.

Although he was confident there wouldn't be major issues, the matter was of great importance, so he still needed to verify it.

Having previously refined the Blood Ancestor's precious blood and absorbed countless amounts of holy blood, Lu Ye, despite being human, possessed an exceptionally rich and powerful Blood Clan bloodline. Across the entire starry sky, no Blood Clan member could compare to the strength of his bloodline.

Leveraging this advantage, even while standing on the Blood Desolation Realm, Lu Ye could feel his close connection to this realm.

This connection had existed before, but now with his increased cultivation, it seemed to have deepened significantly. Lu Ye could feel that if he wished, he could manipulate the Blood Desolation Realm, undoubtedly much more easily than he could in the past.

Moreover, he also possessed an ancestral artifact of the Blood Clan!