Chapter 2096: Five Daoist Cultivators

The two-headed creature released its divine sense, detected Lu Ye's cultivation, and immediately showed a disdainful expression. It believed that a cultivator of Lu Ye's level could not possess Dao power, making him as insignificant as an ant, easily killable.

As their distance rapidly closed, Lu Ye slowly drew his Panshan Saber. As he channeled his magical power, a thread of Dao power infused the blade.

As they passed each other, Lu Ye's speed did not decrease; instead, it quickened. Behind him, the two-headed creature froze rigidly in place, then its body split into two. Its astonished eyes were filled with shock and unwillingness, utterly unable to comprehend how it could have died at the hands of an ant.

It died so suddenly because its overconfidence prevented it from even activating its Dao power.

He was not the only one caught off guard; several figures in the nearby battle also hadn't expected it. So, when Lu Ye suddenly charged into the fray, the Star Abyss Strangers were all taken aback.

Even the besieged Mechanist cultivator paused in surprise.

However, he quickly realized this was an opportunity. With a roar, a cylindrical device suddenly extended from the Mechanist's chest, emitting a blinding flash of light.

This caught the Star Abyss Strangers completely off guard, rendering them blind and even shaking their souls.

Lu Ye, however, was unaffected because the Mechanist cultivator had secretly warned him beforehand, allowing him to prepare.

Lu Ye moved with his saber, his figure darting around. Every stop was marked by a burst of bloody light.

These enemies, any one of whom would have given him and Jiu Yan a headache just a few months prior, were now effortlessly slain. This was the profound difference made by being able to wield Dao power.

In an instant, only one Star Abyss Stranger remained. The Mechanist cultivator had already rushed before it, delivering ferocious, lethal blows.

While he was no match for them when outnumbered, in a one-on-one fight, this Star Abyss Stranger stood no chance, as the Mechanist had, after all, already entered the Dao Realm.

Seeing this, Lu Ye did not linger and vanished instantly.

A moment later, after the Mechanist cultivator had slain the last Star Abyss Stranger, he looked up, only to find no trace of Lu Ye, feeling a momentary sense of loss.

After all, Lu Ye had saved his life, and he had intended to express his gratitude properly. Yet, just as the rumors suggested, this cultivator who practiced ancient methods always departed silently once the deed was done.

His presence in this area was not accidental but deliberate. He had heard that a formidable expert resided nearby, one who had rescued people multiple times. Thus, when he was besieged earlier, he had fled in this direction, harboring a sliver of hope.

The outcome proved the rumors true. From the feeling of Lu Ye's recent intervention, he was at least a Four-Dao powerhouse; otherwise, he couldn't have cut down enemies like grass.

The only thing that puzzled him was the aura Lu Ye had just displayed, which seemed to be vaguely only at the early stage of the Divine Realm.

After a moment's thought, he shook his head and chuckled. If Lu Ye truly were only at the early stage of the Divine Realm, how could he possibly wield Dao power?

His divine sense pulsed outwards, sending a sincere message of gratitude in all directions. Regardless of whether the other party heard it, this was the proper etiquette. Only then did he turn and depart, as the battle had depleted him considerably, and he needed to recover quickly.

At this very moment, Lu Ye had already returned to his Blood Clone using the Void Spirit Mark, and naturally, he did not hear the other party's thanks.

During this time, he had been protecting Jiu Yan while simultaneously accumulating his own Dao power. He only went to investigate if there was a disturbance nearby, having intervened several times to save the lives of cultivators from this star system.

After several interventions, he had roughly figured out his current limits.

According to the classification of this star system, he should now be a Five-Dao cultivator.

Four-Dao, Five-Dao... these were not realms but rather classifications of strength. A cultivator was labeled by the number of threads of Dao power they could wield at once; the more they could wield, the stronger they were.

In other words, his limit for simultaneously wielding Dao power was five threads.

With five threads of Dao power imbued, whether for defense or attack, it could unleash extremely potent force. The limit to how much Dao power a cultivator could wield was directly related to their foundation; the more solid the foundation, the higher the limit.

Typically, Star Abyss Strangers who had not entered the Dao Realm could only wield a single thread of Dao power. It was different for those who had entered the Dao Realm, as they could wield at least two.

Lu Ye had not encountered many Dao Realm experts yet, so he wasn't entirely sure how his Five-Dao level stacked up. However, based on his experience from these few interventions, a Five-Dao level should be quite respectable.

After all, his foundation had always been exceptionally solid, thanks to the Talent Tree, which granted him the ability to defeat stronger opponents from the very beginning of his cultivation. His Celestial and Lunar stages had reached their absolute peak.

Compared to his smooth progress, Jiu Yan seemed to have made little headway.

Nearly half a year had passed since they entered the front-line battlefield. Although a month had been spent escaping and recovering from injuries, Jiu Yan still showed no signs of forging her Dao Foundation.

This was something Lu Ye couldn't help with; it was entirely up to her.

Jiu Yan's foundation was by no means poor—no one who reached the peak of the Sunlit Realm had a weak foundation. Moreover, with so many cultivators in this Star System having already entered the Dao Realm, Lu Ye believed Jiu Yan would eventually take that step.

There seemed to be a Dao Comprehension Pool at Thunder Fortress, built by cultivators from this star system to help others forge their Dao Foundations. That place replicated the various profound mysteries of the Melting Furnace technique. If Jiu Yan could enter and observe it, it would undoubtedly be of immense benefit to her.

However, their foundation here was still shallow, so they neither had the qualifications nor the connections for it.

The only way was to exchange battle merits for access.

Battle merits were earned by slaying Star Abyss Strangers, either by recording the kill with a spirit stone or by collecting the enemy's corpse. Upon returning to Thunder Fortress, specialists would verify them, leading to the accumulation of merits.

Lu Ye hadn't considered this much before, but now it seemed he needed to make additional preparations.

The front-line battlefield was a vast expanse where conflict could erupt at any moment once one entered. No place was absolutely safe, and this battlefield was constantly expanding with the invasion of the Star Abyss aura.

Perhaps because Lu Ye had intervened to help others several times, and each time his actions were overwhelmingly decisive, his reputation gradually began to spread.

This led to cultivators facing danger occasionally fleeing towards his vicinity.

No one knew his exact location; the only thing they knew was that if they fled close enough to where he was, they would receive his assistance.

The area within tens of thousands of miles around where he and Jiu Yan were located gradually became a sanctuary for fleeing cultivators. He slowly became aware of this change, finding it both amusing and exasperating.

On this day, Lu Ye again sensed activity from a nearby skirmish. The combatants were moving over a large area, and if it continued, it was highly likely to disturb Jiu Yan.

Left with no choice, he once again set off to investigate.

A moment later, he arrived at the outskirts of the conflict zone, looked in that direction, and was momentarily stunned by what he saw.

For this time, the combatants were actually two Mechanist cultivators!

One controlled a majestic ten-foot-tall humanoid Mechanist, whose attacks were extraordinary, while the other piloted a colossal serpent-shaped Mechanist, moving with elusive and unpredictable shifts.

Lu Ye frowned.

Why were cultivators from this star system fighting among themselves? He had never encountered such a situation before.

Because the star system was facing an invasion from the Star Abyss, with its very survival at stake, cultivators across the star system had been exceptionally united for the past few centuries, with virtually no internal conflicts. Furthermore, according to the rules of Thunder Fortress, attacking fellow cultivators was a serious crime, punishable by powerful figures if discovered.

He had initially thought this was another typical situation, but under these circumstances, it would be inappropriate for him to intervene.

Just as he was about to withdraw, he suddenly frowned and turned his head to look aside.

In that direction, a beautiful and slender figure had appeared unnoticed. It was a woman with her hair tied high, wearing a form-fitting leather armor that accentuated her chest, giving her an exceptionally capable appearance. Her sharp, sword-like eyebrows conveyed an impression of swift decisiveness.

She observed Lu Ye with interest, holding an object in her hand. After a brief inspection, her sword-like eyebrows rose as she uttered, "Lu Ye?"

Lu Ye also possessed the same object she held, which was obtained from Thunder Fortress and contained basic information on all registered cultivators. It was through this item that the woman knew Lu Ye's name.

However, she quickly adopted a puzzled expression. "Unknown origin, unknown background, cultivation... early Divine Realm? How peculiar?"

Lu Ye's heart instantly grew wary. With the woman's appearance, the two Mechanists, who had been fiercely fighting, both ceased their combat and gazed over from afar, poised as if watching a show.

These two... they were acting just now! At this point, he also realized that the three of them had deliberately staged such a large commotion to draw him out.

"Senior Sister... what is your name?" Lu Ye asked, secretly channeling his magical power. He had a faint premonition that his presence here would not lead to anything good.

"If you want to know my name, first take this punch!" The woman put away her item, and with a slight smile, her agile figure suddenly appeared before Lu Ye. She also warned, "This punch of mine carries the power of three Dao threads. If you can't block it, you die!"

Her movements were incredibly swift, the fastest Lu Ye had ever witnessed, clearly indicating she was no ordinary powerhouse. And though the woman smiled on the surface, as her punch unleashed, a potent killing intent flared, and a dense, bloody aura permeated her entire being!

Lu Ye's expression turned grim. He immediately understood that she was undeniably a formidable expert who had emerged from countless battles, and hearing her claim that her punch contained three threads of Dao power, how could he dare be negligent? He instantly channeled his magical power to protect himself, imbuing it with Dao power!

With a single punch, Lu Ye's body trembled. His protective magical power shattered, and the Dao power he had activated dissipated instantly.

Lu Ye's face changed. This woman... she had lied to him!

She claimed it was three threads of Dao power, but it clearly possessed four, or even five, otherwise, it couldn't have shattered his protective magical power with a single punch. If she had truly used only three threads, he should have been able to withstand the blow unharmed.

There was no time to channel magical power for self-protection again. The instant his long saber unsheathed, he brought it down directly towards his opponent.