Chapter 2178: Again Seeing the Blessing of Star Abyss

In the sea of blood, the two Path Integration powerhouses wore different expressions. Unlike Ziying's apprehension, Feilian was much more composed. His task was simply to keep Ziying occupied; Peidan would handle the rest. On such a battlefield, the destructive power of an unrestrained Path Integration realm cultivator was truly terrifying. As long as Peidan could tear a gap in the enemy's defenses, their army could continuously widen it and then launch a full assault on Blue Water. Although their original objective hadn't been met, the Insect and Blood races, having made such a large-scale move, naturally couldn't return empty-handed. Occupying Blue Water would serve as some compensation.

As they clashed, the stone worm, which had been resting on Feilian's shoulder, suddenly opened its single eye, and a divine sense surged forth. "What?" Feilian's expression changed dramatically, for the Insect Queen had relayed an unbelievable message to him: Peidan was dead!

That momentary lapse in Feilian's concentration made Ziying's eyes light up. She immediately launched a fierce assault, putting Feilian in a desperate situation. "Is Peidan really dead?" Feilian hastily stabilized the situation, using the surging sea of blood to conceal his movements, only then having the chance to ask for details.

"Dead, beheaded!"

Feilian was horrified. "Did the human race send a Path Integration cultivator over?" It made no sense; even if they did, they couldn't have arrived so quickly!

"No, he died at the hands of that human we were looking for. He truly was hidden in Blue Water."

"Insect Queen, are you joking? Even if that human has a Bifu, how could he be stronger than Peidan? Peidan possessed the power of thirty Dao-lines. How could the amplification provided by a Bifu be so terrifying?"

"I wish I were joking, but the fact is Peidan is indeed dead. That human, together with the Yan family's young master, killed him!" After a pause, the Insect Queen continued, "According to my previous speculation, that human already possessed a Bifu. Later, after killing one of my Insect race warriors, he acquired another, which he must have given to the Yan family's young master to wear."

Feilian said in a deep voice, "Even with two Bifus, they are still just two Initial Path cultivators!" He still couldn't believe Peidan had died just like that. That individual was crucial to the outcome of this battle. With Peidan dead, all his original plans would be ruined. What's more, their side's situation would become dire.

"I didn't see exactly how Peidan died. At the time, Peidan had activated the Blood Sea Art!" Feilian's face paled upon hearing this. "Insect Queen, you're getting senile! A human Path Integration cultivator must have been lurking on the battlefield, waiting for an opportunity to kill Peidan. Otherwise, how could two Initial Path cultivators succeed? Immediately issue orders for a full army retreat! Also, have the Gigascale group come to provide support, quickly, or our two races will suffer heavy casualties!"

"I have already ordered the retreat!" the Insect Queen replied. When it saw Peidan's corpse, it knew things were bad. Although it hadn't thought as thoroughly as Feilian, it knew to order a retreat.

"Found you, hiding like a rat!" Ziying's murderous words reached Feilian's ears. His expression shifted, and he quickly re-engaged her in battle. What puzzled Ziying, however, was that in this renewed clash, Feilian seemed to be holding back, as if guarding against something. She, of course, didn't know that Feilian mistakenly believed the human side had deployed another Path Integration cultivator and feared being attacked by two of them, which was why he dared not go all out. If he could, he would have fled right then. But if he truly fled at that moment, Ziying would be free to slaughter the Initial Path cultivators of the Insect and Blood races. Helpless, he could only continue to fight.

Soon, however, Ziying received a message, and a puzzled expression crossed her brow: "The Insect and Blood races are retreating?" This war had been confusing. The Insect and Blood races had inexplicably mobilized their entire armies to attack the star, seemingly determined to conquer Blue Water, only to suddenly withdraw for some unknown reason. Ziying felt that something had happened, but she couldn't immediately grasp what it was. She remained cautious, continuing her struggle with Feilian while simultaneously issuing orders for the Blue Water Alliance Guards to pursue the enemy, but not to go too deep to avoid ambushes.

At this time, the Alliance Guard army's morale was soaring. Many cultivators had never participated in a battle of this scale. In the preceding days, their situation hadn't been ideal, but now, their weariness was gone, and they were routing the enemy, sending them fleeing in disarray. Orders were relayed from all sides for a relentless pursuit. Any sane person would know that this was the easiest time to slay enemies, earn military merits, and acquire Dao bones.

Lu Ye charged at the forefront, a lone figure, yet unstoppable. Suddenly, a vortex appeared overhead, and a beam of white light swiftly entered his body. Another Star Abyss Blessing!

This was the Star Abyss's will granting a reward to the courageous. As Qingyu had explained to Lu Ye earlier, within the Star Abyss, one had a chance to receive such a blessing by killing enough enemies or, more significantly, by slaying enemies of a higher realm. He hadn't received a Star Abyss Blessing when he killed the Blood race Path Integration cultivator earlier, but he did now. All in all, Lu Ye had received three Star Abyss Blessings, though there seemed to be no discernible pattern to them. In fact, it wasn't just Lu Ye; he had already witnessed the phenomena of Star Abyss Blessings appearing in three or four different locations across the battlefield, indicating that others had also received them. A mysterious power surged through his body, and his injuries rapidly healed. Lu Ye didn't have time to meticulously examine what benefits this Star Abyss Blessing brought him. At present, he had only one objective: to kill more enemies and acquire more Dao bones!

He pursued them relentlessly, and at some point, he realized there were no friendly forces around him, only swarms of fleeing enemies. But even alone, those enemies dared not confront him directly; instead, whichever direction he attacked, the enemies in that area scattered like birds and beasts. Lu Ye knew this was because of the Insect Queen. It was aware of his formidable power and had ordered the Insect race to retreat from him. The pursuit lasted for two full days before Lu Ye reluctantly began withdrawing towards Blue Water. He couldn't continue the chase; pressing on would mean truly venturing too deep alone.

On his way back, Lu Ye sensed a powerful aura approaching from a distance. Startled, he was about to conceal himself when he detected another similar aura following closely behind. He immediately understood the situation and swiftly moved aside. Moments later, a streak of blood-red light swept past in the distance. From its appearance, the fleeing figure was clearly a Blood race Path Integration cultivator, likely Feilian. A few breaths later, another figure gave chase. Though it vanished quickly, Lu Ye clearly recognized the pursuer as Ziying, the Blue Water Guardian. As if sensing his gaze, Ziying turned and glanced at him, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes, as if she hadn't expected a human to be pursuing the enemy alone this far. The two figures departed, one after the other, and only then did Lu Ye leisurely make his way back.

An hour later, Lu Ye suddenly turned his head again, and soon a figure swiftly approached him. Tall and valiant, with an imposing aura—who else could it be but Ziying? Lu Ye hastily cupped his fists and bowed, "Greetings, Guardian."

Ziying looked him up and down. "What's your name?"

"Lu Ye!"

"Why did you pursue them all the way out here alone?" Ziying frowned.

"The Insect and Blood races are cruel; they slaughtered my Alliance Guard comrades. I was indignant and pursued them a little too deeply," Lu Ye replied with a murderous air, though in truth, he was enticed by the Dao bones, as this opportunity was too rare.

Ziying's expression softened considerably. She looked at Lu Ye, who was disheveled and covered in bloodstains. Although no obvious injuries were visible, he was certainly not unscathed. Moreover, daring to fight so deep alone and surviving indicated that Lu Ye's own strength was not low. Such individuals were promising talents for their race. "Come back with me."

"Thank you, Senior!"

Traveling back to Blue Water alongside Ziying, he felt incredibly secure. Along the way, Ziying continuously received various intelligence reports from Blue Water via her waist token. As a guardian, she naturally had many matters to attend to after such a major battle.

Soon, however, her expression froze, and she turned to look at Lu Ye beside her. "What did you say your name was just now?" Lu Ye stated his name again. Ziying couldn't help but scrutinize him up and down. Upon closer inspection, she immediately noticed something amiss. "This appearance... isn't your original one, is it?" Hearing this, Lu Ye quickly dispelled the Thousand Faces Spirit Mark he had been maintaining. He inwardly admonished himself, realizing that if the power gap was too great, the Thousand Faces Spirit Mark's disguise wasn't flawless. He would need to be more careful in the future. "This is my true appearance, Senior. Please forgive me; I'm simply accustomed to being cautious when traveling."

Ziying didn't mind. Changing one's appearance was not difficult for cultivators and was quite common. What concerned her was a different matter. "Yan Hong reported collaborating with someone named Lu Ye to kill a Blood race Path Integration cultivator. That Lu Ye..."

"As you discerned, Senior, it was I who collaborated with Brother Yan."

"You... what kind of Dao artifact?" Ziying frowned. An Initial Path cultivator killing a Path Integration cultivator couldn't possibly rely on their own ability. Only a Dao artifact could explain it, but there was only one type of Dao artifact in this world that could grant an Initial Path cultivator the power to contend with a Path Integration cultivator. And even then, it would only be capable of contending with a newly promoted Path Integration cultivator.

Lu Ye appeared slightly troubled, but after a moment's hesitation, he raised his hand and opened his tunic at the chest. "A Bifu!" Ziying's beautiful eyes narrowed. As a Path Integration cultivator, she naturally recognized a Bifu. In fact, she had seen one before, which was the only Bifu belonging to the War Alliance at the time. She never expected to see a second one in her lifetime! Lu Ye scratched his head, feigning naivety. "Please forgive me, Senior. I haven't been in Splendor for long. When I first picked this up, I just felt it was extraordinary, but I didn't know its renowned name, Bifu. I only learned later from others that it's a top-tier Dao artifact. When that Blood race Path Integration cultivator suddenly launched his attack, I could only rely on the Bifu's power to team up with Brother Yan and fight the enemy. Thanks to Brother Yan's bravery, which severely wounded the powerful foe, I had the chance to kill him."

Ziying was at a loss for words. Every Initial Path cultivator in Splendor who knew of the Bifu's fame harbored a dream: to stumble upon a Bifu somewhere. Yet, very few ever achieved that dream. And now, one was standing right in front of her. What's more, he had only recently arrived in Splendor. Such luck... was truly unparalleled!