Chapter 2221: War Nine Infants

Lu Ye never imagined that the depths of this ruin, accessible only to Dao Initiation realm cultivators, actually harbored such a grave danger.

The only thing that puzzled him was why the Nine-Infant chose to possess this Blood Clan member. If its consciousness had always persisted, then given its realm, there would be no need for it to hide here; any Dao Integration realm cultivator outside would find it difficult to resist the erosion of its consciousness. Not to mention Dao Integration cultivators, even he himself had more potential than that Blood Clan member. Yet, the Nine-Infant specifically chose the other party. There had to be a reason!

Pífú! Lu Ye's gaze immediately fell upon the Blood Clan member's chest. When he had first obtained the Pífú, he only felt it resembled an armor plate. But now, it clearly wasn't an armor plate at all; it was a snake scale—a scale left behind by the Nine-Infant's true form.

Although any Dao Initiation realm cultivator who obtained the Pífú could unleash strength far beyond their own, the power different cultivators could exert still varied significantly. That's why Yan Hong needed to resonate with the Pífú to deepen his compatibility with it!

Amidst his contemplation, Lu Ye had a flash of insight.

The erosion of the Nine-Infant's consciousness must be related to the Pífú; that's why it chose this Blood Clan member. In other words, the Pífú was a bridge. Anyone bearing the Pífú who could reach this place would become its chosen target. Unfortunately, to reach this place, one needed at least thirty strands of power. Excluding Lu Ye, who was an anomaly, those who could meet this condition would undoubtedly be Dao Initiation realm cultivators perfectly compatible with the Pífú. And such Dao Initiation cultivators were precisely what the Nine-Infant was waiting for.

Lu Ye suddenly understood. No wonder the Nine-Infant didn't try to seize the bodies of Dao Integration realm cultivators. So there was this reason: Dao Integration cultivators were indeed powerful, but if the compatibility wasn't sufficient, seizing their bodies would be useless. Instead, a sufficiently compatible Dao Initiation realm cultivator would allow the Nine-Infant to have stronger growth potential.

Although these were just his conjectures, they were probably correct! The Nine-Infant was using the Pífú to select the most suitable target. It had finally waited for this day, but unfortunately, it seemed to have chosen incorrectly.

If this was the case, then the so-called method to leave the Multicolored World, hidden deep within the ruin, was probably just a façade. The reason only Dao Initiation realm cultivators could enter this ruin was also the Nine-Infant's doing. Its target from beginning to end had only been Dao Initiation cultivators, which was why Dao Integration cultivators couldn't enter this place.

As these thoughts raced through Lu Ye's mind, the aura emanating from the possessed Blood Clan member grew stronger and stronger, until it reached its peak...

"What's going on?" The Blood Clan member—or rather, the Nine-Infant now—its face, previously filled with joy, suddenly contorted into an expression of shock. It realized something was amiss: this Blood Clan member's physical body wasn't as compatible with its remnant soul as it should be. "But how could this be? Anyone able to reach this place by leveraging the power of its scales should be perfectly compatible. Such a body was the goal it had waited countless millennia for, its capital for a resurgence. There's no reason for it to be like this."

But after a careful examination, it discovered the situation was indeed different from what it had imagined. This body had decent potential, but that was all; it wasn't the perfect target it had painstakingly waited for all these years. The original owner of this body couldn't unleash the full power of its scales, nor did he possess the ability to reach this place!

Its divine sense surged, briefly probing the original owner's memories. The Nine-Infant suddenly turned its head, finally noticing Lu Ye. "It's you?"

The ability to reach this place wasn't due to the original body, but surprisingly, because of this human cultivator beside it! Yet, when the Nine-Infant carefully sensed, it didn't detect the aura of its own scales on him. What was going on here? How could a mere Dao Initiation realm cultivator possess such immense strength? Even in its ancient memories, it had never encountered such a prodigy.

"Interesting!" The Nine-Infant composed itself. The reason it had scattered its scales outside was to select a suitable vessel for its revival. While the current unsatisfactory outcome disappointed it, to its pleasant surprise, there was a strange Dao Initiation realm cultivator here. Perhaps... it could try.

With that thought, its body darted forward, its Dao power surging as it extended a hand to grab Lu Ye. Although it had only just revived, possessing less than one percent of its full strength, it was confident it could easily capture a mere Dao Initiation realm cultivator. Judging from the original body's previous experiences, this human should possess around thirty to forty strands of Dao power.

A flash of saber light suddenly streaked by. The surging Dao power subsided. Lu Ye stood in place, holding his Pan Mountain Saber, his expression peculiar. Before him lay the bisected remains of the Blood Clan member, blood pooling on the ground. Unsure of the Nine-Infant's true strength, Lu Ye had gone all out with that single strike. The hundred-strand power augmentation made it arguably his strongest attack to date; strictly speaking, this level of power was only slightly weaker than a sixth-stage Dao Integration realm cultivator.

And then the Nine-Infant was cleaved to death by him! However, on the remnants of the body, a faint shadow still lingered. That was the Nine-Infant's soul body. Unlike the statue, this Nine-Infant had lost eight of its nine heads—it seemed something had severed them, leaving only the central one. A stunned silence fell over the great hall as they stared at each other.

The Nine-Infant's eyes were filled with horror. Although it hadn't used its full strength just now, it had still exerted over fifty strands of power. No Dao Initiation realm cultivator could withstand such power; it had been confident it could capture Lu Ye. Who knew it would be killed with a single saber strike! This was absurd! It finally realized it had underestimated Lu Ye; Lu Ye's performance in the passage earlier hadn't been his full strength—he had hidden even more.

"Good!" The Nine-Infant recovered, its eyes now shining with surprise and delight. Such a Dao Initiation realm cultivator was unheard of and unseen; he was simply the most perfect vessel for its remnant soul's revival. If it could seize this body, its future strength might even surpass its peak.

With that, the Nine-Infant's soul body lunged at Lu Ye.

Given this situation, how could Lu Ye not know what it was trying to do? It was clearly targeting him. Having just seen the Nine-Infant's soul body, Lu Ye knew this fellow was merely a remnant soul. Although he didn't know what the Nine-Infant had experienced before, it must have been an extremely ferocious battle. In that battle, the Nine-Infant lost its physical body, and even its soul body was severely damaged—otherwise, it wouldn't have lost eight of its nine heads, leaving only the central one.

It had been barely surviving, hiding within its own Dao artifact, also waiting for the opportune moment to revive. Lu Ye wasn't sure how much strength the current Nine-Infant could exert. But a centipede dies but never falls—a powerhouse capable of cultivating a Dao artifact like the Multicolored World, even as a remnant soul, should not be underestimated.

As his soul power surged, his soul defense was activated to its utmost! Only soul power could resist the erosion of a soul body. The next instant, Lu Ye's body trembled; he felt as if an invisible force had brutally struck him, leaving him somewhat dizzy. He dared not delay, quickly immersing himself and resisting the invasion of the Nine-Infant's remnant soul. However, he soon discovered that even with his full effort, he was no match for the Nine-Infant. The defense of his Soul Sea was rapidly weakening. In this situation, the defense would likely collapse in less than ten breaths. At that point, the Nine-Infant's remnant soul could directly enter his Soul Sea, and the situation would become perilous!

Moreover, Lu Ye could feel that the Nine-Infant's remnant soul wasn't using its full strength. It was likely trying to conserve energy to devour his soul body and smoothly seize his physical body. What to do? Lu Ye had never imagined this trip would be so dangerous, nor that such a remnant soul would be lingering in this accursed place. To encounter such a predicament unprepared was truly a helpless situation.

But in an instant, Lu Ye made a decision. He turned and rushed back the way he came. With his current strength, he couldn't withstand the Nine-Infant's remnant soul. Once the Nine-Infant breached his soul defense and entered his Soul Sea, it would be a soul battle, and if he lost, the consequences would be unpredictable. He needed to call for help!

His life was currently intertwined with You Die. In such a crisis, You Die couldn't just stand by, so seeking help from her was the best method. It was a pity, though; he had originally intended to use this opportunity to get rid of You Die. But man proposes, God disposes. Now, not only would he fail to get rid of her, but he might also expose his previously hidden strengths.

The passage wasn't actually long. Under Lu Ye's full-speed sprint, he quickly arrived at the previous great hall, flashing onto the altar. He poured his Dao power into the altar, and the intricate patterns beneath his feet began to glow. Lu Ye's expression was strained. He had never felt time pass so slowly. Three breaths later, the light became dazzling, and Lu Ye's figure vanished.

Outside the ruin, Li Qi's brows were tightly furrowed. You Die had been continuously contacting him, asking about the situation and instructing him to immediately send Lu Ye back to the insect hive if he emerged. But Lu Ye remained unseen. Not only that, but even the Blood Clan member who had gone to rescue him hadn't returned. "Perhaps they died inside?" Li Qi thought to himself.

He could sense You Die's anxiety and couldn't quite understand why a mere Dao Initiation realm cultivator would be so highly valued by her. She had been asking non-stop for such a short time. Besides, if a Dao Initiation realm cultivator died, it wasn't a big deal.

After replying to You Die's inquiry again, a figure suddenly appeared on the altar. Li Qi exhaled, stepping forward to greet him. "You finally cam—" Before he could finish, he suddenly noticed Lu Ye's unusual state. Lu Ye's entire expression was extremely strained, as if he were enduring something, and his soul power and Dao power were boiling and surging.

He looked at a stone worm on Li Qi's shoulder, gritting his teeth grimly, "Something's happened!" The moment he finished speaking, a booming sound echoed in his mind. His soul defense had broken! Within his Soul Sea, the Nine-Infant's remnant soul brazenly invaded!

Li Qi's expression changed. He reached out and pulled Lu Ye toward him, surprised to find that Lu Ye had lost consciousness. Strictly speaking, he hadn't lost consciousness, but his awareness had sunk into his Soul Sea. What was going on? But then, the Insect Mother's telepathic message sounded in his ear: "Bring him back to the insect hive at full speed, without any delay! I'm coming to meet you!"

Hearing this, Li Qi's expression turned stern. He dared not neglect the Insect Mother's command and immediately took Lu Ye, rushing toward the insect hive! At the same time, a graceful and alluring figure suddenly burst out from the insect hive. That figure seemed corporeal, yet it passed through all obstacles without hindrance, emerging directly from the deepest part of the battle star! "Soul departure!" All the cultivators of the Insect and Blood Clans who witnessed this scene were stunned.