Chapter 2223: Please Advise, Senior

Novel Excerpt:

You Die did not wish for her split soul to merge with her main soul, because the split soul contained a life chain.

Although she had been restrained by Lu Ye before, if she were to harden her heart and abandon her split soul, she could break free from this restraint!

But once the merger happened, she would never be able to escape that restraint, and then she would truly be bound to Lu Ye in life and death!

It was precisely this concern that led her to speak kindly and try to avoid any conflict with Jiu Ying.

However, the outcome was unsatisfactory; Jiu Ying appeared completely sure of defeating Lu Ye.

She had even considered abandoning Lu Ye. If what Jiu Ying said was true, she would gain significant benefits after sacrificing her split soul!

But after careful consideration, she decided against it. Not only did Jiu Ying lack substantial evidence to support its claims, but even if it were true, she would likely become Jiu Ying's lackey in the future.

She was, after all, at the peak of the Integration Realm. If not for the restrictions of this star system, she might even have hope of achieving Dao integration, so why should she humble and demean herself?

Her initial retreat was merely a pretense.

Under the life chain, she could sense whether Lu Ye was lying, and Lu Ye, of course, could also sense whether her words were true.

So, when You Die retreated, he knew what she was planning.

Her split soul's sneak attack had failed, and she couldn't allow Jiu Ying to succeed, leaving You Die with only one choice.

It was a huge loss!

If she had known this would happen, she wouldn't have let Lu Ye enter the ancient site for anything.

She vaguely realized that Jiu Ying's remnant soul had likely been hidden within the ancient site all along. This time, Lu Ye had entered and been targeted by it, and now it wished to seize Lu Ye's physical body.

"You must consider this carefully!" Jiu Ying's voice rumbled within the Divine Sea.

It didn't want any conflict with You Die, as it had little power left after years of slumber. It only wanted to quickly devour Lu Ye's soul body and possess this physical body that had tempted it.

"Please enlighten me, Senior!" As You Die spoke, soul power surged around her. She clenched her hand, and at some point, a long sword had appeared in it!

Even though her peak Integration Realm power was actually stronger than Jiu Ying's, You Die dared not let down her guard against such an opponent. The emergence of her long sword signified that she was going all out!

Lu Ye glanced at it and immediately knew that this long sword was You Die's Dao weapon!

Insect Mothers primarily cultivated their divine souls, so almost all Insect Mothers' Dao weapons were soul artifacts.

What surprised him, however, was that You Die's Dao weapon was actually a sword. With the sword in hand, her soul-snatching charm vanished, replaced by a chilling fighting spirit and killing intent.

If an uninformed person were to see You Die's current appearance, they would surely praise her as an excellent sword cultivator!

As she finished speaking, You Die merged her body with the sword light and charged towards Jiu Ying.

Strike first to gain the advantage!

Jiu Ying flew into a rage. Its massive body swayed, its head held high, and the luminescence on its surface grew brighter. Invisible ripples spread outwards, centered on its soul body.

In an instant, they collided. The Divine Sea became turbulent, and waves surged.

A powerful burst of light erupted, blinding the entire Divine Sea.

The aftershocks spread. Even with the protection of the Phantom Ship, Lu Ye stumbled and swayed, and the defenses on the Phantom Ship rippled intensely.

His expression changed as he realized things were going badly.

It wasn't that You Die was no match; he couldn't tell who was stronger or weaker between the two of them at the moment, as the power difference was too vast for him to discern.

The problem was that the battlefield was his Divine Sea. Regardless of who was more powerful, the aftershocks of their battle disturbed his mind and agitated his soul.

Lu Ye was filled with helplessness. Two mighty experts contending in his own Divine Sea was completely unpredictable.

He quickly stabilized himself and fully activated the Phantom Ship's protection.

Seven-colored light dispersed from the ship's body, and only then did he feel much better.

That seven-colored light was the light of the Divine Lotus.

The Divine Lotus had originally been like a small island in his Divine Sea, but during his process of condensing the Flower of Divinity, the Divine Lotus had completely merged with him.

However, the Divine Lotus's efficacy had not disappeared because of this.

Fully focused on protecting himself, he allowed the Phantom Ship to drift aimlessly in the Divine Sea, Lu Ye couldn't even spare much attention for the battle unfolding there.

He also didn't know who was stronger between You Die and Jiu Ying.

Until, at a certain moment, he suddenly let out a muffled groan as an indescribable pain emanated from deep within his soul body.

At the same time, You Die's pained cry came from the battlefield!

You Die was injured, and her injuries were severe! Because of the life chain, half of her injuries were transferred to him.

Lu Ye was in agony, wishing he could die, and almost fainted.

Only then did he realize that Jiu Ying might not have used even half of its power when dealing with him earlier. Otherwise, even with the talent tree, he probably wouldn't have been able to stall long enough for You Die's assistance.

It wasn't that Jiu Ying was kind; it was just that the creature had been dormant for too long and its power was incomplete. If it could take down Lu Ye with minimal cost, it naturally wouldn't use more.

But in its current battle with You Die, it had no choice but to unleash its full power.

Lu Ye had never known what stage of the Integration Realm You Die was at, having never asked about it.

But to be able to oversee a major war zone, You Die had to be at either the eighth or ninth stage, or even at the peak of the Integration Realm.

Furthermore, supplemented by her Dao weapon, You Die could unleash at least two hundred Dao of destructive power, yet even so, she was injured.

Jiu Ying's strength certainly wouldn't be far off.

The Divine Sea became increasingly turbulent, golden stars danced before Lu Ye's eyes, and his soul body became somewhat ethereal.

The only thing he could feel was that the conflict between You Die and Jiu Ying was growing more intense, and his own injuries were accumulating.

Abruptly, a sharp cry entered Lu Ye's ears; it was You Die.

"It's trying to escape, don't let it get away!"

Since she had decided to make an enemy of Jiu Ying, she naturally intended to wipe it out completely!

This ancient beast claimed to be Banlan's master. If it were allowed to escape now, who knew what trump cards it might have up its sleeve?

Sure enough, as You Die's words fell, Lu Ye immediately sensed that Jiu Ying was attempting to flee.

How could Lu Ye allow that?

If Jiu Ying was trying to escape, it meant it was no match for You Die, and now was the perfect time to eliminate the problem at its roots.

Soul power surged, and the Divine Sea instantly transformed into a prison.

Jiu Ying had forced its way in, and Lu Ye couldn't stop it then, but now that it was here, leaving wouldn't be so easy.

Blazing flames ignited once more, forming a hollow fireball that enveloped the area where You Die and Jiu Ying were battling.

Jiu Ying had previously experienced the power of these strange flames, and upon seeing them now, it couldn't help but feel wary. However, it was truly no match for You Die at present, and continuing the fight would likely lead to its death.

It instantly regretted its choice, wishing it had agreed to You Die's proposal earlier. Now, it was truly caught in a dilemma.

With the long sword in hand, You Die's sword light was unrestrained, and her fighting style was fierce, perfectly matching the relentless, no-retreat approach of a sword cultivator. Had one not witnessed it personally, no one would have imagined an Insect Mother possessing the heart of a sword cultivator.

Although she now held the upper hand, her expression remained solemn, and she dared not show the slightest carelessness, for in this battle, she had truly witnessed Jiu Ying's terrifying power.

In terms of strength, she was now significantly stronger than Jiu Ying.

But when it came to the actual fight, it was a different matter. If she hadn't had her Dao weapon, You Die even doubted she would have been a match.

As expected of an ancient beast, its mastery over Dao power was simply beyond what her level could achieve.

In fact, if Jiu Ying hadn't been in a weakened state, with little power to expend, it would have been by no means easy for her to gain the upper hand.

Even so, her injuries were actually a bit more severe than Jiu Ying's. It was only because Lu Ye was bearing a portion of the burden that her condition was better than Jiu Ying's.

As the flames ignited, Jiu Ying roared in fury. After only a moment of hesitation, it resolutely charged towards the blaze.

If it didn't escape now, it likely wouldn't have another chance.

It shouted, "Boy, let me go! Don't force my hand, or we'll all be finished!"

Lu Ye turned a deaf ear!

You Die didn't hesitate either and pursued it directly. Although the sudden appearance of the strange flames felt a bit odd to her, it was Lu Ye's method after all, and her life was intricately linked with his, so she was confident Lu Ye wouldn't harm her.

A sizzling sound emanated, and Jiu Ying shrieked in agony.

You Die, who was pursuing it from behind, paused for a moment, stunned. She could, of course, see that Jiu Ying was being incinerated by the flames. She was also being incinerated, but felt no discomfort whatsoever.

On the contrary... it felt quite pleasant!

If a formidable enemy weren't right before her, she would have even wanted to experience it more closely.

There was no time for further thought. Seizing the opportunity, You Die pressed forward. A massive sword aura swept out and ruthlessly struck Jiu Ying.

Already a remnant soul, it had become extremely dim after such a long battle. After this sword strike, Jiu Ying's soul body showed signs of almost dissipating.

It couldn't hold on any longer!

Jiu Ying suddenly turned its head, glaring at Lu Ye, and said viciously, "Boy, you forced my hand! Let's die together!"

As it spoke, its illusory soul body suddenly condensed into a black sphere. It flashed away like lightning, piercing through the immolation power of the talent tree, and slammed forcefully into the Phantom Ship's defenses.

The defenses were breached, and Lu Ye didn't even have time to react before the black sphere struck him directly in the chest.

The aura of death enveloped him, never before had it felt so real.

As if struck by lightning, Lu Ye's soul body suddenly stiffened.

With a boom, the black sphere exploded, and an incomparably violent shockwave swept outwards. The entire Soul Sea world was enveloped in darkness.

Waves surged one after another, and the Soul Sea was in utter chaos.

It took a full dozen breaths before it slowly calmed down.

Above the Soul Sea, Lu Ye's soul body was almost transparent, lying motionless on the surface of the water.

On the other side, a figure also landed unsteadily on the sea's surface, drifting with the waves, utterly silent.

It was You Die.

Only after a long while did You Die's weak voice drift from afar: "Are you dead?"

"Don't bother me!" Lu Ye was too weak to speak.

Jiu Ying's final attack was truly meant to take Lu Ye down with it. The reason it targeted him was undoubtedly because Jiu Ying perceived Lu Ye as weaker; it wasn't confident it could drag You Die to her death, so Lu Ye became the unlucky one.

With Lu Ye's strength alone, he couldn't have resisted it at all.

Fortunately, thanks to the life chain, half of the damage to his soul body was transferred to You Die, allowing him to narrowly escape death.

Now, not only was his soul body severely wounded, but You Die was in the same state, and perhaps even more seriously injured than he was, after all, she was the one who had directly confronted Jiu Ying.