Chapter 2319: Space Secret Technique

On the meteorite, space twisted slightly, and Su Yan and Lu Ye's talent tree avatar, who had disappeared, suddenly reappeared. The two had undoubtedly returned from a spatial rift.

The avatar's eyes shone brightly; if his main body weren't elsewhere, making it inconvenient, he could immediately begin re-deriving the Void Dao patterns. Thanks to Su Yan's guidance over the past few days and his recent experiences, he had many ideas.

"Junior Sister Su, I know there's a distinction between the outer and inner realms in the Star Abyss. Can one enter the inner realm using spatial secret techniques?" Lu Ye suddenly asked. Ever since he learned about the inner realm, he had been very interested. Moreover, he felt that the location of this stellar fragment was the inner realm, as the Dao power in the outer realm wasn't so rich.

"It's not the same..." Su Yan shook her head. "The so-called outer and inner realms are actually within the same space."

"Huh?" Lu Ye was astonished. "How can they be in the same space? If they're in the same space, why distinguish between outer and inner realms?"

"For example, if you, Senior Brother, have a two-story building, and the upper floor is the outer realm, then the lower floor is the inner realm. But whether it's the upper or lower floor, they are both within the same space; they are only separated into levels due to different heights."

Lu Ye rubbed his chin, lost in thought. Although Su Yan explained it simply, for Lu Ye, who had never entered the inner realm, it wasn't easy to understand.

"Actually, I've always had a very curious question," Su Yan said, tilting her head to look at Lu Ye. With her sacred and noble demeanor, such an action had a unique charm.

"What?"

"Senior Brother... are you at the Dao Entry stage or the Dao Fusion stage?" Su Yan asked the question on her mind. Anyone unfamiliar with Lu Ye would likely have this question after spending some time with him, including Song Weiwei earlier, though she never asked.

"Of course, I'm at the Dao Fusion stage," Lu Ye said without changing his expression.

Su Yan pursed her lips and smiled. "Senior Brother is lying!"

"How can you tell?"

"Because you haven't been to the inner realm; otherwise, you wouldn't have asked that question just now. With your strength, you shouldn't have failed to enter the inner realm, as even I have been there several times. Moreover..." She gazed intently at Lu Ye. "You receive Star Abyss blessings too frequently. It's well-known that to receive a Star Abyss blessing, you either have to kill many opponents or defeat a stronger one. But even defeating a stronger opponent doesn't guarantee a blessing unless the cultivation gap between you is extremely exaggerated. I didn't quite understand before, but if Senior Brother is only at the Dao Entry stage, then everything makes sense."

For a Dao Entry cultivator to kill a Dao Fusion cultivator, even a Dao Entry at the ninth stage killing a first-stage Dao Fusion, such a cultivation gap is extremely exaggerated, making it highly probable to receive a Star Abyss blessing. Not to mention, Lu Ye had killed more than just first-stage Dao Fusion cultivators; there were many at the seventh or eighth stage.

"But I truly am at the Dao Fusion stage," Lu Ye insisted. With the Concentric Knot, Lu Ye knew Su Yan wouldn't harm him, but they weren't truly familiar with each other, and there were some things Lu Ye still didn't want her to know.

Su Yan didn't press the issue further but calmly said, "Senior Brother, Star Abyss blessings... may not be a good thing."

Lu Ye blinked. "What do you mean by that, Junior Sister Su?"

Su Yan shook her head, unwilling to say more. Lu Ye looked at her, his brows slightly furrowed. He naturally knew that Star Abyss blessings weren't entirely good, as along with them came some anomalies he hadn't understood until now. However, these anomalies were incinerated by the talent tree. It was precisely because of the talent tree's reaction that he became aware of these anomalies; otherwise, he wouldn't have known. How did Su Yan know? How much did she know? However, considering Su Yan's extraordinary bloodline, it wasn't surprising that she knew these things; perhaps some of her predecessors had told her. But her inscrutable demeanor at that moment was intriguing. Was it... inconvenient to say?

"Senior Brother, although I cannot teach my innate divine ability, there's another spatial secret art that you might be able to cultivate. Are you interested?" Su Yan suddenly offered. "With your current mastery of the Dao of Space, you should have a chance to succeed."

Lu Ye naturally saw that she was changing the subject, but he couldn't refuse. He immediately nodded, "Then I thank you very much, Junior Sister."

Su Yan smiled and gently pushed a palm towards him. Lu Ye was puzzled but met her with a palm as well. The moment their palms touched, Lu Ye felt the power in Su Yan's palm, but strangely, the unleashed power had no effect on him. The next instant, his expression showed surprise, as his body suddenly vibrated, as if struck by an invisible force! This force couldn't have appeared from nowhere; it must have been Su Yan's doing. Yet, her power, which should have been exerted on his palm, strangely acted within his body.

"What kind of secret art is this?" Lu Ye asked, looking surprised.

"Hitting the Ox!" Su Yan replied.

Lu Ye raised an eyebrow. "As in 'hitting the ox through a mountain'?"

"Yes," Su Yan nodded. "This is a secret art passed down by my ancestors. Are you interested, Senior Brother?"

"Can this secret art break through an enemy's protective Dao power?" If it could, it would be invincible. No matter the circumstances, when cultivators fight, to kill an enemy, they must break through the enemy's protective force, be it spirit energy, magic energy, or Dao power. Only then is there hope of defeating them. But if this so-called 'Hitting the Ox' secret art could bypass such protective force and directly unleash one's power within the enemy's body, it would be an instant kill, requiring none of the previous trouble.

"Of course not, Senior Brother, what are you thinking? Protective forces are flawless. Although this secret art is profound, it cannot ignore them." Su Yan said, somewhere between laughter and tears. If it could, she would have been invincible long ago. Her ancestors created this secret art for a different type of enemy, and it's said that this art achieved extraordinary feats. It's just that the era was too ancient, and clan records were incomplete, so she didn't fully understand the specifics.

"I'm still interested," Lu Ye nodded. Although it fell short of his expectations, it was still a spatial secret art, and practicing it certainly wouldn't hurt. Perhaps it could be useful someday. Previously, he would have been unwilling to waste time, as he needed to collect as many Star Abyss Coins as possible. But times had changed. The Sons of the Star Abyss competition had progressed to a point where too many Dao Fusion cultivators had died. Even if he continued hunting, he probably wouldn't acquire enough Star Abyss Coins. After all, with fewer participants, hunting efficiency would significantly decrease. Since he couldn't gather enough Star Abyss Coins to exchange for that treasure, it would be better to cultivate with Su Yan here and learn more. In any case, the final victory of the Sons of the Star Abyss wasn't determined by the number of Star Abyss Coins. He only needed to recuperate with Su Yan and participate in the final battle!

Since Lu Ye showed strong interest, Su Yan naturally didn't hold back and immediately began to teach the secret art. Only at this moment did Lu Ye realize that Su Yan... was not only skilled in archery! Her close-quarters combat ability was definitely not weak; in fact, it was very strong! It was just that her archery was so formidable that this aspect was overshadowed. Those enemies who once opposed her and tried to win by getting close probably never knew, even until their deaths, that even if they managed to break through Su Yan's archery blockade, they would still meet a grim end.

In addition to practicing the secret art, every one or two days, Lu Ye would ask Su Yan to take him into a spatial rift, to comprehend the wonders of space in that unique environment. He had obtained the Void Spirit Mark when he was very weak, but truthfully, even when this Spirit Mark transformed into a Dao Mark, it had repeatedly shone brightly and contributed greatly under his command. Yet, Lu Ye had always been in a state of knowing *that* it worked, but not *how*. Simply put, because of the talent tree, he could use this Dao Mark to do certain things and achieve his goals. But he didn't have a deep understanding of the fundamental mysteries of this Dao Mark. Until this time...

With each entry into the spatial rift, and amidst countless spatial turbulent currents, Lu Ye gradually gained a sense of not only *that* it worked but also *why* it worked. He gradually developed his own understanding and insights into the wonders of space. It could be said that from this perspective, meeting Su Yan and being chosen as her companion was a stroke of luck for him. Had it not been for this competition of the Sons of the Star Abyss, he wouldn't have met Su Yan at all. Who knew which corner of the Star Abyss she lived in? But this competition made their paths cross.

While Lu Ye was engrossed in his cultivation with Su Yan, in the Four-Eared Realm...

In the imperial palace of Jing State, Emperor Chen entered Consort Rong's chambers with powerful strides.

"Greetings, Your Majesty." Led by Consort Rong, a group of palace maids and guards all bowed in unison.

Emperor Chen raised a hand. "Dispense with the formalities." He quickly stepped forward, helped Consort Rong to her feet, and gazed intently at her belly. "What did the imperial physician say?"

Consort Rong's face was flushed with shyness, yet she was incredibly happy. She gently touched her abdomen and said, lowering her head, "The imperial physician said it's been over a month!"

Emperor Chen immediately turned his head to look behind him, where a servant was specially responsible for recording his daily activities, including which concubine's chambers he stayed in on which day. This way, if a concubine became pregnant, the timing could be checked for verification. Seeing Emperor Chen's gaze, the servant slightly nodded.

Emperor Chen laughed heartily, helped Consort Rong to a nearby seat, and then said, "Excellent! Now that you're pregnant, you must rest well." Consort Rong naturally agreed.

Following this, Emperor Chen bestowed a series of rewards. Royal succession was no small matter, especially for the imperial family of Jing State. Perhaps due to the excessive toil of campaigning in his youth, or perhaps from hidden injuries sustained then, Emperor Chen's harem, despite having many consorts and concubines, had few offspring, mostly princesses. There was only one prince, who was also sickly... Now that Consort Rong was pregnant, he naturally valued it, as he doted on her greatly. This round of rewards included not only Consort Rong but also her family, and even the maids and guards around her received their share of blessings.

The many Four-Eared beings naturally offered their solemn gratitude.