Chapter 2323: Situation Is Not Right

On the white jade platform, four Dao Pools remained. Ri Yan and Wu Yue occupied one, while the victors for the other three had already been decided, with each pool now held by a single pair of cultivators. The remaining cultivators had either died or fled.

One of these Dao Pools was occupied by a pair of Star Beasts.

Another Dao Pool was held by a pair of Peak Integration cultivators whom Lu Ye had never seen before. Strangely, this team was a combination of a Blood Clan member and an Insectoid!

Throughout the Star Abyss, both the Blood Clan and Insectoids are considered major races, boasting a vast number of cultivators and a continuous emergence of talent. It was not surprising that two individuals from these races were among the chosen few from over 50,000 Integration cultivators.

The Blood Clan and Insectoids naturally share a certain affinity. Having encountered each other, they readily formed an alliance. Over the past six months, these two had reaped considerable rewards.

The last Dao Pool was held by Lu Ye's old acquaintances, Ning Gu and Junior Sister Shuang.

Lu Ye was somewhat surprised that Ning Gu and Junior Sister Shuang managed to claim a Dao Pool. After all, Ning Gu had lost a clone in the Misty Cloud Trap, which should have diminished his strength.

However, both of them were Peak Integration cultivators, and Junior Sister Shuang, in particular, was exceptionally strong. Considering this, their success in claiming a Dao Pool was quite normal.

This situation was also why Ri Yan proposed a temporary alliance with Lu Ye. Since the ownership of the Dao Pools had been decided, if they didn't act quickly, the other pairs would have time to recover, making them much harder to deal with later.

Now was the best time. Each of the opposing teams had just emerged from a chaotic battle, heavily expended. In contrast, Ri Yan and Wu Yue had incurred relatively less expenditure before.

Lu Ye and Su Yan's situation was even better.

Ri Yan and Wu Yue headed towards the Dao Pool occupied by Ning Gu and Junior Sister Shuang. Frankly, while all four were Peak Integration cultivators, Ning Gu and Junior Sister Shuang were undoubtedly slightly weaker in terms of overall strength.

Lu Ye wasn't entirely clear on Wu Yue's full strength, but Ri Yan was definitely in a league of his own.

In this battle, Ning Gu and Junior Sister Shuang's situation was precarious.

This didn't concern Lu Ye. He scanned the remaining two Dao Pools and looked towards the pair of Star Beasts.

He chose these two Star Beasts not out of prejudice against other species; indeed, apart from Lu Ye, none of the cultivators present were human.

He simply thought these two Star Beasts would be easier to defeat.

One Star Beast resembled a transparent jellyfish, with countless tentacles swaying beneath its bell. The other seemed to be formed from accumulated sludge, emitting a visibly eerie aura that distorted the surrounding space.

Normally, Star Beasts possess little intelligence, acting primarily on instinct, regardless of their strength, much like uncultivated wild beasts.

However, Star Beasts chosen by the Star Abyss Will to participate in this struggle clearly could not be judged by normal standards.

Lu Ye stood beside Su Yan, gently raising his hand and placing his palm on her back. The 'Rainbow Phoenix Twin Flight' Dao Mark began to form.

Su Yan said nothing, drew her bowstring, and as a golden light flashed, the Sludge Star Beast, which was focused on recovering in the Dao Pool, exploded as if a lump of mud had been struck with great force. Clumps of eerie-looking sludge splattered everywhere.

This scene not only stunned Lu Ye but also left Su Yan dumbfounded.

Neither of them had expected the outwardly formidable Sludge Star Beast to be so fragile.

But they soon realized something was wrong: the Sludge Star Beast's body hadn't vanished, nor had any Star Abyss Coins been left behind.

This undoubtedly meant...

"It's not dead!" Lu Ye whispered urgently in Su Yan's ear.

The moment he finished speaking, the sludge-like clumps that had splattered everywhere began to squirm, transforming into individual Sludge Star Beasts in the blink of an eye.

There were dozens of them... though their size couldn't compare to the original.

Suddenly attacked, these smaller Sludge Star Beasts clearly became enraged, swarming towards Lu Ye and Su Yan.

"This..." Su Yan was dumbfounded.

She had never imagined that the Sludge Star Beast's body structure was so unique, capable of splitting. Such an enemy was undoubtedly her greatest counter.

To defeat dozens of small Sludge Star Beasts, she would need at least as many arrows. Furthermore, who could guarantee that these smaller beasts wouldn't split into even tinier ones after being killed?

Dozens could turn into hundreds, then thousands.

Lu Ye wouldn't have enough Dao power to spare for such a fight.

She tentatively shot an arrow at one small Sludge Star Beast. As expected, after being killed, it split into an even greater number of smaller entities!

She made a snap decision and shifted her gaze to the Jellyfish Star Beast.

If she couldn't kill the Sludge Star Beast, she would have to deal with the other one first. As for the Sludge Star Beast, they could find a way to resolve it later; its splitting must have a limit and couldn't continue indefinitely.

However, to her surprise, as she shot an arrow, the Jellyfish Star Beast burst into brilliant light, transforming into a sphere of lightning. Countless electrical arcs coursed over its body, effortlessly blocking her attack.

In such a brutal and bloody competition, those who had survived until now were clearly not ordinary opponents, even if it was just a Star Beast.

Su Yan fired three more arrows in succession, still to no effect.

Instead, shielded by the numerous Sludge Star Beasts, the Jellyfish Star Beast rapidly closed in.

Lu Ye quickly scanned the situation, released Su Yan, raised his hand to grip his Pan Shan Blade, and whispered, "Stay back!"

In the current situation, Su Yan's archery was heavily countered, and it would be more efficient for him to engage the enemy personally. Thus, he had no choice but to act himself.

Su Yan naturally understood. Almost as soon as Lu Ye's words fell, spatial ripples shimmered around her, and her figure vanished.

Lu Ye's figure flickered, also vanishing from his spot.

When he reappeared, he was not far from the Jellyfish Star Beast. His Pan Shan Blade unsheathed, a flash of light struck one of the Jellyfish Star Beast's extended tentacles.

Lu Ye's body vibrated violently, immediately sensing the immense power of the Jellyfish Star Beast.

The opponent was, astonishingly, also a Peak Integration cultivator!

It definitely possessed its own Dao Weapon. Lu Ye wasn't entirely sure how a Star Beast's Dao Weapon worked, but he speculated it might have cultivated a part of its own body into one; otherwise, it couldn't possess such immense power.

Furthermore, its tentacles transmitted incredibly powerful electrical energy through the Pan Shan Blade.

Lu Ye felt his hand go numb...

Dao power surged, countering the discomfort in his body. As he darted about, just before more tentacles lashed out, he flashed above the Jellyfish Star Beast's head.

He switched from a one-handed grip to two hands, like a divine being descending from the heavens. The long blade struck down fiercely, and the moment it touched the transparent bell of the beast, the Pan Shan Blade vibrated violently.

Blade Vibration!

The instantaneous burst of thousands of forces was overwhelming; even a Peak Integration Jellyfish Star Beast couldn't withstand it. The brilliant light of that single strike cleaved the Jellyfish Star Beast in two.

Lu Ye, however, frowned.

He felt something was slightly off!

Admittedly, the destructive power of Blade Vibration was terrifying. When this secret art was deployed, it was equivalent to Lu Ye delivering four or five consecutive strikes in a very short time, each imbued with a burst of 240 Dao forces.

Even if a Peak Integration cultivator's power was slightly greater than his, they couldn't withstand it.

But the Jellyfish Star Beast was, after all, a Peak Integration cultivator. Could it really be killed so easily?

The body, split in two, quickly vanished, leaving behind a Star Abyss Coin. Lu Ye's expression gradually turned strange.

And with the 'death' of the Jellyfish Star Beast, the numerous small Sludge Star Beasts that had been swarming towards them seemed to be startled, turning around and fleeing into the distance.

Lu Ye hesitated only for a moment before giving chase, simultaneously signaling Su Yan, who was observing from a distance.

A moment later, Lu Ye and Su Yan, having killed many of the small Sludge Star Beasts, hid on a floating landmass. They hadn't managed to kill the Sludge Star Beast entirely, as it had split too many times to be eliminated completely.

Now, even Lu Ye didn't know where it had hidden itself.

"Senior Brother Lu, what's wrong?" Su Yan asked. She sensed that Lu Ye had something he wanted to tell her; otherwise, they wouldn't be hiding here.

"Something's not right," Lu Ye replied.

Su Yan's expression became serious. "In what way?"

"That Jellyfish Star Beast... it's not dead!"

Su Yan was puzzled. "Didn't you kill it? It even left behind a Star Abyss Coin."

Lu Ye slowly shook his head. "Leaving a Star Abyss Coin is simple. It merely needs to have one hidden inside its body beforehand, and it would naturally be left behind after I 'killed' it. As for why I say it's not dead... think about how it usually is when I kill an enemy."

Su Yan pondered for a moment, then immediately realized: "Star Abyss Blessing!"

Lu Ye nodded. "That's right, there was no Star Abyss Blessing this time!"

It was precisely because there was no Star Abyss Blessing after he 'killed' the Jellyfish Star Beast that Lu Ye was certain the creature wasn't dead. What he had destroyed was likely just a clone or similar construct.

This was intriguing. Star Beasts, which usually acted purely on instinct, were now employing cunning and strategy in such a situation. It's safe to say that any cultivator witnessing that scene, apart from Lu Ye and Su Yan, would have believed the Jellyfish Star Beast was truly dead.

Furthermore, the Sludge Star Beast had just been chased so haphazardly that it was likely this pair was already considered out of the competition by others.

In reality, they were undoubtedly hiding in the shadows, waiting patiently, preparing to astound everyone.

"But Senior Brother," Su Yan began, "Star Abyss Blessings don't always descend after killing an enemy."

"That's true, they don't always descend. But for me, a Spirit Pathway cultivator, to kill a Peak Integration cultivator, there *must* be a Star Abyss Blessing!"

Su Yan fell silent.

Although she had previously questioned Lu Ye about his cultivation level, it was only now that she finally confirmed directly from him that he truly was only a Spirit Pathway cultivator!

A Spirit Pathway cultivator killing an Integration cultivator was astonishing enough in itself. Furthermore, many of the Integration cultivators Lu Ye had recently defeated were not newly ascended; many were even above the seventh level of Integration.

Su Yan would never have believed such a person could exist, had she not witnessed it herself.

And if such a person were to become the Son of the Star Abyss, the implications...

He could now kill Integration cultivators as a Spirit Pathway cultivator. If he reached Integration, could he kill Harmonization cultivators? And what then, after Harmonization?