Chapter 2360: Recent Developments

**The Wind Rises in Kyushu**

Unfortunately, no one had anticipated the Star Abyss invasion would be so rapid. Lu Ye had originally thought that even if he wandered in the Star Abyss for decades or even a century, it wouldn't be too late to return. This was because, under normal circumstances, even after so many years, the Star Abyss's invasion progress would still be within the Starry Sky's manageable limits.

However, the situation in this particular Starry Sky was different from others. In just over a decade, cultivators of the Seventh Path could already pass through the Illusory Demise.

The Illusory Demise Star System was overseen by the Yellow Dragon Realm, and its strongest cultivators were Chen Wulei and Chang Yu, both from the Mechanicus Starry Sky. With a massive influx of enemies, this area could not withstand the assault. The war fortresses retreated repeatedly, almost completely withdrawing from the Illusory Demise Star System.

Fortunately, these invading enemies were not united; they fought and killed among themselves, which allowed the Illusory Demise to maintain some semblance of resistance.

But this was not the main reason. The primary reason was that most Star Abyss creatures who invaded were unwilling to leave the area enveloped by the Star Abyss's aura—which now encompassed the Illusory Demise Star System.

Upon hearing this, Lu Ye quickly grasped the underlying reason. Star Abyss creatures, whose strength peaked at the Seventh Path, had very limited reserves of spiritual power. Once they left the Illusory Demise Star System and truly entered the Starry Sky, there would be no source to replenish their depleted spiritual power. This was because, currently, the Starry Sky—apart from areas near the Star Abyss Gate—was not covered by the Star Abyss's aura, and thus, spiritual power did not exist there. For this very reason, most Star Abyss creatures remained in the Illusory Demise. By staying there, they could strengthen themselves by hunting each other. However, if they left, while they could kill Starry Sky creatures at will, they would gain no substantial benefits, merely satisfying their desire for slaughter. Of course, some Star Abyss creatures did leave the Illusory Demise and ventured into various parts of the Starry Sky, causing numerous casualties. However, their numbers were not significant, and the entire Starry Sky now had dedicated Entrance Path cultivators specifically pursuing and hunting these enemies.

After listening to Gu Sheng's general account of the current situation, Lu Ye felt a sense of relief. Thankfully, the worst-case scenario had not materialized. For him, the absolute worst would have been if the previously invading enemies had already scattered throughout the Starry Sky. If that were the case, the entire Starry Sky would have faced immense catastrophe, and countless lives would have been needlessly lost.

As they spoke, the two gradually moved out of the area enveloped by the Star Abyss's aura. After a while longer, a massive war fortress appeared ahead. This was precisely the war fortress that the Yellow Dragon Realm had been responsible for building. It had originally stood near the Star Abyss Gate, but over the years, it had continuously retreated, and by today, it had fallen back to the very edge of the Illusory Demise Star System.

Gu Sheng led Lu Ye directly into the war fortress. As his divine sense pulsed with a message, several figures immediately flew out from a building in the center of the fortress, coming to greet them. Soon, the one leading them was none other than Gu Yunliu, the Realm Master of the Yellow Dragon Realm.

“Fellow Daoist Lu, you've returned?” Gu Yunliu's face lit up with surprise, and the cultivators beside him also looked exhilarated. Everyone knew that Lu Ye had left the Starry Sky years ago, venturing alone into the Star Abyss to find a way to save the Starry Sky. However, there had been no news of him for years, and no one knew if Lu Ye was alive or dead, or what his situation was if he was alive. Yet, unexpectedly, he had suddenly returned today.

Gu Yunliu wanted to ask Lu Ye about his achievements, but considering Lu Ye had only been gone for just over a decade, he ultimately held back the question. If he didn't ask, there was still some hope. If he did ask, perhaps even that hope would vanish. After all, just over a decade was too brief a time. When Lu Ye left, he was merely an Entrance Path cultivator; an Entrance Path cultivator entering the Star Abyss was like a pebble dropped into the sea—what ripples could it possibly make?

“Realm Master Gu, fellow Daoists,” Lu Ye greeted, cupping his fists.

Moments later, everyone was seated in a grand hall. “Where are Fellow Daoists Chen Wulei and Chang Yu?” Lu Ye asked. Although he had received quite a bit of information from Gu Sheng earlier, their journey back was too short for a detailed conversation. Moreover, Gu Sheng hadn't ventured too deeply into the Illusory Demise to fight enemies. Currently, no cultivator from the Starry Sky dared to go too deep, as the aura of Starry Sky cultivators differed from that of Star Abyss creatures, making it very dangerous if they were discovered too far in. Chen Wulei and Chang Yu were the strongest here, so Lu Ye naturally wanted to inquire about their situations first.

Gu Yunliu replied, “Brother Chen is in seclusion, refining his Dao Bone cultivation. He is significantly stronger than us in terms of cultivation and has been trying to advance to the Integration Path for years. We have also devised a plan to help him break through and advance. If he succeeds in advancing, the crisis in Illusory Demise can be temporarily averted. As for Brother Chang, he is outside, pursuing those scattered invading enemies.”

Lu Ye raised an eyebrow. Gu Sheng had previously mentioned those scattered invading enemies, dispersed throughout the Starry Sky, who were being hunted by specialized personnel. It now appeared that Chang Yu was one of them, because he possessed the strength to do so. As for their plan to help Chen Wulei advance to the Integration Path, it was indeed quite good. If Chen Wulei truly advanced to the Integration Path, it should stabilize the situation in Illusory Demise.

“From the Entrance Path to the Integration Path, the foundation for advancement involves Dao Patterns. Do you all know about this?” Lu Ye asked. He had only learned this after entering the Star Abyss. If the Starry Sky cultivators were unaware of this, then Chen Wulei would never be able to advance to the Integration Path in his lifetime.

“Of course, we know,” Gu Yunliu replied. “Brother Chen had already identified the foundational Dao Pattern for his advancement to the Integration Path some time ago.”

“Oh? Which esteemed expert guided him?” Lu Ye asked, a little surprised.

Gu Yunliu smiled, clapped his hands, and said, “Let this esteemed expert tell you himself.” As he did so, a beautiful maidservant walked gracefully towards Lu Ye, carrying a potted plant in both hands. She bowed deeply and then placed the potted plant on the table beside Lu Ye.

Lu Ye carefully examined the potted plant, then suddenly stood up, utterly surprised and delighted: “Elder, you've awakened?!” This potted plant was no ordinary plant at all; it was clearly a small sapling, and it bore the aura of the Cycle Tree! When Lu Ye had left back then, the Tree Elder had already entered a state of cyclical dormancy, and all the Cycle Tree avatars throughout the Starry Sky had withered and perished. Yet, unexpectedly, upon his return today, the Tree Elder had awakened. This undoubtedly meant its cycle had ended. The one before him should only be an avatar of the Tree Elder, but unlike those he had seen before, it was remarkably small.

“I've been awake for a while, but I haven't fully recovered yet,” the small sapling swayed, and the Tree Elder's voice emerged. “That's why I didn't sense your return, even when you came back.” If the Tree Elder were in a normal state, he would have instantly perceived Lu Ye's return, no matter where he was, because Lu Ye bore a mark of the Cycle Tree on his hand. However, due to the Tree Elder's weakened state, he hadn't noticed.

Upon seeing the Tree Elder, Lu Ye immediately understood who the esteemed expert guiding Chen Wulei was. As a treasure of the Starry Sky that had existed for countless millennia, and having even experienced the last Star Abyss invasion, the Tree Elder possessed intelligence far beyond anyone's imagination. Lu Ye was delighted. The Tree Elder's awakening significantly lightened his mood, even though the Tree Elder couldn't exert much influence in his current state. Before his return, Lu Ye had felt that the safety of the Starry Sky rested solely on his shoulders, but after seeing the Tree Elder, more than half of that pressure immediately dissipated.

After exchanging a few more casual words with the Tree Elder, Lu Ye turned his gaze back to Gu Yunliu. “Realm Master Gu, what is our overall situation here in Illusory Demise? When I returned, I didn't seem to see much trace of our own people.”

“It's difficult,” Gu Yunliu sighed. “Currently, in Illusory Demise, we only have a mere eighty-three Entrance Path cultivators, and there are occasional battle casualties. They are scattered throughout the entire star system, so it's naturally hard for you to see any trace of our people.”

“Hmm? Eighty-three?” Lu Ye was startled. This number wasn't too small; it was far greater than he had imagined. Consider that out of the six Star Abyss Gates in the entire Starry Sky, Illusory Demise alone had eighty-three. This implied that other locations would have at least a similar number. Didn't this mean there were nearly five hundred Entrance Path cultivators across the entire Starry Sky? This didn't even account for those who had died in battle; if they were included, the number would be even higher. When he had left the Starry Sky back then, there were only a handful of Entrance Path cultivators. And only a little over a decade had passed since then.

Seeming to perceive Lu Ye's confusion, Gu Yunliu chuckled. “Have you perhaps forgotten the various arrangements you made before you left, Fellow Daoist? In terms of this Starry Sky's foundations, under the catalysis of your arrangements, the birth of Entrance Path cultivators isn't actually that difficult. The challenge lies in cultivating after advancing to the Entrance Path.”

Lu Ye thought carefully for a moment and suddenly remembered that he had indeed made some arrangements before he left. Firstly, Kyushu had already been moved by Xiao Jiu to the Thousand Hills Graveyard. Kyushu was a realm capable of rapid growth, and leveraging the convenience of the Thousand Hills Graveyard, it had already advanced to a top-tier realm before Lu Ye's departure, with spiritual jade ore veins appearing within it. Furthermore, Xiao Jiu could, by consuming Kyushu's foundations, rapidly assist cultivators entering Kyushu in their cultivation and growth, almost as if bestowing enlightenment. This meant that Kyushu was effectively absorbing the foundations from the various mounds in the Thousand Hills Graveyard, strengthening itself, and then transferring that power to the cultivators selected by Xiao Jiu. With such assistance, the growth time for cultivators at the Sun Illumination level would be significantly reduced, allowing for rapid advancement.

Additionally, Lu Ye had negotiated with the Soul Clan, and their tribal lands were now open to the entire Starry Sky, no longer restricted to only Soul Clan members. Under these circumstances, Sun Illumination cultivators could rapidly improve their soul cultivation within. With this two-pronged approach, the growth rate of cultivators at the Sun Illumination level was many times faster than before.

Moreover, the Star Abyss invasion also made the Starry Sky's spiritual energy more active, making cultivation breakthroughs significantly easier than before. Once cultivators reached the requirements for advancement, they could enter areas enveloped by the Star Abyss's aura and advance to the Entrance Path using the Smelting Furnace Method or other techniques.

Prompted by Gu Yunliu's reminder, Lu Ye finally recalled these arrangements he had left behind. Of course, the biggest reason the Starry Sky could produce so many Entrance Path cultivators in such a short time was the accumulation of a sufficient number of Sun Illumination cultivators over generations!