Chapter 2378: Only Good at Talking

In a flash, Haichen made up his mind. He wanted to see what arrogant abilities this human truly possessed.

A moment later, away from the Star Abyss Gate, Lu Ye stood there casually, his gaze calm as he looked at Haichen nearby. "Make your move," he said, "you only get one chance!"

Haichen had originally intended to chat with Lu Ye a bit more, but hearing this, he immediately flew into a rage. "Then, fellow Daoist, be careful!" he retorted.

His form, which was not fixed, twisted and transformed, surprisingly turning into a colossal water dragon. The water dragon was lifelike, with clearly defined scales on its body, and a faint dragon's might permeated from it.

With a roar and a bellow, it lunged at Lu Ye, claws bared and fangs exposed. Before it even reached him, the formidable aura of a Dao Integration Peak cultivator swept in all directions.

In the blink of an eye, it was before him. The giant dragon opened its mouth and bit down on Lu Ye, but met no resistance, swallowing him in one gulp.

Haichen sneered inwardly. This human, Lu Ye, might indeed have some skill, but he was too arrogant and conceited. He had probably never encountered the Water Spirit race before, unaware of the strange properties of Water Spirit divine abilities. Now that he had been swallowed, Haichen only needed to activate the Immovable Heavy Water to refine him. Even if he were truly a Dao Integration Peak cultivator, he wouldn't last three breaths before his bones disintegrated.

But the allure of the personal treasure prevented him from harboring any killing intent. So, he decided to give Lu Ye a small punishment, to teach him what happens when you underestimate him.

Inside the water dragon's belly, Lu Ye remained still and unharmed. Strange currents of water enveloped him, and Lu Ye instantly felt his protective Dao power being corroded and dissolving as if by some unknown force.

However, the speed of this dissolution couldn't keep up with the speed of his replenishment...

Three breaths later, the water dragon, which had been calm and composed, changed its expression. Haichen clearly perceived that, under the refinement of his Immovable Heavy Water, the human soldier cultivator swallowed into its belly remained completely unaffected.

The protective Dao power on his body showed no signs of being refined!

Haichen was greatly alarmed. He had never encountered such a bizarre opponent. He had previously battled another Dao Integration Peak cultivator and had ultimately defeated and refined them in this very manner.

Both being Dao Integration cultivators, how could this human soldier cultivator be so powerful?

Five breaths...

Ten breaths...

Twenty breaths...

The object within its belly was like a stubborn rock, showing no signs of dissolving, no matter how it was refined.

"Is that all you've got?" Lu Ye's voice suddenly came from within the water dragon's belly. "Then it's my turn!"

The moment the words fell, Haichen's heart was filled with dread. He hurriedly cried out in alarm, "Fellow Daoist, wait!"

However, as he opened his mouth, what emerged was a brilliant blade light.

The blade light slashed out, and the colossal form was suddenly split in two. The water dragon dissipated, and Lu Ye strolled out from within it. Not far behind him, Haichen, who had reverted to his true form, had his formerly vibrant blue body become somewhat dim.

He was already injured!

He stared at Lu Ye with a horrified expression, still unable to believe what he had just experienced. After a long moment, he exclaimed in shock, "Brother Daoist... you are not Dao Integration?"

Realizing the vast power gap between himself and Lu Ye, 'fellow Daoist' had already become 'brother Daoist'.

"Of course I am Dao Integration!" Lu Ye said, looking at him.

"Dao Integration can't be this powerful!" Haichen shook his head. In that instant just now, the power Lu Ye displayed definitely exceeded three hundred Daos—a level he couldn't even touch, which was why he was defeated in a single move.

Indeed, if Lu Ye wished, he could take his life at any moment.

Only then did Haichen realize that what Lu Ye had said earlier was no exaggeration.

"Once you possess your own personal treasure, a Dao soldier, you'll also be this powerful," Lu Ye casually spouted nonsense without changing his expression.

Haichen's expression stirred, and his heart swelled with endless fantasies.

He had previously misunderstood Panshuan Blade to be a personal treasure, but he hadn't known how powerful a Dao Integration Peak cultivator wielding a personal treasure Dao soldier could be, until he experienced it firsthand just now.

This only intensified his desire to possess a personal treasure of his own.

"Brother Daoist, what do you need me to do?" Haichen asked, very aware of the situation.

Lu Ye was so powerful. If he challenged him near the Star Abyss Gate, he could easily kill him and seize the identity of the person in charge.

But he didn't do that. Instead, he brought him here and let him experience the difference in their strengths.

He had even offered to give him a personal treasure earlier, which clearly indicated he had something he wanted.

"It's simple. I want you to, within ten years, send the tens of thousands of cultivators from this side into the opposing starry sky in batches. For now, don't exceed two thousand at a time. If there are any changes later, I will have someone inform you."

On the Myriad Manifestation Sea side, there are three hundred Dao Entering cultivators, each possessing their own Dao artifact. If the invading enemies do not exceed two thousand at a time, they are fully capable of dealing with them.

At that time, they can kill enemies and hunt for bones to strengthen themselves.

When other Dao Integration cultivators emerge in the Myriad Manifestation Sea in the future—for example, if Jiuyan advances and breaks through—the number of enemies that can be dealt with at once will increase. At that point, they can find a way to communicate with Haichen to adjust the numbers.

Compared to Lu Ye's original plan of wiping out all tens of thousands of beings here in one go, this plan was undoubtedly better.

Because Dao bones cannot be preserved for too long, wiping out tens of thousands of cultivators at once would not significantly improve the starry sky as a whole; rather, it would only allow Lu Ye to get a huge fill.

But slaughtering them in batches is different; it can provide cultivation resources for the Myriad Manifestation Sea more consistently.

Haichen's expression changed upon hearing this. He wasn't stupid and naturally realized Lu Ye's intention behind this. His brows furrowed as he asked, "Brother Daoist, if I do this, how can I ascend to Dao Integration?"

He was still hoping to achieve Dao Integration through the shortcut of invading the starry sky. But if he followed Lu Ye's instructions, how could he achieve Dao Integration?

Lu Ye glanced at him indifferently. "If I kill you here, you'll have nothing," he stated.

What's there to talk about Dao Integration then?

Not to mention Haichen was powerless to resist here, even near the Star Abyss Gate, Lu Ye could openly challenge him.

Haichen's expression changed. He quickly said, "Brother Daoist, you misunderstand. That's not what I meant. It's just that... after such a fierce battle just now, it won't be easy to get them to enter the starry sky again."

"If it were easy, why would I need you? Are personal treasures so easy to acquire?" Lu Ye sneered.

Haichen was left speechless by the retort.

"You come up with the methods. If there's anything you need the starry sky to cooperate with, as long as it's not excessive, just speak up. I'll leave you a token. You'd best gather some trusted subordinates, and the communication of information between the starry sky and this side will be handled by them in the future." As he spoke, Lu Ye casually took out a jade slip, imbued it with his aura, and tossed it to Haichen.

Haichen took it, nodding repeatedly. "Brother Daoist, rest assured," he said, "I will certainly not disappoint you."

He hesitated and stammered a bit, before gritting his teeth and asking, "Brother Daoist, what about the personal treasure...?"

"I will personally give it to you in ten years!"

"Ten years!" Haichen's initial enthusiasm instantly cooled. Cooperating with a powerhouse like Lu Ye was like asking a tiger for its skin. The only reason he was tempted was the allure of the personal treasure, but now Lu Ye was telling him to wait ten years.

He wouldn't wait that long!

Who knew if ten years from now Lu Ye would keep his promise? If Lu Ye went back on his word then, could he even resist?

"What? You don't trust me?" Lu Ye glanced at him askance.

Haichen lied through his teeth. "Of course not," he said, "I have great faith in Brother Daoist's words, it's just that..."

"Speak your mind!" Lu Ye urged impatiently.

"Brother Daoist, you and I have had no prior contact, and we don't know each other's dispositions. How about we each swear an oath in the name of the Star Abyss Will? That way, Brother Daoist can also be assured of me, right?"

He completely avoided mentioning his own distrust of Lu Ye, but the meaning in his words was already very clear.

Lu Ye flew into a rage. "You want me to swear an oath? Where do you get such audacity?"

Haichen was terrified. "Brother Daoist, please calm your anger," he pleaded. "I was just making a suggestion. If Brother Daoist truly doesn't wish to, then pretend I never said anything."

This wouldn't work. He secretly decided that once this human soldier cultivator left, he would immediately depart and flee deep into the Star Abyss. Before such a powerful individual, without the restraint of an oath, he had absolutely no sense of security.

Just as he was thinking this, Lu Ye calmly said, "Very well. I act with a clear conscience and have always treated others with sincerity. Since you are uneasy, then let's swear an oath, for now!"

As he spoke, he indeed swore an oath in the name of the Star Abyss Will, promising that as long as Haichen acted according to his requirements within ten years, a personal treasure would definitely be bestowed upon him.

To ensure Haichen worked diligently, Lu Ye thoughtfully added a sentence: it would be a personal treasure capable of both offense and defense!

Haichen was ecstatic upon hearing this, wanting nothing more than to bow his head in worship, feeling that meeting Lu Ye was the luckiest event of his life!

He had originally just wanted any personal treasure, anything would do, but Lu Ye was actually going to give him a personal treasure capable of both offense and defense...

That was a treasure countless powerful cultivators longed for but could not obtain, and he could acquire it just by dutifully cooperating for ten years!

Ten years was nothing. What was ten years to a Dao Integration Peak cultivator?

This was practically like finding it for free.

Therefore, after Lu Ye swore his oath, he immediately followed suit, swearing an oath in the name of the Star Abyss Will, his expression sincere, his tone earnest.

Looking at Lu Ye again, he felt a much greater sense of closeness, and even his tone became much more fawning. "May I ask," he began, "Brother Daoist, with your immense power, why can you freely pass through the Star Abyss Gate?"

Lu Ye casually said, "Because I hail from that Yuan Starry Sky, the Star Abyss Gate holds no restraints over me."

Is that so?

Haichen was puzzled. He had never heard such a claim before. After all these years of cultivation, this was the first Star Abyss Gate he had encountered, so he had no way of distinguishing truth from falsehood.

However, since Lu Ye said it, it must be true.

This further astonished him, because the starry sky had actually given birth to a powerhouse like Lu Ye. This was clearly not normal.

"Do a good job. I'm leaving the matters here to you," Lu Ye encouraged. "I won't mistreat my own people."

"Brother Daoist, rest assured," Haichen pledged, "Our Water Spirit race values promises above all else. Since I have agreed to Brother Daoist, I will certainly not disappoint you!"

Lu Ye remained noncommittal. The talk about the Water Spirit race valuing promises above all else was merely something to hear; only an oath sworn in the name of the Star Abyss Will was truly unbreakable.

As for the binding nature of his own oath... Lu Ye took a moment to glance at the Talent Tree's reaction. At this moment, large plumes of dense black smoke were rising from the Talent Tree.

Swearing an oath was nothing; it was just words!