Chapter 2428: How Is It So Strong Again?

As this strike was unleashed, the body cultivator couldn't help but shudder, feeling the wild power pouring out from the Pan Mountain Saber, and exclaimed in surprise, "So powerful!"

If he were to face Lu Ye one-on-one, he truly wouldn't be a match. However, Lu Ye wouldn't find it easy to kill him either. Besides, he wasn't alone now, so he immediately scoffed, "That's all you've got!"

No sooner had he spoken than an even more ferocious power surged from the saber he had blocked. This level of power was utterly beyond his ability to resist.

Like a piece of paper, under the sharp edge of the Pan Mountain Saber, the body cultivator was split in half, blood and internal organs gushing out. In his two halved eyes, there was still an expression of utter disbelief.

Lu Ye passed through a spray of blood. Like a tiger descending a mountain, he charged towards the enemy group.

He couldn't understand why that body cultivator, who didn't even have an essence treasure, was so arrogant.

The body cultivator's death undoubtedly stunned the Integration Realm cultivators following him. Everyone knew the body cultivator's capabilities; while not unshakable at the Integration Realm level, he had indeed successfully retreated unscathed from confrontations with Peak Integration Realm cultivators.

So, no one expected such a powerful expert to be killed by the enemy with a single saber strike.

Without any warning, Lu Ye charged directly at the enemies. The cold saber light flashed once more.

The leading Integration Realm cultivator was quite strong and reacted quickly. In a rush, he activated his full power and raised his Dao weapon to block.

To his astonishment, he found that he had actually blocked the attack.

What was going on? He had thought the enemy, capable of instantly killing a body cultivator with one strike, would be incredibly powerful. But judging by the force feedback from the opponent, it didn't seem all that strong now.

However, the next instant he knew he was wrong. Just like the body cultivator had felt moments ago, an overwhelming, irresistible force transferred from the saber he had blocked. He had no room to resist whatsoever. His Dao weapon flew out of his hand, and he watched helplessly as the flash of saber light sliced towards his head.

The engagement lasted but a moment, and the second Integration Realm cultivator fell dead on the spot!

"Harmony Realm!" someone exclaimed.

These Integration Realm cultivators had all cultivated their way up from the outer realm. Each possessed extraordinary abilities. The weakest among them was at least at the seventh level of the Integration Realm.

The two killed by Lu Ye were both at the ninth level of the Integration Realm.

With such cultivation, it was impossible for anyone at the Integration Realm level to instantly kill them. Yet, Lu Ye did it as easily as slicing melons and dicing vegetables.

Unless he was a Harmony Realm cultivator, such terrifying power would be impossible.

"No, he has an essence treasure!" someone else shouted. It was easy to discern if someone was in the Harmony Realm, because Harmony Realm cultivators could draw upon external power, which Integration Realm cultivators could not.

Since he wasn't in the Harmony Realm, yet was so powerful, there was only one explanation: the saber in Lu Ye's hand was an essence treasure, and it had been cultivated to an extremely high degree. This was why it could exert such an overwhelming effect against two ninth-level Integration Realm cultivators in combat.

In that hurried moment, a third Integration Realm cultivator was cut down.

Lu Ye was now surrounded. Numerous attacks assailed him from all directions. He darted about, but couldn't evade everything. However, with his current power of over 600 Dao patterns, as long as he wasn't subjected to too much focused fire at once, he wouldn't be in significant danger.

But under these circumstances, it wouldn't be as easy for him to kill enemies as before.

None of them were incompetent. The fact that Lu Ye had killed three of them in such a short time was mainly due to his exceptional speed and strength.

However, the combined might of over a dozen Integration Realm cultivators was not something to be underestimated. If Lu Ye were currently in the Harmony Realm, even with only 500 Dao patterns of power, he could deal with these opponents more easily, as he could draw upon external power to unleash greater strength.

But an Integration Realm cultivator was, after all, still just an Integration Realm cultivator.

Lu Ye could only rely on his agility technique, constantly shifting and maneuvering, looking for an opportune moment.

Eventually, a fourth Integration Realm cultivator made a mistake, and Lu Ye seized the chance to slay him.

However, he noticed a problem: these Integration Realm cultivators seemed to be planning something. They appeared to have a strategy targeting powerful individuals, and their formation was clearly deliberate. Throughout their entanglement with Lu Ye, they were consistently forcing him in a specific direction.

Lu Ye feigned ignorance, and instead went along with their flow. Being highly skilled and daring, he wanted to see what these people were truly up to.

Sure enough, a moment later, someone suddenly roared, "Ba Sa!"

"I've been waiting," an Integration Realm cultivator replied. This was likely the cultivator named Ba Sa. As he spoke, he abruptly unleashed his Dao weapon. It was a large net. When deployed, the net shimmered with a halo of light and intricate patterns.

Few cultivators would cultivate this type of Dao weapon, as it could only be used to restrain enemies, not kill them, which was ultimately inconvenient.

However, Peak Integration Realm cultivators, during their long years of cultivation, if unable to advance to the Harmony Realm, would choose to cultivate other Dao weapons in addition to their primary one.

This Integration Realm cultivator named Ba Sa was a Peak Integration Realm expert. This Netherworld Net was his second Dao weapon, which he had cultivated to its peak. Combined with his own power, it could exert binding power to the absolute limit of the Integration Realm.

Lu Ye had indeed displayed great power earlier, and even seemed to possess an essence treasure. However, once restrained by the Netherworld Net, no matter how strong he was, he would be at their mercy. This was because the Netherworld Net not only had powerful binding capabilities but was also infused with potent toxins.

What the many Integration Realm cultivators had done moments before was all for this very moment.

The Netherworld Net spread open. Lu Ye seemed to have been caught off guard; it was too late to escape when he tried to flee. He was directly caught in the net.

"Gather!" Ba Sa gripped his hand, and the Netherworld Net rapidly tightened.

"Attack!" an Integration Realm cultivator shouted. They had no intention of sparing Lu Ye's life. They had already lost four Integration Realm cultivators in this battle, creating enmity. Now that Lu Ye was trapped, it was time for revenge.

As he finished speaking, several Integration Realm cultivators flashed forward, intent on finishing him off.

Under the restraint of the Netherworld Net, they couldn't unleash long-range attacks, as doing so would damage the net. Thus, they could only engage in close combat to claim his life.

This was exactly what Lu Ye wanted.

A faint brilliance bloomed from the long saber in his hand. The sensation of sharpness had never been so intense. He channeled his Dao power and lightly flicked the saber upwards.

Ba Sa's face suddenly turned pale. He shouted, "Retreat quickly!"

In that very instant, he clearly felt that the Netherworld Net, which he had cultivated to its absolute limit, had been effortlessly torn open by a powerful force!

No Integration Realm cultivator had ever been able to destroy a Dao weapon so easily.

This enemy... was far stronger than they had imagined. He was definitely not someone they could contend with.

As Ba Sa's voice trailed off, Lu Ye had already broken free. The few Integration Realm cultivators charging towards him were stunned.

They had been ready to personally kill Lu Ye and avenge their fallen companions. Who would have thought the enemy would break free?

In that instant, they felt as if they were facing an ancient beast unleashed from its cage. Just its ferocious aura sent shivers down their spines.

The saber light flashed again. A scream erupted, and the fastest-charging Integration Realm cultivator immediately met a terrible fate.

Ba Sa stood in the distance, feeling a chill run through his entire body.

There were over a dozen Integration Realm cultivators attacking together, just to deal with one enemy. How had it come to this?

Fortunately, he was also a person of strong will. So, he immediately disengaged and retreated, rushing towards the central hall of Yuanxi City.

Their purpose in coming out was not to kill enemies, but to destroy Yuanxi City's Harmony Orb. This would weaken Yuanxi's power, indirectly assisting their own City Lord.

And as long as their City Lord could win, no matter how strong this Integration Realm cultivator was, he would only be waiting for death.

His thinking was extremely clear. As for whether there were any other hidden enemies in the city...

He believed there likely weren't any, because if there were, they would have emerged already. They wouldn't have let that Human military cultivator fight alone.

The path was clear, and he quickly reached the central hall. There, he saw the Harmony Orb placed on a high platform.

As long as he destroyed this Harmony Orb, his mission would be complete. He could then retreat to Flowing Light City. No matter how strong that Human cultivator was, he wouldn't be able to break through Flowing Light City's defenses and pursue them.

As he was thinking this, his body suddenly stiffened. For on the high platform where the Harmony Orb was placed, a figure stood silently.

In appearance, it was identical to the Human military cultivator fighting outside. The only difference was that this individual didn't seem to be a military cultivator; they only had a gourd-shaped treasure at their waist.

Ba Sa instantly became wary and uncertain. The target was right before him, yet he dared not make any rash moves. Lu Ye's strength had cast a deep psychological shadow on him, and he didn't know how strong this figure in front of him was.

After a brief ponder, he thought the military cultivator outside was abnormally powerful. Even if this one wasn't weak, it shouldn't be equally strong.

He was a Peak Integration Realm cultivator. At the Integration Realm level, whom did he need to fear?

Steeling his resolve, he raised his hand and struck towards the Harmony Orb.

The Harmony Orb was actually quite fragile. With Ba Sa's strength, he could easily break it. The Harmony Orb placed here was, in fact, formed by merging two of the lowest-grade Harmony Orbs. Once it sustained an impact beyond its capacity, it would split back into its original forms.

Almost simultaneously with Ba Sa's attack, he suddenly saw the figure that had been standing silently pat the gourd-shaped treasure at their waist.

A streak of sword light shot out from the gourd's opening, reaching him in a flash. Its speed was unbelievably fast.

Ba Sa had already been on guard. He tried his best to dodge, but found he couldn't evade and had to take the hit.

Then his body shuddered, and his face was filled with an expression of disbelief.

He slowly lowered his head, looking at his chest. A puncture wound had appeared there, he didn't know when. On the surface, the injury seemed light, but he knew well that his insides were a complete mess, and even his life force was rapidly dissipating.

How could he be this strong again? He was a Peak Integration Realm cultivator, yet he couldn't even withstand one blow from his opponent. Was this an Integration Realm cultivator, or a Harmony Realm one...?

With a thud, Ba Sa's corpse fell to the ground. The clone, however, paid no attention, merely guarding the high platform.

Yuanxi had told him earlier that during the major battle, he didn't need to do anything, just protect himself.

Because Yuanxi had long intended to abandon Yuanxi City's Harmony Orb.