Chapter 280: Revenge

The Wind Rises Across the Nine Prefectures

"Wait!"

A voice came from behind, and Lu Ye and Ju Jia froze.

"Is there something else?" Lu Ye turned around, his fingers stroking his saber hilt.

"You helped me find Tangyuan. There's no need for thanks, but take this."

As the red-dressed woman's voice fell, an object suddenly flew towards Lu Ye.

He raised his hand to catch it and found it was a palm-sized token. The token looked ancient and weathered. Considering that Immortal Yuan City itself was from an unknown era, this was not surprising.

The material of the token was indistinct. One side had the character "仙" (Immortal), and the other had "敕" (Edict). Both sides featured a pattern of a fierce beast.

"This token…"

Lu Ye wanted to ask what the item was for, but the small courtyard suddenly receded rapidly from his sight. When he came to his senses, he and Ju Jia were already standing at the main gate.

This made his expression sharpen. He had been completely unaware of what had just happened, which only deepened his sense of the red-dressed woman's unfathomable strength.

There was no need to ask about the token's purpose anymore. She had already shown them the door, and going back in would likely yield no answers.

However, the token's uses were probably limited to a few possibilities. Lu Ye had a vague suspicion, but whether it was correct remained to be verified.

He raised his hand and tapped his battlefield imprint, sending a message: "Brother Ji, it's done here."

Ji Yan quickly replied: "I'll have someone lead you over. Do you need help?"

"No, this is a personal vendetta."

After waiting for a moment, the ghost cultivator who had previously led them to the white cat furtively appeared from nearby.

Lu Ye and Ju Jia stepped towards him, and the ghost cultivator led the way.

Not long after, a patrol of Immortal Yuan Guards approached. The ghost cultivator immediately concealed himself, and Ju Jia adopted a charging stance.

Lu Ye's current number of ghostly servants was at its maximum, so this patrol of Immortal Yuan Guards couldn't be converted; they had to be killed.

He raised his hand and patted Ju Jia's shoulder, signaling him to be patient. Lu Ye took out the token from his storage bag and flashed it at the Immortal Yuan Guards rushing toward them.

The hostile Immortal Yuan Guards immediately stopped. The squad leader, in particular, saluted Lu Ye: "My Lord!"

Lu Ye raised an eyebrow. The situation was largely as he had predicted.

He had just guessed that the token might have some influence over the spiritual entities in the city; otherwise, there was no reason for the red-dressed woman to give him such an item.

Now it seemed there was indeed an influence, and a significant one at that. He wondered what this token represented that an Immortal Yuan Guard squad leader would address him as "My Lord."

If he was addressed as "My Lord," could he command or mobilize these Immortal Yuan Guards? A sudden thought struck Lu Ye.

"I have a mission. Follow me!"

"Does My Lord have the Grand Commander's written order? We are responsible for patrols and cannot leave our posts without the Grand Commander's order."

What kind of written order? Lu Ye had never even seen what the Grand Commander looked like, so where would he get a written order?

It seemed the token had some use, but not as much as he had imagined. At most, it prevented the Immortal Yuan Guards from showing hostility toward him.

This meant that by holding this token, he could walk freely through the city without fear.

For others, this might be a good item, but for Lu Ye, it wasn't that important.

"In that case, continue your patrol," Lu Ye said, waving his hand nonchalantly.

"Understood!" The squad leader responded, then led the Immortal Yuan Guards away.

The ghost cultivator, who had been hidden nearby, reappeared, looking utterly astonished. Lu Ye's ability to control spiritual entities through his beast companion was already astonishing, but now he had pulled out a token that made even the Immortal Yuan Guards address him as "My Lord."

This ghost cultivator had truly never seen anything so bizarre, and the various intelligence reports on Immortal Yuan City had never mentioned the existence of this token.

This was very important intelligence. Immortal Yuan City wouldn't appear only once; it would likely reappear in the future. If another cultivator could obtain this token, they would no longer need to worry about being troubled by the Immortal Yuan Guards.

One could say that just this piece of information, if sold to the Heavenly Secret Merchant Alliance, would be worth hundreds or thousands of spirit stones.

However, he quickly thought of something else and immediately messaged Ji Yan.

Upon learning of the token's existence, Ji Yan was greatly moved and told him to first assist Lu Ye in handling the current matter, and other things could be discussed later.

The ghost cultivator naturally complied.

Under his guidance, Lu Ye and Ju Jia headed in one direction.

Along the way, whenever they encountered Immortal Yuan Guards, Lu Ye would dismiss them with the token.

It was two hours later when they finally arrived at an open area. Looking around, nearly twenty people were gathered there, all bearing injuries.

These were the only surviving cultivators from the Myriad Demon Ridge who had entered Immortal Yuan City this time.

Chu Qing and Ruo Yan were prominently among them.

They had actually chosen not to hide.

"They were hiding before, but now they've come out for some reason. Fellow Daoist Yi Ye, beware of a trap," the ghost cultivator warned.

Under normal circumstances, this group of defeated individuals would naturally hide as much as possible and never show themselves easily. However, while Immortal Yuan City was not small, it was still finite. Hiding might work for a while but not forever. If the Haotian Alliance truly decided to hunt them down, they couldn't stay hidden. It seemed they had realized this, which was why they moved from their hiding place to this open area.

Such a place was unsuitable for ambushes and difficult to be ambushed in.

"Let's go. It seems they're waiting for us."

Lu Ye called out to Ju Jia, his hand on his saber hilt, and walked forward step by step. Ju Jia followed closely beside him. As they drew nearer, numerous spiritual entities flew out from Amber's body. Ju Jia's eyes slowly turned crimson, fixed intently on the woman named Ruo Yan. The ghost cultivator wanted to step forward to help, but remembering Ji Yan's earlier instructions, he did not follow.

As the two and their numerous spiritual entities approached, the Myriad Demon Ridge side gradually stirred. In the crowd, Chu Qing opened her eyes, slowly stood up, and quietly looked forward.

Stopping about thirty feet from the Myriad Demon Ridge group, Lu Ye and Chu Qing exchanged gazes.

"It really is you two who came!" Chu Qing said.

Lu Ye remained silent.

"Did you find the cat?" Chu Qing asked again.

When Lu Ye returned the white cat to the red-dressed woman, the restraints on him and Ju Jia were lifted. At the same time, the invisible restraints on Chu Qing and others were also removed.

It was at that moment that Chu Qing subtly sensed something was wrong.

Because some things were too coincidental.

Among the twenty surviving Myriad Demon Ridge cultivators, seventy percent were from their Wind and Flower Academy, and the remaining few were rogue cultivators. When they first fled here, Chu Qing hadn't thought much about it, believing it was simply her sect's cultivators having good luck. Especially for her and Ruo Yan, during the previous battles, very few attacks had ever targeted them.

But what if it wasn't just luck?

Perhaps someone wanted them to stay alive for a while, so they could personally exact their revenge?

If that were the case, everything would make sense.

Among the entire Haotian Alliance, only Lu Ye would do such a thing, and he had the means to do so.

Now that the red-dressed woman's restraints had been lifted, there was nothing to stop their mutual slaughter.

So, she made a decisive decision, leading the remaining people from their hiding place to this open area. Because only this way could they possibly drag Lu Ye or Ju Jia down with them before they died. Continuing to hide would only lead to being surrounded by the Haotian Alliance, resulting in a meaningless death.

Chu Qing seemed to want to say more, but Lu Ye was disinclined to listen.

"Attack!"

At his command, numerous ghostly servants simultaneously sprang into action. The wailing cries and the sound of the pipa were the first to be heard, followed by the deployment of spirit-binding chains. Several special spiritual entities unleashed their divine abilities. Among them, the Butcher, who had achieved nothing in the previous battles, charged forward with his bone-cleaving knife, accompanying Ju Jia.

The Myriad Demon Ridge cultivators, who had long been prepared, naturally wouldn't sit idly by and immediately counterattacked.

Lu Ye's ghostly servants alone were more than these Myriad Demon Ridge cultivators could handle, not to mention the added help of Ju Jia.

Having such a powerful body cultivator at the forefront could attract too many attacks. Ju Jia had already refined the defensive spirit artifact Lu Ye gave him, positioning it in front of himself, transforming into a shield-like protection. He strode forward, and nothing in front could withstand his charge.

Booming sounds were incessant, accompanied by cries of alarm and screams.

When Ju Jia crashed into the crowd and the Butcher raised his bone-cleaving knife, defeat had already become the ultimate fate of these Myriad Demon Ridge cultivators.

A long saber suddenly struck from Ju Jia's side, aiming straight for his temple. Ju Jia pulled his head back, spun sharply, and unleashed a punch in that direction, pulverizing a Myriad Demon Ridge cultivator there. Then, Ju Jia saw the owner of the long saber. He ignored everything else, took a stride, and attacked the saber's owner.

The battle was chaotic, yet Chu Qing received no attacks. However, she dared not make any rash moves, as Lu Ye's gaze remained fixed on her.

Lu Ye raised his hand, slowly drawing his Mountain-Resting Saber, its tip angled towards the ground.

"If you can block three of my strikes, I'll spare your life!"

The instant the word "life" fell, Lu Ye transformed into an afterimage. The alarm bells in Chu Qing's heart reached their limit at that moment. Almost instinctively, she crossed her twin swords.

A fiery red spiritual force flowed before her, and a downward slash struck her twin swords.

Sparks flew, and a crisp clang rang out. Chu Qing felt an irresistible force descending from above. Even with all her strength, she struggled to block this swift and ferocious strike. Under the pressure, her body continuously sank lower. The long saber slowly pressed down, its sharp edge tearing through the clothes on her shoulder, revealing the treasure armor beneath.

She gritted her teeth, flexing her arms fiercely and wildly channeling her spiritual power. Just as she was exerting all her might to push back the saber, a flash of light suddenly appeared on the Mountain-Resting Saber.

A weighty spiritual pattern.

With a hum, even the air seemed to distort slightly.

It was as if a great mountain had descended from the sky, pressing down on Chu Qing's shoulders. Her already lowered body could no longer hold out, and she collapsed to her knees with a crash. A pained expression crossed Chu Qing's face; she vaguely felt her leg bones fracturing.