Chapter 2813: Parting Ways

Winds Rise Across the Nine Provinces

Saint Four!

This was a True Saint Lu Ye had never seen before.

“There’s one here too!” Xue Jiu’s voice trembled slightly.

Lu Ye quickly looked towards another massive pillar. There, he saw a figure standing, also wearing a mask. The difference was that the number on this mask was Six!

Saint Six!

He swiftly turned his gaze to other directions.

Sure enough, he saw the figures of other True Saints, including Yang Qing, whom he had just met, and Saint Three and Saint Seven, whom he had seen before.

All were present: a total of eight figures, eight True Saints!

Only beneath one massive pillar was there no one.

These eight True Saints stood quietly, all looking up at the sky.

Although they all wore masks that obscured their expressions, Lu Ye had a feeling they were anticipating something.

Anticipating the arrival of the ninth True Saint!

Both Lu Ye and Xue Jiu held their breath, daring not to move.

Even one True Saint was an existence beyond their reach, let alone eight appearing at once.

The Half-Saints’ conjecture about the True Saints residing on Abyssal Island was correct; all the True Saints were here.

But if one True Saint corresponded to one massive pillar, then one was clearly missing.

Lu Ye had a faint feeling that if the ninth True Saint arrived, something significant would happen, and it definitely wouldn't be good.

Clattering…

The sound of chains echoed throughout the entire realm. Gradually, the chains were being retrieved, and above the sky, a swath of starlight seemed to follow. Lu Ye quickly suppressed his inner shock, averted his gaze, and looked up at the heavens.

“Are those feet?” Xue Jiu looked puzzled, as what was being dragged along by the chains were clearly a pair of starlit feet.

Then came the calves, followed by the waist.

The entire process was neither too fast nor too slow.

“Not Ba Qiu?” Xue Jiu grew even more perplexed. In his and Lu Ye’s conjecture, if anyone in the Inner Realm was qualified to become a True Saint, it would undoubtedly be Ba Qiu. But it seemed that wasn't the case now?

Judging solely by the body being dragged by the chains, this was definitely a colossal nebula giant, seemingly unrelated to Ba Qiu.

Yet, Lu Ye felt a faint sense of familiarity from it.

Just as the two were observing, a sudden change occurred.

The dark chains, swaying like colossal dragons, abruptly halted, then disintegrated without warning, vanishing from sight. Along with the chains, the half-formed body of the nebula giant also dissipated.

What was happening?

“Gah!” A strange sound suddenly rang out.

The two quickly looked towards the True Saints. At that moment, the eight True Saints still maintained their sky-gazing posture, and the strange sound emanated from their mouths.

It was perfectly synchronized, as if coming from a single entity.

Furthermore, a palpable sense of anger emanated from these True Saints.

Lu Ye and Xue Jiu immediately trembled, even more afraid to make a sound.

Before the True Saints’ cries ceased, the heavens and earth suddenly trembled. The waters of Caged Sea surged, stirring up thousand-foot waves.

In the gray, hazy sky, a fissure appeared, and light shone brightly through it.

It was a flash of blade light!

An incredibly fierce blade light, tearing through the barrier of the Source Realm.

Lu Ye’s eyes instantly lit up, for he felt a familiar aura emanating from that fissure.

It was the aura of the Inner Realm!

In that instant, Lu Ye’s body moved almost instinctively.

He had always been searching for a way to leave the Source Realm, unwilling to remain trapped there, but even Si Shengya couldn't help with that.

From ancient times until now, there had been no precedent for anyone in the Source Realm to leave. Caged Sea was a prison for humans, and the Source Realm was a prison for Half-Saints.

But now, this prison had a flaw, giving Lu Ye hope of escape.

He quickly called out to Xue Jiu, “Let’s go!”

The next moment, he looked back, for Xue Jiu stood still, unmoving.

A single glance allowed Lu Ye to discern Xue Jiu’s thoughts.

He didn’t want to go! And he wouldn't!

It made sense. If Lu Ye’s previous conjecture was correct, then the Blood Clan in the Inner Realm was likely in a dire situation, very possibly with even Blood Drink City being breached.

Under such circumstances, if Xue Jiu returned to the Inner Realm, where would he stand? He would likely be immediately hunted down by the Phoenix Lord.

Lu Ye certainly wouldn't help him.

So, rather than slinking back to the Inner Realm, it was better to remain in the Source Realm.

He had already acquired Xue Tianxing’s bloodline; he only needed time to refine it, and then he could become a Half-Saint, holding a position of power and authority.

Furthermore, could one truly return to the Inner Realm through that fissure? That too was uncertain.

Taking another step back, even if he returned to the Inner Realm, once he became a Half-Saint, he would still sink into the Source Realm. Why bother taking the risk?

His situation was completely different from Lu Ye’s.

“Here!” Lu Ye flipped his hand, and the Flood-tier Great Path Pearl appeared in his palm, which he then threw to Xue Jiu.

Xue Jiu instinctively caught it, and just as he was about to say something, Lu Ye’s figure flickered and vanished from his spot.

Looking at the Flood-tier Great Path Pearl in his hand, Xue Jiu frowned deeply, without a trace of joy.

Despite his recent constant proximity to Lu Ye, seemingly without any barriers between them, their past grievances were still held in their hearts. It was only due to the current unusual situation and the restriction of a blood oath that they huddled together for warmth.

Xue Jiu knew clearly that Lu Ye wouldn’t be so kind to him without a reason. Before leaving, Lu Ye even remembered to return the Flood-tier Great Path Pearl, as if afraid he would die in the Source Realm.

With this Great Path Pearl, once he became a Half-Saint, his strength would stand at the peak of the Source Realm!

An anomaly always indicated something sinister. Xue Jiu’s heart sank, and some of his conjectures were increasingly confirmed.

For a moment, he felt that the Heaven’s Punishment bloodline was like a gourmet meal smeared with excrement, utterly disgusting.

How could Lu Ye pay attention to any of this?

At this moment, he had already activated his spatial power and instantly arrived before the fissure.

He didn’t know why this fissure appeared, nor did he understand the astonishing blade light he’d seen earlier. He only knew that this was his last hope to leave the Source Realm and return to the Inner Realm.

He had to take this gamble, no matter what.

Suddenly, an extreme malevolence surged from behind him, as if malicious gazes were fixed upon him, and not just one.

Lu Ye’s heart froze, realizing those were the gazes of the True Saints.

If Saint Seven and Yang Qing’s previous appearances were an instinctive reaction to sensing a bloodline of the same origin, then this malice now was a manifestation of the Abyssal Will.

It seemed that only at this moment did it finally discover the figure of this rebellious son who had been hiding right under its nose.

Even if its sentience wasn't fully developed, it was extremely enraged.

Saint Seven raised a hand and gently clenched it towards Lu Ye’s direction from afar.

Space vibrated and collapsed. A great alarm rose in Lu Ye’s heart. A sense of crisis unlike any he had ever felt made his hair stand on end, and a dense aura of death enveloped him.

He frantically urged his own Dao power, almost recklessly drawing his blade and slashing around himself.

The Heavenly Edge Blade was wielded to its utmost at this moment, and then his body felt light.

He was utterly astonished, never imagining he could withstand an attack from Saint Seven.

However, the next moment, an even greater crisis descended, because as his blade fell, several more violent attacks assailed him.

And all those attacks came from the True Saints on Abyssal Island.

He was doomed!

Lu Ye sighed inwardly. With his current strength, he was barely a match for a Half-Saint, let alone True Saints, especially with so many attacking at once.

The Abyss’s hatred for this rebellious son was undoubtedly at its peak. It didn’t matter that it hadn’t noticed him before; now that it had, it naturally wouldn't leave him any way out.

As these thoughts raced through his mind, Lu Ye felt his body violently shake, his blood and qi in disarray, golden stars dancing before his eyes. A tearing pain coursed through his entire body, and his consciousness grew muddled, but his figure, under the barrage of attacks, plunged into the fissure and vanished.

On Abyssal Island, Xue Jiu trembled, like a quail without a nest in winter.

The turn of events was abrupt. Lu Ye, who was present, had his back to Abyssal Island and hadn’t clearly seen what happened, only knowing that he was attacked by the True Saints.

But Xue Jiu saw everything clearly.

Almost the instant Saint Seven attacked, a dark chain suddenly materialized on her body, binding her tightly.

This was why Lu Ye’s single strike could break Saint Seven’s technique. Because with the appearance of that chain, Saint Seven’s power was greatly weakened. Otherwise, given the immense difference in their strengths, and Saint Seven being of Phoenix lineage, Lu Ye would have had no way to escape.

The situations of the other True Saints were almost identical to Saint Seven’s; as they attacked, chains also appeared on their bodies.

Just like the chains that appeared in the previous celestial phenomenon.

Then Xue Jiu saw Lu Ye spitting blood, his body floating like a thin sheet of paper into the fissure, and then the fissure in the sky vanished.

“Gah!” The strange cries simultaneously erupted from the mouths of the eight True Saints again, their anger and unwillingness like a furious storm and surging waves on the ocean, raging relentlessly.

The dark chains entwining the True Saints slowly dissipated, as if they had never appeared.

Slowly, the True Saints also vanished, and Abyssal Island returned to tranquility.

Xue Jiu stood rooted to the spot, his heart pounding erratically.

What he had seen and heard today was beyond imagination. There were many things he didn’t understand and had never heard of. Right now, he only cared about one thing—whether that fellow Lu Ye was dead or not!

He should be dead, right…?

With so many True Saints attacking at once, how could Lu Ye, merely an Integration cultivator, possibly survive? Although it seemed the suddenly appearing chains greatly weakened the True Saints’ power, the might of their combined attacks was still not to be underestimated. Xue Jiu believed that he himself would have had no chance of survival.

Lu Ye must be dead too!

“Hahahaha!” Xue Jiu laughed heartily, bending over backward, tears almost streaming from his eyes.

This was truly a colossal surprise. When Lu Ye had thrown the Flood-tier Great Path Pearl over earlier, Xue Jiu had confirmed some of his conjectures, feeling awkward and disgusted because if his suspicions were true, then the Heaven’s Punishment bloodline couldn't be refined casually.

What Lu Ye didn’t know was that Xue Jiu hadn’t been refining the Heaven’s Punishment bloodline at all recently, but was doing something else.

Now, that was no longer necessary. Since Lu Ye was dead, all his concerns and worries vanished. He could finally refine the Heaven’s Punishment bloodline with peace of mind and embark on the path to becoming a Half-Saint.

From now on, in this Source Realm, he, Xue Jiu, would be the strongest!