Chapter 358: Killing Feast

No signs of a struggle were visible, yet the corpse of a Tier-Nine Ghost Cultivator lay there.The situation... seemed somewhat complicated.Then, he looked up and met Lu Ye's expressionless gaze.

Cold sweat trickled down Yu Qi's forehead. The moment their eyes met, Yu Qi knew he had been exposed.He didn't understand how he had been discovered.Logically, a Tier-Seven Blade Cultivator like Lu Yi Ye should not have been able to detect his presence.

Ghost Cultivators were indeed a faction naturally capable of fighting above their tier, but their deterrence was significantly reduced once their whereabouts were revealed.Without a moment's hesitation, Yu Qi leaped backward, unleashing an unprecedented burst of speed.

With a whooshing sound, three streaks of light shot towards him in a triangular formation.He had long heard of Lu Ye's weapon manipulation techniques, so he quickly summoned his own spiritual artifact. With a series of clangs, the three incoming streaks of light were deflected. Yu Qi also used the recoil to fly back over ten meters. However, just as he stabilized himself, another streak of light silently approached from the side.

Yu Qi hastily dodged but was still grazed on the shoulder by the streak of light. Intense pain instantly flared, and blood began to flow from his wound.At the same time, another whooshing sound came from behind him. Looking up, he saw five or six more streaks of light attacking from various angles.

In that fleeting moment, only one thought flashed through Yu Qi's mind:"I'm doomed!"

He knew Lu Ye was powerful, capable of killing Tier-Nine cultivators as a Tier-Seven. But before, it had only been hearsay, without a clear concept of his strength, until now when he experienced it firsthand.He, a Tier-Eight cultivator who had opened three hundred and ten meridians, couldn't even put up a fight against Lu Ye, who was a tier lower than him.

What's more, Lu Ye had remained seated the entire time, forcing him into desperation solely through his weapon manipulation.This level of power was beyond his comprehension.

In that life-or-death moment, he pressed his hand to his battlefield mark and urgently sent out a message.Only one thought filled his mind: his death didn't matter; he had to quickly reveal Lu Yi Ye's location.

He hadn't done this earlier when he first found Lu Ye, primarily because he wanted to monopolize the benefits of killing him. But now, he had no choice but to send the message.He just wondered if it would be in time!

*Zheng...*A soft hum resonated. Yu Qi could almost feel the sharpness of the artifacts attacking from all directions. Then, he realized he wasn't dead.Every spiritual artifact had stopped, hovering just an inch from his body.

Yu Qi remained frozen in a stiff posture, not daring to move.Large drops of sweat slid down his face. Yu Qi rolled his eyes, looking at Lu Ye, who was still seated in his original spot.

"Have you sent the message?" Lu Ye asked."What?" Yu Qi didn't react immediately."Did the message go through?""Yes," Yu Qi instinctively replied."Excellent!"

As soon as he spoke, the several spiritual artifacts hovering before Yu Qi erupted with dazzling spiritual light.In the instant before his death, Yu Qi gritted his teeth and said, "I'll wait for you on the Yellow Springs Road!"

Blood splattered. Yu Qi's hastily condensed protective spiritual power was like paper against the onslaught of the artifacts. Spiritual artifacts pierced his vital points, drawing forth sprays of hot blood, then flew back into Lu Ye's weapon box at his waist.*Thud...*Yu Qi's body fell.

Ju Jia put down the half-roasted wild boar he was holding and stepped forward. He picked up Yu Qi's corpse, took the storage bag from his waist, and then tossed the body behind the large rock. Behind the rock, several other corpses lay haphazardly.They were all Ghost Cultivators who had discovered Lu Ye's whereabouts. However, none of them were easy to deal with; every Ghost Cultivator who found his trace fantasized about ambushing and killing him alone. As a result, not a single one escaped, and they all lay there.None of those Ghost Cultivators had even managed to leak his location before they died.

Until Yu Qi.After days of preparation and spending a significant amount of merit, Lu Ye's location was now exposed. A feast of slaughter was about to begin.

Moments after Yu Qi's death, teams from the Myriad Devils Ridge began rapidly converging on Lu Ye's location within Misty Mountain.The closest team arrived in just half an incense stick's time, detecting Lu Ye's presence from afar. This team did not rush into an attack but quietly lay in wait for other teams to gather.

Half an hour later, five teams had converged, totaling over seventy people.More teams were still approaching.

Only then did several teams begin to encircle him from all sides. As they drew closer, killing intent erupted.At this point, there was no need to hide their presence. Gazing at the figure standing on the large rock, every Myriad Devils Ridge cultivator's eyes burned with fervor.

"Lu Yi Ye, prepare to die!""Kill Lu Yi Ye!""Avenge our fallen comrades!"

Angry shouts echoed from all directions. The scene, at first glance, resembled numerous righteous warriors besieging an utterly evil demon. Streaks of light from spiritual artifacts and spells began to erupt, thundering towards Lu Ye.

However, to the utter astonishment of all Myriad Devils Ridge cultivators, Lu Ye remained standing there, motionless. He showed no intention of dodging the overwhelming onslaught of attacks."What in the world is this guy doing?" all the Myriad Devils Ridge cultivators who witnessed this scene wondered, bewildered.Such an offensive, let alone a Tier-Seven cultivator, even an ordinary Cloud River Realm cultivator would not dare to take head-on.Unless he was seeking death.

Naturally, Lu Ye was not seeking death. Just as the numerous attacks were about to strike, a formation flag suddenly appeared in his hand. With a gentle wave of the flag, and the activation of spiritual power, a visible barrier of light abruptly rose, enveloping him and Ju Jia completely.

Upon the light barrier, numerous protective spiritual runes moved like swimming fish."Protective formation!" a Myriad Devils Ridge cultivator exclaimed, finally understanding why Lu Ye was so brazen.He had clearly set up a protective formation in his current location.

This type of defensive formation originated from the same source as the large protective formations used in outposts. However, because it needed to protect a smaller area, it was exceptionally sturdy.The reason Lu Ye was feared by all factions in Myriad Devils Ridge was his array-breaking methods demonstrated in the inner circle. He could dismantle formations even of the protective great array level, so setting up formations was naturally no challenge for him.

A sense of unease rose in the hearts of many Myriad Devils Ridge cultivators, instinctively reminding them of a problem they had consistently overlooked...A thunderous roar erupted. As the power of numerous spiritual artifacts and spells descended, the light barrier of the protective formation surrounding Lu Ye and Ju Jia rippled. The barrier's glow visibly dimmed at a rapid pace, likely to shatter in less than ten breaths.

However, at that very moment, another formation flag appeared in Lu Ye's hand. As the flag waved, the skin of over a dozen cultivators from a Myriad Devils Ridge team attacking from the side tingled, and an immense sense of crisis welled up within them.Simultaneously, bright patterns appeared beneath their feet, instantly converging into a large formation covering an area of over ten meters.

Four concealed formation flags emerged at the four corners of the large formation. The flags resonated with each other, and the spiritual power stored within them outlined a spiritual rune pattern."Explosion!"

This was a spiritual rune Lu Ye had recently acquired from the Talent Tree. This rune was most suitable for use in formations.The extensive knowledge of array arts he gained from challenging the Hundred Array Pagoda in the Grand Evolution Sect had given him an unimaginable improvement in his array mastery. Moreover, the benefits of such an enlightenment were not immediately apparent; much of the knowledge was worth repeatedly pondering and savoring, continually enhancing his array arts in the process.During the trials of the Hundred Array Pagoda, he had set up many formations according to the pagoda's requirements, so Lu Ye's array-setting abilities were now vastly different from before.

Lu Ye himself was eager to discover the true power unleashed by such a grand formation, constructed with four formation flags as its framework and the Explosion spiritual rune as its foundation, further amplified by the massive spiritual energy he had drawn from and stored within countless spirit stones.The Myriad Devils Ridge cultivators feared his ability to break arrays, but none had yet tested his skill in setting them up.

"Run!" a Myriad Devils Ridge cultivator shouted.But in the end, it was too late.

The volatile spiritual energy instantly boiled to its extreme. The moment the Explosion spiritual rune fully formed, the ground trembled, and a deafening roar echoed. All the Myriad Devils Ridge cultivators rushing towards Lu Ye were startled, instinctively halting their advance.Looking in that direction, they saw a rain of blood falling, with dismembered limbs and scattered flesh everywhere. A Myriad Devils Ridge team of over a dozen members was annihilated in an instant, with most of them perishing. The remaining survivors were severely wounded, lying on the ground and wailing loudly.

The power of this explosive formation was even better than expected.However, the cost was significant; the four formation flags used in that strike were now rendered useless.

These four formation flags were, naturally, not the extraordinary ones rewarded by the Hundred Array Pagoda.The formation flags from the Hundred Array Pagoda were exceptional, and Lu Ye would never dare to waste them like this.

These four flags were purchased by him from the Heavenly Mystery Treasury, with each flag costing anywhere from dozens to a hundred merit points. This price was almost equivalent to a decent low-grade spiritual artifact.Lu Ye had spent almost all of his thousands of merit points on buying formation flags and foundations.

In fact, if Lu Ye had sufficient strength and utilized his advantage of possessing fire-attribute spiritual power, he could have bought materials and refined the necessary formation flags himself in mid-air.However, his cultivation had not yet reached that level, nor did he have the time or conditions to refine them himself, so he could only buy ready-made ones from the Heavenly Mystery Treasury.

For him, it wasn't a loss. Killing enemies yielded merit points, and the spoils of war could also be sold for more merit points or spirit stones.If the defeated enemies were wealthy enough, he would not only break even but even profit.

As the first explosive formation unleashed its power, several other formations were also activated.A second thunderous roar echoed. The Myriad Devils Ridge cultivators enveloped by the formation met the same fate as the previous team, suffering heavy casualties.The other formations were not explosive ones, but each possessed unique effects. Under Lu Ye's control, streams of spells shot out from within the formations, causing the Myriad Devils Ridge cultivators to cry out in distress.