Chapter 407: Is it really necessary?

Almost without a word from Lu Ye, Yiyi immediately entered a meditative state of cultivation. The light on her body flickered, and as it changed, the surrounding spiritual mist continuously surged into her.

Amber was even more direct. It revealed its true form, opened its enormous mouth, and inhaled sharply. The spiritual mist, visible to the naked eye, transformed into a current and was sucked into its belly.

Although it was their first time being drawn here by the Heavenly Secret, they all knew their time was limited. Even with Lu Ye ranked first, their stay wouldn't exceed half an hour, and this was a once-a-month opportunity, so they naturally had to cherish it.

Meanwhile, Lu Ye began to construct spiritual gathering patterns within his apertures. He had experienced similar situations twice before: once during the Dragon Spring body tempering at Mount Baifeng, and again in the Soul Cleansing Pool in Xianyuan City. Both were similar environments. In such an environment, his techniques could be highly effective.

Given Lu Ye's current speed and focus in constructing spiritual patterns, it only took him a moment to complete all 320 small spiritual gathering funnels. He didn't need to worry about what happened next; these small funnels would naturally draw the surrounding mist into Lu Ye's body and convert it through the flow of his own spiritual energy.

A warm feeling coursed through his body; the spiritual mist here was indeed quite effective. Lu Ye could feel his physique and mental strength gradually growing stronger. However, when compared directly, the spiritual mist's enhancement to his physique was not as potent as directly consuming the blood threads from the scale armor. And for strengthening his mental and soul power, it wasn't as effective as the Soul Cleansing Pool in Xianyuan City. As for improving the purity of spiritual power, Lu Ye couldn't tell, as his spiritual power had always been pure and flawless. Overall, the spiritual mist of this Heavenly Secret Pool seemed like a weakened combination of the Dragon Spring and Soul Cleansing Pool effects.

However, this didn't mean it was useless to Lu Ye; on the contrary, it was very useful. Consuming the blood threads from the scale armor for physical enhancement was a very violent process. At first, Lu Ye didn't dare to consume them directly, and Amber would be knocked unconscious for a while after each consumption. Only when both Lu Ye and Amber gradually grew stronger were they able to withstand it.

Moreover, the blood threads in the scale armor were now completely depleted. Lu Ye used to think the scale armor contained an extremely abundant supply of blood threads, but with his and Amber's continuous use, and later by Ju Jia, the scale armor had completely lost its effect over time. Now, it was merely a decoration.

The spiritual mist from the Heavenly Secret Pool provided a very gentle enhancement to physique and mental strength; it caused no discomfort. Immersed in it, one's entire body would relax, and one might even feel like falling asleep.

After completing the construction of the small spiritual gathering funnels in his apertures, Lu Ye then took out several formation flags and cast them around, setting up a spiritual gathering formation in this Heavenly Secret Pool to increase the speed at which the spiritual mist gathered. The effect was obvious: the mist in the pool became denser.

He hadn't stopped yet. Having had experience in the Soul Cleansing Pool in Xianyuan City, he wondered if he could perform a similar operation here: condensing the spiritual mist into liquid to take it with him. Observing the density of the spiritual mist in the pool, it seemed achievable.

Lu Ye quickly activated his spiritual power again, constructing a huge spiritual gathering pattern, then controlled it to form a large funnel. Everything went smoothly. The dense spiritual mist was drawn in, converging into the funnel, then clinging to its walls to condense into liquid, which flowed out through the opening at the bottom. Lu Ye took out a jade bottle, placed it at the funnel's opening, and prepared to collect the dripping spiritual liquid.

However, just then, an invisible force swept over, instantly destroying the large funnel. Lu Ye frowned. Undaunted, he activated his spiritual power again to construct another large funnel. This time, as soon as the large funnel formed, the invisible force reappeared and destroyed it again. Not only that, but Lu Ye also inexplicably felt a subtle sense of being watched, as if a pair of eyes were staring at him from the darkness. He knew that any further improper moves would surely lead to unpleasant consequences.

Was this the Heavenly Secret? Lu Ye's heart was shaken. Since embarking on the path of cultivation, he had often heard the term "Heavenly Secret." The daily lives of cultivators were inextricably linked to it, and he had always believed the Heavenly Secret was merely a set of peculiar rules or laws that transcended ordinary beings. But now it seemed his previous thoughts might be wrong. Was this Heavenly Secret... alive?

His body stiffened, and the feeling of impending doom was unsettling. Lu Ye activated his spiritual power and made a slight attempt to construct a large spiritual gathering funnel. However, as soon as it began to take shape, an inexplicable panic surged in his heart, and his chest pounded as if his heart was trying to leap out of his throat. When he dispelled his spiritual power, the panic vanished.

Lu Ye immediately confirmed that the Heavenly Secret did not allow him to take the spiritual mist out of here, which was why it was warning him. Was it really that strict? But then he reconsidered: this spiritual mist was a reward from the Heavenly Secret to the strong cultivators on the Spiritual Stream Ranking. Only those who remained on the ranking for a full month were qualified to be drawn here. If he were to take the spiritual mist out, it wouldn't really be a reward anymore. It was like attending a banquet: how much one could eat was a matter of skill, but packing up leftovers to take home was against the rules.

Realizing this, Lu Ye abandoned his previous idea. Although it was a bit regrettable, since the Heavenly Secret didn't allow it, there was nothing he could do. He couldn't possibly contend with the Heavenly Secret; ultimately, he would be the one to suffer. What bothered him most was whether this Heavenly Secret truly had its own consciousness, or rather, was it really a living being?

Suppressing the doubts in his heart, Lu Ye found a spot, sat down, and waited peacefully. Other cultivators practiced by focusing completely, with single-minded devotion and no distracting thoughts, because without enough focus, it was impossible to absorb and release the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. But Lu Ye's cultivation was always hands-off; as long as the small spiritual gathering funnels were active, he didn't have to worry. As he silently perceived, his physique and mental strength continuously grew stronger.

Never before had Lu Ye felt time pass so quickly. When his vision blurred and his surroundings changed from the Heavenly Secret Pool to the small wooden house courtyard, he finally realized that half an hour had already passed. Checking himself, Lu Ye found that even though his physique and mental strength were already quite powerful, half an hour in the Heavenly Secret Pool had brought him a very obvious improvement. Conservatively, both his physique and mental strength had improved by at least ten percent. This improvement might not sound like much—just a mere ten percent—but it was actually astonishing. Because Lu Ye's foundation was already very strong, a ten percent increase on such a foundation naturally brought significant benefits. For instance, if he were to fight Shi Guang now, he was confident he could defeat him without sustaining any injuries.

Of course, this was related to the methods he employed. Others who entered focused purely on absorption, and even with exceptional talent, their efficiency wouldn't be very high. He was different. Not only did he have over 300 small funnel spiritual patterns enhancing his apertures, but he also set up a spiritual gathering formation. This allowed him to gain abundant benefits, and even Yiyi and Amber benefited from it.

"Lu Ye, Lu Ye, you seem to have gotten fairer!" Yiyi exclaimed, as if she had discovered something new, and looked at him with great interest.

"Nonsense!" Lu Ye's face darkened, and he raised a hand to pinch and squeeze Yiyi's cheek. "Hmm, the texture feels even better than before."

Lu Ye strongly suspected that if Yiyi continued cultivating like this, she might become indistinguishable from a living person. Although she currently looked no different from others, she was still just a spirit body.

Pinned by Lu Ye, Yiyi couldn't break free and could only call for help: "Sister Huaci, help me!"

Huaci, who came out of the house upon hearing the commotion, walked over, slapped Lu Ye's hand away, and shielded Yiyi behind her. "Why are you always bullying children?" she asked.

Yiyi poked her head out from behind Huaci, stuck out her tongue at Lu Ye, and looked smug, as if she had someone protecting her. She then said to Huaci, "Sister Huaci, I told Lu Ye he got fairer, but he doesn't believe me. Don't you think so?"

Huaci carefully examined Lu Ye, and under his nervous gaze, she said, "Your vitality is much stronger, your face is glowing with health—you look like you're expecting!" She then looked at Amber. "Amber too? Is the Heavenly Secret's reward really that effective?"

"If it weren't obvious, why would those Tier-Nine cultivators still remain in the Spiritual Stream Battlefield? That's why I'm saying you should go challenge the Spiritual Stream Ranking now."

"Can I defeat you and claim first place?"

Lu Ye suddenly realized, "You're quite ambitious! But to defeat me, you're probably never going to have a chance." With the talent tree, he was immune to all poisons, rendering Huaci's most potent techniques ineffective against him. Thus, she naturally couldn't defeat him.

Only then did Lu Ye understand why Huaci hadn't challenged the ranking: it was because he currently held the top spot on the Spiritual Stream Ranking. This woman's ambition was as grand as her spirit; she was aiming for first place. If that was the case, then she would definitely challenge the ranking after he ascended to the Cloud River Realm. Just imagine the scene then...

Lu Ye felt a pang of sorrow for the cultivators of Ten Thousand Devil Ridge. He, with his Heavenly Eight cultivation, already occupying the top spot on the Spiritual Stream Ranking, had caused the Ten Thousand Devil Ridge cultivators to lose face. If Huaci were to then claim the top spot as a medical cultivator, not only would the Ten Thousand Devil Ridge cultivators be humiliated, but even the Vast Sky Alliance might feel embarrassed. When had a medical cultivator ever appeared in the top fifty of the Spiritual Stream Ranking?

Lu Ye had no doubt about Huaci's ability to claim the first spot on the Spiritual Stream Ranking. As she was now, Huaci was already qualified to challenge the top thirty.

Both his physique and mental strength had been enhanced, and he needed to adapt to the changes. After Huaci and Yiyi left, Lu Ye simply took out his Panshuan saber and practiced his 'Flash' saber technique. As soon as he swung his saber, Lu Ye felt a difference. Not only was the power of the strike enhanced, but more importantly, his chest no longer hurt. It was important to remember that he had previously been pierced through the chest by Shi Guang's spear. Although he recovered quickly under Huaci's treatment, Huaci's cultivation was still low. Even with her full effort, some lingering issues remained from Lu Ye's injury. Previously, every time he practiced 'Flash,' he had felt a dull ache in his chest.