Chapter 572: Unexplained Means

From the moment they encountered Zhou Yuntian and his group, an air of strangeness permeated everything.

Zhou Yuntian is from Burning Heaven Valley and belongs to the Myriad Devil Ridge faction. If that's the case, then the other cultivators with him must also be from Myriad Devil Ridge. Yet, even after recognizing Li Baxian, these people showed no hostility whatsoever. In fact, after Xia Liang pleaded with them, they even claimed there were no faction divisions here, brazenly declaring they would resolve the grievances between the two sides.

At this point, an inexplicable 'Venerable' made a grand appearance, garnering extreme reverence from Zhou Yuntian and the others. And surprisingly, carrying the perfumed couch where the Venerable sat were four Cloud River Stage Ninth-Layer cultivators!

Who exactly was this 'Venerable'?

What they saw before them was undoubtedly hard for both Lu Ye and Li Baxian to comprehend. Xia Liang and Tan Sheng were similarly filled with doubts.

In the complete silence of the scene, a voice suddenly rang out: "More newcomers?"

The voice came from within the perfumed couch, lazy and sweet, enchanting to hear, as if an invisible small hand plucked at one's heartstrings. As the voice sounded, Lu Ye's heart gave a violent lurch, and an uncontrollable, inexplicable desire arose within him. Not only did his heart pound with the sound, but his mind also relaxed. Although he couldn't make out the woman's appearance on the perfumed couch, just hearing her voice gave him an extremely warm feeling, making him want to completely lose himself in it.

A strong sense of alarm arose in Lu Ye's heart. Li Baxian beside him had clearly also noticed something was amiss; his sword-like eyebrows furrowed, and his eyes were filled with vigilance. When he looked at Tan Sheng and Xia Liang over there, Li Baxian's expression became even more solemn. This was because both of them currently had dazed expressions, staring blankly at the figure on the perfumed couch, their eyes brimming with fervent desire.

Tan Sheng and Xia Liang were much stronger than Lu Ye and Li Baxian, and both came from prominent backgrounds. Logically, they shouldn't have performed so poorly. However, both were heavily wounded, and their spiritual power and mental energy were greatly depleted, so their current state was far worse than Lu Ye and Li Baxian's.

Zhou Yuntian respectfully replied, "To answer you, Venerable, these four fellow cultivators seemed to have some grievances and were fighting fiercely here. We have already stopped them."

"Hmm," the lazy voice from the perfumed couch sounded again, softly saying, "These two Ninth-Layer cultivators are quite good." Then Lu Ye felt a gaze pass through the curtains and land on him. "These two are a bit lacking."

Zhou Yuntian immediately said, "May it please the Venerable to know, one of these two is fellow cultivator Li Baxian, a legend of the Spirit Stream battlefield. Although his cultivation isn't high, his potential is boundless. If he can advance to the Cloud River Stage Ninth-Layer in the future, he will certainly help the Venerable achieve your long-cherished wishes. As for the one beside him... your subordinate doesn't recognize him, but anyone who can travel with Li Baxian is certainly no ordinary talent."

"Is that so..." the Venerable murmured softly, as if pondering something, then quickly made a decision: "Then bring them all back."

"Yes!"

The conversation between Zhou Yuntian and the Venerable reached Lu Ye's ears, word for word, making his mood inexplicably heavy. Before, he had only felt the situation was somewhat strange and many things were hard to understand; now, even more was incomprehensible. Because Zhou Yuntian, a Ninth-Layer cultivator, actually referred to himself as a subordinate in front of that Venerable!

Just who exactly was this 'Venerable'?

From the current situation, not just Zhou Yuntian, but all the cultivators here, were subordinates of that Venerable. What extraordinary means did she possess to command so many proud and arrogant cultivators?

Suddenly, a large expanse of pink mist emanated from the perfumed couch, sweeping towards Lu Ye and the others.

Lu Ye raised a hand and grasped his Panshan Saber, spiritual power surging through him. Li Baxian's entire body was surrounded by the hum of swords, with flying swords circling him. However, before either of them could make a move, several auras from all directions firmly locked onto them, instantly freezing their movements. Zhou Yuntian said, "Fellow cultivator Li, please calm down. The Venerable harbors no ill will towards any of you; she merely wishes to invite a few of you back as guests."

The words sounded pleasant, but if Li Baxian and Lu Ye truly dared to resist, they would inevitably face suppression from these people. In such a situation, how could they be opponents? Even escaping would likely be a pipe dream.

Lu Ye and Li Baxian exchanged a glance, both seeing the helplessness in the other's eyes. They were truly at the mercy of others now.

The pink mist swept over, enveloping a large area. The mist was filled with the intoxicating fragrance they had previously smelled. Lu Ye immediately noticed an anomaly with his Talent Tree. He immersed his mind in checking and saw a patch of gray mist ignite on the Talent Tree. This pink mist was poisonous, but its toxicity wasn't severe, so the Talent Tree's reaction wasn't strong.

Just as he was about to activate his spiritual power for protection, Zhou Yuntian's voice sounded once more: "Please, fellow cultivators, do not resist!" The voice no longer carried its previous gentleness; it had become somewhat chilling. Clearly, if Lu Ye and the others resisted, these people would move to suppress them.

Lu Ye stood quietly in place, wondering what purpose the pink mist served. The toxicity wasn't severe, so these people clearly didn't intend to kill them. Since they weren't killing them, and claimed to invite them back as guests, then the purpose of this mist...

With two soft thuds, Lu Ye turned his head to look. He saw Xia Liang and Tan Sheng suddenly collapse to the ground, falling unconscious. Li Baxian beside him also swayed, then softly crumpled down. Right after Li Baxian, Lu Ye also fell directly to the ground, and even Amber, squatting on his shoulder, fell into a deep sleep along with him.

"Bring them all back," the Venerable's soft voice sounded once more.

"Yes!" Zhou Yuntian responded.

Immediately, Lu Ye felt someone grasp the clothes around his waist, lifting him up. He was moved with lightning speed. He secretly opened his eyelids to observe, seeing that Amber was also held in the other hand of the person carrying him. They journeyed deeper into Grand Mang Mountain, and it wasn't until about half an hour later that there were signs of descending.

Lu Ye feigned unconsciousness, not daring to open his eyes. He didn't know their exact location, but he could hear many voices greeting each other and felt numerous strong vital energy fluctuations nearby. It seemed quite a few cultivators had gathered here.

A sound of a door opening was heard. A moment later, Lu Ye felt himself being carried into a room and placed on a bed. Immediately after, Zhou Yuntian's voice rang out: "You all go rest. I'll guard here."

Someone responded, "Then we'll trouble you, Brother Zhou."

"It's nothing."

The others gradually left, leaving only Zhou Yuntian to stand guard.

Lu Ye lay motionless, calmly perceiving his surroundings. He could hear several steady breaths beside him, presumably Li Baxian and the others who were unconscious. After a moment, the room door was pushed open again. Zhou Yuntian respectfully said, "Venerable."

A fragrant breeze wafted in, precisely the intoxicating aroma Lu Ye had smelled before. Then Lu Ye felt the Venerable standing not far from him. He didn't know what she was doing, but Lu Ye distinctly felt a peculiar power fluctuation emanating.

A moment later, a soft groan was heard. From the sound, it seemed to come from Xia Liang. The Venerable shifted her position, and the peculiar power fluctuation rippled out again. After another moment, another groan was heard; this time it was Tan Sheng's voice. She wasn't killing them, as Lu Ye could sense that Tan Sheng and Xia Liang were still alive. This made him extremely curious about what methods this Venerable was using.

Soon it was Li Baxian's turn. Just like the previous two, a groan escaped him. The fragrance lingering at his nostrils became much stronger. Lu Ye felt the Venerable had moved to his side. The next moment, two warm, soft fingers touched his forehead. The peculiar power fluctuation rippled out once more. Lu Ye instantly felt his mind being impacted slightly, and then his mind seemed to gain some inexplicable things. Uncontrollably, he also groaned softly.

The warm, jade-like fingers withdrew. The Venerable's voice carried a hint of weakness, as she instructed Zhou Yuntian: "When they wake up, have them wash themselves clean and bring them to see me. They reek."

"Yes!" Zhou Yuntian respectfully affirmed.

Footsteps quickly faded into the distance, indicating the Venerable had left.

At this moment, Lu Ye was immersed in checking his Talent Tree. As he watched, a large patch of gray mist ignited on the Talent Tree. However, the gray mist quickly vanished completely, and the Talent Tree returned to normal.

What inexplicable method had the Venerable used on him? Lu Ye recalled his recent experience. When the Venerable used her method, his mind had clearly suffered a huge impact, and some inexplicable things had appeared in his mind. It shouldn't have been poison, but the fact that the Talent Tree reacted indicated it was something that invaded his body and was harmful to him. Therefore, whatever it was, it had been completely incinerated by the Talent Tree, and he would not be affected.

He had the Talent Tree, but his Fourth Senior Brother did not. In other words, no matter what method it was, Fourth Senior Brother had already fallen victim to it! Not only had Fourth Senior Brother been affected, but Tan Sheng and Xia Liang had also been affected.

He would have to be careful later. If he acted differently from his Fourth Senior Brother and the others, he might very well reveal a flaw. Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly heard numerous footsteps approaching. Immediately after, someone said, "Brother Zhou, I heard Li Baxian is here?"

Zhou Yuntian, who remained on guard, chuckled, "You all are quite well-informed. We just got back, and you already know?"

The speaker replied, "Brother Zhao told us. Is it true that Li Baxian has arrived?"

"It certainly is!"

The next moment, Lu Ye felt many people gather around, and voices began to ring out.

"It really is Li Baxian!"

"Brother Zhou has performed a great service this time, to be able to recruit such a talent for the Venerable. There will surely be no shortage of rewards."

"It is our honor to serve the Venerable; what need is there for rewards?"

"Indeed, indeed."

"But I heard Li Baxian is only at the Cloud River Stage Fifth-Layer now. Isn't that cultivation level a bit low?"

"His current low cultivation level means nothing. He is Li Baxian, after all. If he reaches the Ninth-Layer, none of us will be his match."