Chapter 634: The Last Batch

Inside the mine, blood flowed like a river, and bodies littered the ground.

The cultivators who truly died by Lu Ye's blade were actually only a fraction of them.

Some died from the initial formations, some from self-inflicted wounds, and even more from the corrosive effects of the toxic mist.

The potency of the three Myriad Poison Pills Lu Ye unleashed this time far exceeded his expectations. The lower a cultivator's realm, the weaker their resistance to the virulent poison.

Cultivators below the Fifth Realm, in particular, had no resistance to the toxic mist whatsoever, even after taking antidotes.

And the number of cultivators below the Fifth Realm was the largest.

Initially, they merely felt their spiritual power stagnate, their bodies weak and powerless, and their heads dizzy. But as time passed and the poison took hold, their vitality rapidly drained away, eventually turning them into silent corpses.

Those still standing were all cultivators above the Fifth Realm, but regardless of their cultivation level, they felt profoundly exhausted and weak.

Gradually, the screams and shouts in the mine became sparse, not because Lu Ye had stopped, but because fewer and fewer people remained alive.

The thick toxic mist also gradually thinned, allowing one to slowly discern scenes a few yards away.

Elsewhere in the mine, Ming Zhe's face was tinged green, and behind him were a few cultivators from the Sacred Universe Sect.

Originally, there had been dozens of them, but now only a few remained. The rest lay dead on the ground, some killed, others poisoned.

Though still alive, all of them looked terrified, and a female cultivator, utterly horrified, was quietly sobbing.

Ming Zhe couldn't comprehend how things had spiraled to this point. Just as he had never imagined Huo Liaoyuan would die at Lu Ye's hands, it seemed that whenever one confronted this bane of the Azure Blood Sect, all sorts of incredible and unimaginable events would naturally unfold.

Tu Guanxiong had been instrumental in exposing the location of the Spirit Returning Sect. After large numbers of Myriad Devil Ridge cultivators gathered before Spirit Returning Valley, Ming Zhe returned with the remnants of the Sacred Universe Sect, intending to witness Lu Ye's death firsthand. However, their wishes were not granted.

Afterward, Lu Ye used a teleportation array to leave the Spirit Returning Sect and hunted Myriad Devil Ridge cultivators deep in Mount Tai Mang. The Sacred Universe Sect suffered further casualties.

Later, hearing that Lu Ye was hiding here, Ming Zhe once again brought his people.

They had believed this time they would finally see Lu Ye's demise, but in the end, the hunted became the hunter. The Myriad Devil Ridge faction, despite their numerical superiority and strength, suffered heavy casualties.

Why?

Lu Yiye is merely a Fifth Realm cultivator; how could he achieve such a feat?

Ahead, the toxic mist roiled. Accompanied by a piercing, short scream, a figure burst forth from the mist. Although the face was unclear, Ming Zhe could never forget that familiar silhouette.

Lu Yiye!

The other party clearly spotted them too and, without hesitation, charged forward, blade in hand.

Ming Zhe roared in anger and stepped forward to meet him. The two figures clashed and passed each other. Blood spurted from Ming Zhe's neck, and he collapsed to the ground. In his final moments, the screams of the Sacred Universe Sect cultivators who had been hiding behind him echoed in his ears.

In his prime, Ming Zhe's Eighth Realm cultivation would have been enough to contend with Lu Ye. However, the power of the Myriad Poison Pearls had weakened his strength by more than half, resulting in him being unable to even withstand a single strike from Lu Ye.

By now, all cultivators who had left the Sacred Universe Sect were annihilated, not a single one remaining.

Back at the Sacred Universe Sect, Tu Guanxiong's face turned ashen as he felt the sequential disappearance of numerous battle imprints.

Just moments before, Ming Zhe had sent him a message describing the situation here. He had never imagined that what was intended as merely avenging Huo Liaoyuan through others would instead lead to even greater losses for the Sacred Universe Sect!

Ning Zizai hid behind a large rock, painstakingly concealing his aura. Though the onset of the virulent poison made him feel so ill he wanted to vomit blood, he dared not make a sound.

He was not a ghost cultivator, so he couldn't conceal himself. However, in an environment where toxic mist filled the mine, doing so would undoubtedly reduce his risk of exposure.

He even believed that if he was careful enough, Lu Ye wouldn't discover him.

However, he was ultimately mistaken.

Within the toxic mist, everyone's vision was severely affected, forcing them to rely on perception, and perception was what Lu Ye excelled at most.

Even ghost cultivators like Ying Wuji couldn't casually approach him, let alone others who weren't ghost cultivators.

While Lu Ye was killing his enemies, some self-proclaimed clever individuals lay on the ground feigning death, hoping to deceive him.

But vitality couldn't be hidden; those feigning death were genuinely dead.

Scattered screams gradually approached his location. Finally, Ning Zizai saw a figure emerge from the green mist, charging directly towards his position.

He knew he had been exposed!

Without hesitation or a shred of hope, he unleashed his spirit artifact to meet Lu Ye. However, just three breaths later, his vision began to tilt, and the last thing he saw was a headless corpse.

Lu Ye discovered that among the Myriad Devil Ridge cultivators who came this time, there were indeed several Ninth Realm cultivators, and not just those who had openly revealed themselves.

There were at least three or four more, who had concealed their cultivation and hidden themselves among the crowd.

They likely had some plans, but after the Myriad Poison Pearls unleashed their power, all their schemes came to naught.

They couldn't reach Lu Ye immediately, and as time passed and the poison took full effect, their combat strength grew weaker and weaker, until Lu Ye cut them down one by one.

The vast mine, which had been incredibly noisy two hours ago, was now so quiet you could hear a pin drop, with only Lu Ye's heavy breathing breaking the silence.

Although most of the Myriad Devil Ridge cultivators did not die by his blade, even taking down a fraction of them had left him exhausted. The spiritual power in his storage ring was depleted, and only about thirty percent remained within his body.

It was conceivable that without the storage ring, even if Lu Ye had activated all three Myriad Poison Pearls this time, he would not have had the means to completely eradicate all the Myriad Devil Ridge cultivators.

Compared to the depletion of spiritual power, his physical exhaustion was more severe. His sword-wielding right arm had become numb, and his entire being exuded an ineffable weakness, as if he might collapse at any moment.

This was not the most arduous battle Lu Ye had experienced, because from start to finish, the enemies he cut down had offered little to no resistance when facing him. The only one who posed any slight danger was that Ninth Realm body cultivator, but even he was instantly killed by the Broken Arrow artifact.

Because the mine was filled with toxic mist, Yi Yi couldn't assist in this battle. Amber had also been put away into the spirit beast bag by Lu Ye earlier. If Amber had been present, Lu Ye could have drawn strength from him, and the situation would have likely been better.

Only one last group remained!

Lu Ye, long blade in hand, walked step by step towards the mine tunnel.

At this moment, dozens of people were gathered inside the tunnel, desperately clearing debris to escape. However, the tunnel was not wide, accommodating only a few people walking abreast at most. Coupled with the virulent poison affecting them, their efficiency was low.

Even now, they had only cleared less than fifty yards.

When they heard unhurried footsteps slowly approaching, the faces of the entire group changed drastically. They turned to look, and indeed saw Lu Ye's blood-stained figure stepping into the tunnel, bringing with him an endless, chilling murderous intent.

The cultivators still alive felt their scalps tingle with dread.

Everyone inside the mine is dead?

That was two thousand people! How could they have died so quickly?

But listening closely, there was no longer any movement inside the mine.

Now that Lu Ye was coming for them, escape was hopeless. How could they, with their strength greatly diminished by the virulent poison, possibly resist?

What puzzled them even more was why Lu Ye remained unaffected by the virulent poison. After all, it was a potent toxic mist that even Ninth Realm Cloud River cultivators couldn't withstand.

At the very back of the group, a figure stood blocking the tunnel. His build wasn't robust; he was clearly not a body cultivator. He, too, was poisoned, his exposed skin covered in a greenish hue. Yet, standing there, he exuded an aura of a lone warrior holding off a thousand, showing no fear even when facing Lu Ye, who had just massacred so many. In fact, he seemed almost… eager?

Lu Ye noticed the man's unusual demeanor, unsure of what kind of oddity he was, but he wasn't in the mood to ponder it. All the remaining Myriad Devil Ridge cultivators were before him; once he killed them, this operation would be perfectly concluded!

He believed that after this, he would have a long period of peace.

Once his cultivation improved in the future, he could freely roam the Cloud River Battlefield, just as he once did in the Spirit Stream Battlefield.

Pushing off with both feet, he leaped forward. The fiery red blade light sliced through the toxic mist's barrier, and the Mountain Breaker blade struck directly at the cultivator blocking his path.

Suddenly, a curtain of light appeared before Lu Ye. His charged attack struck the light curtain, but only caused it to slightly dent, failing to break through.

Defensive formation!

Lu Ye retreated two steps, examining the Myriad Devil Ridge cultivators enveloped by the defensive formation. He recalled Yi Yi mentioning earlier that a formidable formation master had arrived from the Myriad Devil Ridge, dismantling each of the explosive formations he had set up in the tunnel.

This must be him!

“Well done, Brother Si Nan!” Song Zhui's somewhat weak cheer echoed from deep within the tunnel. He truly hadn't expected that in such a critical moment, Si Nan would be at the very back of the tunnel, stopping Lu Ye with a defensive formation. He hadn't even noticed when the latter had set it up.

The tunnel was narrow, and once the defensive formation was activated, it completely filled the entire passageway. Unless Lu Ye broke through this formation, he wouldn't be able to pass.

This was an unexpected boon; as long as Si Nan could hold on for long enough, they could safely clear the tunnel and escape.

Provided they didn't succumb to the poison before then.

So Song Zhui added another instruction: “Brother Si Nan, you must hold your ground!”

Within the light curtain of the defensive formation, Si Nan's face was also filled with weakness, yet his expression was supremely confident. He said calmly, “Don't worry, with me here, he won't get through!”