Chapter 651: Immortal Yuan Guard

Wind Rises in Kyushu

Wind Rises in Kyushu

The current location was the outskirts of Xian Yuan City. To reach the City Lord's Mansion, one had to traverse half of Xian Yuan City and arrive at its very center. Even with Lu Ye commanding seven insectoids, the journey was far from safe.

Up until now, the strongest insectoids he had encountered were only at the True Lake Realm. He was still unsure if there were any insectoids here comparable to the Divine Sea Realm. If such insectoids existed, his stealth techniques might prove ineffective.

A team of seven True Lake Realm insectoids was still formidable. As they advanced, eliminating wave after wave of insectoids, Lu Ye's combat merits continuously increased, quickly surpassing 20,000 points. It was worth noting that exchanging combat merits for a golden spirit sigil in the Heavenly Mystery Treasury only required 16,200 points. His current combat merits were already more than enough to acquire one, with points to spare.

Such an environment, combined with Lu Ye's current capabilities, was simply an excellent place to accumulate combat merits. Across the entire Kyushu, likely no other cultivator had enjoyed such convenience. Although he still didn't know how to leave this place, Lu Ye greatly cherished this opportunity.

Not all encountered insectoids were killed. Sometimes, if their numbers were too overwhelming, Lu Ye didn't dare to act rashly. He could only have his insectoid squad bypass them. He concealed his form and suppressed his aura, ensuring the insectoids wouldn't detect any abnormality and thus wouldn't obstruct their path.

While traversing a street, Lu Ye suddenly noticed something unusual. Many severed insectoid limbs and fragments of flesh were scattered across the street. The ground was covered in emerald green insectoid blood, and traces of a fierce battle remained all around. These traces indicated a brutal battle, as many insectoids had perished.

This left Lu Ye slightly taken aback. He was certain he hadn't been there before, so these battle traces weren't his. Since they weren't his, they must have belonged to the Xian Yuan Guards.

Xian Yuan City had Xian Yuan Guards and many strange spiritual entities. However, the power of these entities was very limited; apart from the City Lord of Xian Yuan City and the enigmatic woman in red, all others were merely at the Spirit Stream Realm. Cultivators at the Spirit Stream Realm possessed little to no power to resist in the face of such a catastrophe. Therefore, Lu Ye hadn't encountered a single Xian Yuan Guard up to this point. In his view, when this catastrophe first struck, the Xian Yuan Guards in Xian Yuan City had probably been entirely wiped out.

Yet, this residual battlefield held a peculiar strangeness. A considerable number of insectoids had died on the battlefield, including many powerful ones. How could Xian Yuan Guards, whose cultivation was only at the Spirit Stream Realm, have killed these insectoids? Could the City Lord or the woman in red have been involved? If those two had acted, it would be somewhat plausible. However, he couldn't sense their auras nearby, meaning they had most likely perished.

Seated on the spider's back, leading his insectoid squad through the battlefield, Lu Ye suddenly realized something was amiss. Insectoids would devour the corpses of their fallen companions, yet these bodies remained. Moreover, judging by the blood and the wounds on the corpses, the battle hadn't happened long ago. In other words, not long ago, cultivators from Xian Yuan City had fought a fierce battle against insectoids right here!

Someone was still alive? Lu Ye was astonished. Although he knew this idea might be somewhat naive, it wasn't entirely impossible. He recalled that Xian Yuan City had special buildings with lanterns hanging at their entrances, which even the most powerful insectoids couldn't breach if one hid inside. Therefore, if anyone from Xian Yuan City had survived, they would undoubtedly be hiding in one of those special buildings! The reason the insectoid corpses remained unconsumed on this battlefield was likely because the nearby insectoids had been drawn away.

Lu Ye's thoughts gradually became clear, and he immediately led his insectoid squad to search the vicinity. About fifteen minutes later, the insectoid squad arrived at a nearby street, which was teeming with insectoids, as if something had drawn them there. On the entire street, one building was particularly conspicuous. All the surrounding structures had been destroyed, yet it stood proudly alone, like an indestructible rock amidst a raging tempest. A large number of insectoids had gathered within the ruins near this building. And at the entrance of that building hung a red lantern!

Lu Ye gazed at the building, unable to confirm if anyone was inside, but judging by the current situation, it seemed highly probable. These gathered insectoids had been attracted by the people hiding inside, just as Lu Ye had experienced before! If there truly were people inside, their current situation was precarious. With so many insectoids gathered, they certainly couldn't leave for now. However, if they waited a bit longer, most of the insectoids would disperse.

As time passed, the less intelligent insectoids began to disperse, though a significant number remained. Many of these remaining insectoids possessed exceptionally powerful auras, clearly belonging to the True Lake Realm. Half an hour passed, then a full hour. Everything remained calm. Just as Lu Ye thought he had misjudged the situation, the tightly shut door of the building suddenly swung open, and a figure fiercely burst out!

Lu Ye, who had been constantly monitoring the situation, was stunned. He actually recognized the figure that had suddenly charged out!

The stout figure displayed an agile speed unbefitting its size, swiftly rushing before an insectoid. The boning knife in its hand flashed with cold light, and the insectoid was split in two before it even had time to react. The figure passed between the two halves of the corpse and was already pouncing on the next insectoid. He didn't exhibit an overly powerful aura, yet he carried an unstoppable momentum. The boning knife was exceedingly sharp; the chitinous shell covering the insectoid's body offered no resistance and was breached with remarkable ease.

So powerful? Lu Ye watched, dumbfounded. After all, in his ingrained impression, this individual was merely a spiritual entity at the Heaven Seven or Heaven Eight Realm. However, the strength displayed at this moment was far beyond that, reaching a level Lu Ye found difficult to fathom. What surprised Lu Ye even more was that as this stout figure charged out, more than a dozen other figures darted from within the building.

Although Lu Ye didn't recognize these individuals, he was very familiar with their attire. Xian Yuan Guards!

Over a dozen Xian Yuan Guards closely followed the stout figure, all attacking simultaneously and unleashing a massacre. For a time, blood flowed like rivers in all directions. Numerous insectoids were alarmed and rushed to surround them, encircling them impenetrably in the blink of an eye.

Lu Ye was utterly bewildered... Strictly speaking, everything he witnessed before him was completely different from his preconceived notions. That stout figure suddenly displaying a level of cultivation far beyond what was expected had already greatly surprised him; he hadn't anticipated the Xian Yuan Guards would also be similarly powerful. The last time Lu Ye was here, the Xian Yuan Guards he encountered were merely at the ordinary Eighth or Ninth Layer, with only captain-level guards reaching Heaven Seven or Heaven Eight. But now, none of these Xian Yuan Guards had cultivation weaker than the Spirit Stream Realm; most were at the True Lake Realm, with a few even at the Cloud River Realm. Such a force could be described as incredibly powerful.

Lu Ye was momentarily perplexed: Was this even Xian Yuan City? Or had he entered a fake Xian Yuan City last time?

Although many questions swirled in his mind, Lu Ye reacted promptly. He issued the command to attack the enemy to his insectoid squad. The next moment, all six insectoids, excluding the spider insectoid, charged towards the battle. He didn't send the spider insectoid into battle, primarily because the scene was too chaotic. If he were to join now, the residual effects of the attacks might expose his whereabouts, leading to trouble for him.

Although the overall strength of the Xian Yuan Guards was formidable, Lu Ye could see that every one of them, including the stout figure, bore injuries. They had likely experienced many battles like this. Even without Lu Ye's covert assistance, they could handle the current situation, but it would inevitably lead to greater exhaustion and potentially casualties. But with Lu Ye's covert assistance, the situation changed. Insectoids held no guard against their own kind. At this moment, their attention was entirely focused on the Xian Yuan Guards, so when the six insectoids covertly launched their attacks, they easily killed many of their former companions.

Initially, the Xian Yuan Guards hadn't noticed these anomalies. But as time passed, someone finally noticed. A Xian Yuan Guard softly exclaimed, "My Lord!" The boning knife in the stout man's hand flashed with cold light. He subtly nodded, secretly observing his surroundings while continuing to slay enemies. A moment later, his gaze suddenly turned towards the spider insectoid lingering outside the battlefield. Even though Lu Ye had concealed his form, he could feel the other party's gaze fixed upon him.

Their four eyes met in a silent gaze. The man gave Lu Ye a subtle nod and continued slaying enemies.

He had been seen! A ripple of surprise stirred within Lu Ye. His current state was special, equivalent to a True Lake Realm cultivator, enhanced with stealth and aura-concealing spirit runes. In such a state, it should have been impossible for anyone to detect him, even those several minor realms above him in cultivation. Unless... the opponent's cultivation was an entire major realm higher than his! In other words, the person he had assumed was only at Heaven Seven or Heaven Eight Realm was actually a grand cultivator at the Divine Sea Realm?

Recalling his various experiences from his first visit to Xian Yuan City, Lu Ye suddenly felt a sense of unreality. For a moment, he couldn't distinguish whether this was a dream or an actual reality. However, if the opponent truly was a Divine Sea Realm cultivator, then such ferocity was understandable. Even the True Lake Realm insectoids couldn't withstand a single strike from him.

Under the combined efforts of Lu Ye's insectoid squad and the Xian Yuan Guards, the number of insectoids steadily diminished. Until a certain moment, the last insectoid was slain. The Xian Yuan Guards all relaxed, and even the man wielding the boning knife let out a long breath.

Among the numerous insectoid corpses on the ground, only Lu Ye's insectoid squad remained. The Xian Yuan Guards watched these insectoids with a mix of confusion and vigilance, unable to comprehend what was going on with these creatures that had so clearly ambushed their own kind just moments before.

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