Chapter 873: 鄙人……牛猛

**Chapter 873: This Humble One... Niu Meng**

Unwilling to dwell on such a somber topic, Ying Wuji changed the subject and introduced himself: "I am Ying Wuji of the Senluo Hall, currently serving as a skirmisher guard at Gushan Pass. May I ask for your name, fellow Daoist?"

"I have long heard of your esteemed name, Brother Ying. This humble one... Niu Meng!"

The identity of Ye Liu could no longer be used. Although he had never used this alias in front of Ying Wuji, there were no impenetrable walls in the world. The Myriad Demon Ridge paid him considerable attention, and many people likely knew he had used that alias.

Furthermore, using that name in front of Ying Wuji would clearly be a case of 'protesting too much.' Ying Wuji, unless he was a fool, would surely draw connections.

He could only use another name.

Niu Meng, the Sect Master of the Profound Tortoise Sect in the Myriad Beast Domain's secret realm, had left a deep impression on him. Without much thought, he blurted out the name.

"I'm just a rogue cultivator, with no sect or faction. Currently, I'm on duty at Dongqiu Pass."

Ying Wuji looked a bit puzzled: "Dongqiu Pass isn't close to here. How did fellow Daoist end up all the way here?"

The map showed that Dongqiu Pass was separated from this location by nearly ten passes, a distance of over ten thousand miles. Under normal circumstances, provincial guards wouldn't cross so many passes for their duties.

"The environment here is quite unique; I simply came here to cultivate," Lu Ye explained casually.

"I see," Ying Wuji replied, not doubting him. In his view, it wasn't surprising for the cultivator named Niu, whose spiritual power was indeed fire-attributed, to travel so far to cultivate in this particular environment.

Such cultivation, with its stringent environmental requirements, typically involves practicing a specific secret technique, unrelated to improving one's overall cultivation level.

"What brings you here, Brother Ying?"

Ying Wuji explained: "It's like this: the pass requires some earth fire, so a task was issued, and I led a team here to collect it. Will this disturb you, Brother Niu?"

"You can carry on with your work; as long as you don't come to my side, it's fine."

"In that case, we shall impose," Ying Wuji said, clasping his fists. He thought to himself that this 'Niu Meng' seemed quite agreeable.

Lu Ye nodded, saying no more. He continued to activate the power of the Talent Tree, allowing its roots to probe into the magma and devour the inherent flame energy of the location.

Seeing this, Ying Wuji swiftly flew away. A moment later, he returned, leading a group of people.

All of these individuals were Cloud River Realm cultivators of varying levels. Upon arriving, they all activated their spiritual power to protect themselves.

Female cultivators made up a significant portion of the team; among over a dozen people, there were seven or eight women, their lively chatter and beauty quite pleasing to the eye.

They must have received prior instructions from Ying Wuji, as all the Cloud River Realm cultivators, upon entering the volcano, made an effort to avoid the side where Lu Ye was. They busied themselves on the other side and certainly wouldn't rashly disturb him.

Lu Ye multi-tasked, simultaneously activating the Talent Tree's power and observing the actions of the others. He noticed they all conjured a gourd-like spiritual artifact, threw it into the magma, and controlled it with spiritual power.

After a long while, they would retrieve the artifact, extract a ball of bright flame from within, and seal it into a special container.

This was Lu Ye's first time personally witnessing the process of collecting earth fire.

He finally understood how the earth fire in the Heavenly Secret Treasury came to be. He had initially suspected that someone specifically collected earth fire and sold it to the treasury, and now it seemed this might indeed be the case.

The process of collecting earth fire was tedious, and the environment was harsh. The cultivators were all busy and sweating profusely, especially the female cultivators, whose damp clothes clinging to their bodies made them even more attractive.

Although these Cloud River Realm cultivators from Myriad Demon Ridge didn't disturb Lu Ye, they quietly conversed among themselves. The topics among the female cultivators were endless, and with so many gathered, laughter occasionally erupted.

As for Ying Wuji, he didn't need to exert himself as much; his task for this trip was simply to protect his team. Therefore, he stood aside, quietly observing, to guard against any unforeseen circumstances.

Suddenly, someone complained: "I don't know who the hell did it, but the Heavenly Secret Treasury used to have an extremely abundant supply of earth fire. Now, though, as soon as any enters the treasury, it's quickly snapped up. Now that the pass needs earth fire, we have to collect it ourselves."

Lu Ye's eyebrow twitched upon hearing this. That 'damn bastard' seemed to be himself. However, listening to the person's complaint, Lu Ye realized something else.

He had always thought that the Heavenly Secret Treasury's insufficient earth fire stock was solely due to him buying too much. Now, it seemed that this was only a partial explanation.

The biggest reason was actually his massive purchases, which created a sense of urgency among other cultivators who needed earth fire. They, too, began buying it up, leading to a vicious cycle where earth fire in the Heavenly Secret Treasury was snatched as soon as it appeared.

The group began complaining one after another.

Ying Wuji glanced towards Lu Ye, seemingly afraid of disturbing him, then turned back to scold his team: "Everyone, focus. This environment is unique; there might be fire-attribute demonic beasts lurking."

A bright-eyed, white-toothed female cultivator covered her mouth and chuckled softly: "With Lord Ying here, if any foolish demonic beast dares to appear, you will protect us, won't you, sisters?"

The female cultivators all agreed, giving the impression that they entrusted their lives to Ying Wuji and had immense faith in him.

That female cultivator even more sweetly added, "Lord, if we truly encounter danger, you mustn't abandon us."

"Oh, you all... you're accustomed to being pampered in your respective sects," he said. "How many times have I told you this is the provincial guard frontline, not your sects? Be serious."

Although it was a reprimand, his words weren't stern, and a faint smile touched his face. He clearly enjoyed the flattery from the female cultivators.

He couldn't help but sigh with emotion, thinking this was the kind of treatment a chosen one like himself deserved. In a group, he was respected, and everyone obeyed his commands. His strength was their protective barrier, and as beautiful eyes gazed upon him, they revealed adoration and faint affection.

He thought of his time on Wushuang Continent and what miserable days he had endured!

The past was too painful to recall.

Indeed, as long as that scoundrel Lu Yiye wasn't around, he could truly stand tall!

The environment was harsh; even Cloud River Realm cultivators couldn't endure for too long. In Ying Wuji's team, cultivators occasionally found themselves unable to continue and would fly out to rest.

After recovering, they would resume collecting earth fire. Whenever someone needed to rest, Ying Wuji would proactively take over their tasks.

This attitude made the Cloud River Realm cultivators feel he was even more approachable, unlike many True Lake Realm cultivators who, believing themselves superior by a whole major realm, would treat them with disdain and order them around.

Yet, they didn't stop to consider that every True Lake Realm cultivator had once been a Cloud River Realm cultivator.

While the Myriad Demon Ridge cultivators continuously made gains, Lu Ye's progress was also substantial.

The light from the dozens of leaves on the Talent Tree changed from dim to bright, once again blazing fiercely.

Without delay, Lu Ye immediately began to examine this spirit pattern, immersing his mind and observing the numerous burning leaves.

A tearing pain in his divine soul made his body sway slightly, drawing the attention of Ying Wuji, who was not far away. "Brother Niu?"

Lu Ye raised a hand. "It's nothing, just a small mishap."

Ying Wuji expressed concern: "Be careful, Brother Niu." Lu Ye hummed in affirmation and examined the vast amount of information that had appeared in his mind.

He quickly understood what the new spirit pattern he had obtained was.

A look of joy immediately appeared on his face.

Compared to the previous spirit pattern he had obtained, which felt somewhat superfluous, this one, named 'Moon Return,' was undoubtedly far more useful.

Unlike that previous superfluous spirit pattern, which he had never even encountered in books, he was familiar with the Moon Return spirit pattern.

However, it was exceptionally complex to construct, far more intricate than even the Void Spirit Pattern. Not only was it complex, but its construction difficulty was also extremely high.

Lu Ye had attempted to construct it before but hadn't succeeded. He had originally planned to practice it more when he had time to improve his proficiency, but he had been constantly on the move and busy with cultivation, leaving him no time at all.

Yet, to his surprise, the Talent Tree had activated this spirit pattern. The Void pattern he had longed for hadn't appeared; instead, he obtained Moon Return. This was truly a case of "flowers refusing to bloom for the diligent planter, while willows flourish for the heedless."

The Moon Return spirit pattern was a core component of a formation known as the Countermeasure Array. This array had the characteristic of reflecting enemy attacks, with a particularly obvious reflection effect for detached spells. It also had some effect on direct attacks like swords and blades.

If this spirit pattern was constructed independently, it retained the same effect. It could be said that this was a spirit pattern specifically designed for the weak to overcome the strong.

Should he encounter a powerful opponent, this spirit pattern might produce miraculous effects at a critical moment.

For Lu Ye, this was undoubtedly a very useful spirit pattern.

Including the previous spirit pattern, he had already activated two on this trip, making it a fruitful harvest.

Lu Ye naturally wouldn't be satisfied with this. Having rarely found such an environment, he naturally wanted to make the most of it and allow the Talent Tree to have its fill in one go.

Moreover, Ying Wuji's team was competing nearby. Judging by their methods, it was highly probable that cultivators from the Myriad Demon Ridge would frequently come here to collect earth fire.

If he missed this opportunity, it would be difficult to find a similar environment again.

On the Talent Tree, as the flame power was continuously devoured, another leaf lit up.

However, Lu Ye knew at a glance that this leaf likely carried not a spirit pattern, but rather spirit pattern construction techniques, all of which were extremely useful to him.

The reason he could construct complex spirit patterns like 'Void' while still in the Cloud River Realm, and with a very high success rate, was due to these foundational gains.

Otherwise, having only been exposed to the Way of Spirit Patterns for a mere few years, even with exceptional talent in this path, he could not have achieved such accomplishments.

His current attainments in the Way of Spirit Patterns stemmed partly from his innate talent, but primarily from the various gains he had acquired from the Talent Tree.

After lighting up more than a dozen leaves that carried these construction techniques, he finally made new gains.

On the Talent Tree, the sight of dozens of leaves simultaneously glowing appeared once more, undoubtedly indicating the complexity and importance of the next spirit pattern.

By today, Lu Ye had also discovered a problem.

The current Talent Tree no longer frequently displayed spirit patterns that could be carried by a single leaf. Most now required many leaves to hold them. Such spirit patterns were complex to construct, but once successfully built, their effect would be significantly greater.