Chapter 961: Crazy Liu Yuemei

The cultivators guarding the entrance involuntarily flinched. After hearing the Prefect roar, a gust of wind swept past them, and they watched the Prefect shoot into the sky as if his backside was on fire, disappearing in the blink of an eye. For a moment, they exchanged bewildered glances, none of them knowing what had truly transpired.

Qian Wudang's speed was astonishing; he shot out of Haotian City in the blink of an eye. But the next moment, he unexpectedly turned back, heading directly towards a specific location within the city. Moments later, he landed in a small courtyard.

Inside the courtyard, a venerable old man with a graceful, almost ethereal, demeanor and robust spirit was leisurely sipping tea. This was none other than Tang Yifeng, the Sect Master of the Bixue Sect.

Qian Wudang's purpose in coming here was simple: given today's events, and since Lu Ye was a disciple of the Bixue Sect, the Sect Master could not possibly stand idly by while a disciple was in danger. Furthermore, Qian Wudang knew that the Bixue Sect Master was not someone to be trifled with. Going together would be far better than him facing the situation alone.

“Prefect Qian,” the Sect Master said, looking at Qian Wudang, who had arrived in a frantic hurry, a hint of confusion in his eyes regarding Qian Wudang's usual composure.

“Elder Tang, something has happened,” Qian Wudang said, too rushed to exchange pleasantries with the Sect Master.

The Sect Master continued to leisurely sip his tea, slowly saying, “Speak slowly. You are now a Prefect; do not be impatient when faced with problems. Otherwise, your subordinates will observe it and surely make many conjectures.”

Qian Wudang inwardly sighed, acknowledging that seniors were indeed seniors. He had indeed lost his composure in his haste. Taking a deep breath, he replied, “Elder Tang, you are right.”

The Sect Master then asked, “So, what exactly has happened to make you, a Prefect, so utterly flustered?”

Qian Wudang replied, “Your sect's disciple, Lu Yiye, recently traveled to Jinglan Lake Pass to recruit Xiao Xinghe from Qingdi City, and is currently on his way back.”

Crack.....

The teacup in the Sect Master's hand shattered. The next moment, he shot into the sky, soaring directly towards Jinglan Lake Pass. His speed was so immense that even Qian Wudang, watching him, sighed in admiration, admitting his inferiority. A massive surge of air swept through, and a fierce gust of wind howled through the small courtyard. Qian Wudang's robes flapped violently, and his eye twitched.

A senior... after all, is still a senior! With just that simple sentence, Elder Tang had evidently grasped the entire situation.

The sky was cloudless and clear.

Three figures leisurely flew by. Lu Ye, leading the way, held a detailed map. According to the map, in another thirty miles, they would exit the sphere of influence of Jinglan Lake Pass. If Liu Yuemei truly intended to strike covertly, she would undoubtedly wait until they had left the sphere of influence of Jinglan Lake Pass. In other words, she was very likely ambushing them somewhere ahead. They had been traveling unhurriedly, at a moderate pace, certainly not comparable to the flying speed of a Divine Sea Realm cultivator. Therefore, it was entirely feasible for Liu Yuemei to set an ambush for them up ahead.

“Lin Yinxiu, has the Prefect replied?” Lu Ye asked.

“No,” Lin Yinxiu replied.

Lu Ye frowned slightly, thinking, 'That shouldn't be.' He had twice observed Lin Yinxiu and Qian Wudang's close relationship in the Law Enforcement Hall. Given Lin Yinxiu's current predicament, how could Qian Wudang possibly remain indifferent? However, on second thought, it was possible that Qian Wudang was already en route. If he was already coming, a reply wouldn't matter much.

With this thought, Lu Ye halted and said, “Let's stop here for a moment.” This location was on the very edge of Jinglan Lake Pass's sphere of influence. Even if Liu Yuemei genuinely intended to strike, she would certainly have reservations. Therefore, staying here was relatively safer. Once Qian Wudang arrived and they regrouped, Liu Yuemei would have no further opportunity to make a move. Of course, the most crucial point was still to ascertain whether Qian Wudang was indeed on his way. If not, Lu Ye would have to send a message to the Sect Master.

Just as he was about to instruct Lin Yinxiu to inquire with Qian Wudang, Lu Ye suddenly felt his skin prickle. Turning to look back, he saw a streak of light hurtling towards them at an incredible speed. Although it was still distant, he could clearly sense a chilling murderous intent. All three of their expressions changed instantly.

Their worst fears had come true: Liu Yuemei was indeed attempting to intercept and kill them. She had become so brazen that she was no longer making any attempt to conceal her actions. Lu Ye had initially guessed that Liu Yuemei would most likely set an ambush somewhere ahead, waiting for an opportune moment to strike. To his surprise, she had no intention of hiding at all. However, her original plan was likely to wait until they had exited the sphere of influence of Jinglan Lake Pass before acting. But Lu Ye's sudden halt evidently made Liu Yuemei too impatient to wait any longer. So she made a decisive move and launched a brazen attack.

Looking at it this way, she hadn't been ambushing ahead, but rather following closely behind the three of them. As a Divine Sea Realm cultivator, she could easily tail them without Lu Ye and the others ever detecting her presence.

“Split up!” Lu Ye decided instantly. As his spiritual power surged, a pair of fiery red wings unfolded, and simultaneously, empowered by a Wind Travel art, he shot straight forward. Liu Yuemei's primary target was undoubtedly him, so he had to separate from Xiao Xinghe and Lin Yinxiu. Only then could the two of them be relatively safe. Their survival hinged on how long Lu Ye could hold out; as long as he lived, their safety was assured. But if Lu Ye died, Liu Yuemei would undoubtedly eradicate any potential future threats.

As soon as Lu Ye moved, Xiao Xinghe and Lin Yinxiu also sprang into action. Both were quick-witted individuals and, at such a moment, naturally wouldn't hold Lu Ye back or attempt the foolish act of fighting to the death alongside him. They immediately propelled themselves, flying off to the side. In the blink of an eye, the three split into two different directions.

A mere dozen breaths later, Liu Yuemei had already arrived at the trio's original position, a testament to her incredible speed. As expected, she paid no heed to Xiao Xinghe and Lin Yinxiu, instead pursuing Lu Ye directly. Even with all his techniques and remarkable speed, Lu Ye still could not outpace a Divine Sea Realm cultivator, and the distance between them rapidly closed.

Realizing he was about to enter Liu Yuemei's attack range, Lu Ye couldn't help but roar, “Liu Yuemei, how dare you act with such blatant defiance! If I survive today, I will surely claim your head in the future!”

Liu Yuemei, behind him, remained oblivious to his words. Even though she had disregarded her status and personally pursued Lu Ye and the others, she knew that remaining silent at this moment was the best course of action. At this moment, she wore a mask, concealing her original appearance, and had even changed her entire outfit. Therefore, as long as she denied having killed Lu Ye afterwards, there would be no proof against her. For a Divine Sea Seventh Realm cultivator to kill a True Lake Third Realm cultivator was simply a matter of effortless ease! Once Lu Yiye was dead, she would have ample time to eliminate the other two.

Watching the hastily fleeing figure ahead, Liu Yuemei's expression beneath her mask was sinister. As her divine sense surged, an invisible, shapeless force transformed into a sharp, precise attack, striking towards Lu Ye. However, a sight that astonished her appeared: her decisive strike actually had little effect. The fleeing figure ahead didn't even waver, continuing to fly rapidly as if nothing had happened.

Liu Yuemei was momentarily perplexed, but that didn't stop her from launching another divine sense attack. It was still ineffective. This left her utterly surprised. She couldn't help but wonder if Lu Ye was wearing some kind of treasure capable of resisting soul attacks; otherwise, how could her abilities be so ineffective? But were there such treasures in this world? Those so-called treasures that claimed to resist soul attacks were generally of little use, at best only providing protection against the residual force of an attack. Once directly targeted, their effectiveness would be greatly diminished. This was also the fundamental reason why True Lake Realm cultivators were utterly vulnerable before Divine Sea Realm cultivators.

She didn't attempt a third time; if two attempts were useless, then any number of attempts would be futile. She fully activated her spiritual power, increasing her speed by another notch. This made Lu Ye secretly regretful. He had detected Liu Yuemei's divine sense attacks, but the distance between them was simply too great, leaving him no opportunity to unleash his Soul Annihilation Sword. Otherwise, he would certainly have let her experience its power.

The distance between them continued to shrink. After only a dozen breaths, Lu Ye sensed violent spiritual energy fluctuations behind him. He hastily turned his head to see Liu Yuemei raising her hand and unleashing a palm strike towards him. Instantly, spiritual energy surged, and a giant palm made of spiritual energy appeared, hovering in the air. Li Taibai himself had almost perished under this very palm. Lu Ye had naturally already understood the power of this palm strike.

As he hurriedly turned, his Mountain-Shattering Blade was already unsheathed. Spiritual energy surged around his body, and his entire essence, qi, and spirit converged to their peak in an instant. In that instant, Lu Ye felt as if he were suspended in the endless starry sky, with a crescent moon hanging high behind him. His long blade newly emerged, unleashing endless crescent-shaped blade glows that swept out, slashing towards the massive spiritual energy palm.

The second stance of the Overlord Blade: Arc Moon!

A continuous series of tearing sounds filled the air. Although it weakened the spiritual energy palm's power, the cultivation gap between them was simply too vast, and the massive spiritual energy palm continued its direct descent. Lu Ye's blade stance shifted again, and exquisite spiritual patterns formed upon his long blade. Moon Return!

The colossal spiritual energy palm slammed down with overwhelming force. Although Lu Ye had responded as best as he could instantly, he was still struck dizzy by this palm, feeling as if he were a solitary boat in a vast ocean, tossed about and constantly on the verge of capsizing.

Fortunately, he used the force of the strike to propel himself away. Before he could regain his balance, another spiritual pattern had already formed. As spiritual energy surged, it constructed itself upon his body. If Lu Ye were stripped of his clothes at that moment, one would see his body densely covered with intricate and complex Yin-Yang dualities. With a flicker of his form, all the Yin-Yang dualities detached from his body, yet maintained their original outline, creating a figure identical to Lu Ye's.

Shadow Split!

Lu Ye had never used this spiritual pattern in combat before, only repeatedly during his mirage training, primarily to familiarize himself with its effects. This spiritual pattern had no offensive capabilities; it was purely for self-preservation, just as it was being used now.

When the turbulent spiritual energy settled, Liu Yuemei, who was still in pursuit, witnessed an utterly perplexing sight: two figures of Lu Ye appeared in her vision, both radiating brilliant spiritual light, making it momentarily impossible to distinguish the real from the fake.

“Clone technique?” Liu Yuemei exclaimed, utterly astonished.