Sage of Humanity

Chapter 2099: Chapter 2097: Life and Death Wuchang

After stellar space cultivators slay Star Abyss outsiders who have entered the Dao Realm, the best spoils are the Dao foundations they leave behind, which enable stellar space cultivators to quickly replenish their Dao force.

This, rather than closed-door cultivation, is how stellar space cultivators maintain their strength.

Although Lu Ye has killed several Star Abyss outsiders during this period, due to not venturing deep enough into the battlefield, he has only encountered enemies without Dao foundations, so even though he killed them, they held little value, only yielding some spoils at best.

But he knows that after joining Team A-3, the enemies he will face won’t be at the same level as before.

He’s somewhat anticipating this.

Composing himself, he carefully examines the bone in hand, faintly observing a subtle golden glow within it.

He grips the bone, channeling the power of the Talent Tree, and in just a moment, refines the residual Dao force within the bone completely.

Upon inspection, his own Dao force increases by just over four threads, indeed making up for his previous losses.

They gallop along the way, saying nothing.

Even when occasionally encountering some stellar space outsiders, Du Qingsha pays no attention, leading the way deeper into the battlefield.

Apparently noticing Lu Ye’s confusion, Xsu Rong explains, "Our Team A-3 is the sharpest blade of the Thunderbolt Battle Fortress. As such, we naturally deal with the mightiest foes. Dao force is difficult to recover; those weaker enemies are for others to handle. We need not waste our Dao force."

Lu Ye comprehends.

Days later, the team surpassed the furthest depth Lu Ye had previously ventured and kept advancing.

Some days after that, Du Qingsha, leading at the front, halts, glances around, and says, "It’s time. Conceal yourselves."

Xsu Rong and Snake Girl instantly nod, each summoning their magic treasures to obscure their forms and gather their auras, disappearing from Lu Ye’s sight in an instant.

Du Qingsha turns to Lu Ye again, "Your task is simple: walk freely, wander as you like, but don’t be too deliberate. Stay alert!"

Lu Ye chuckles silently, knowing Du Qingsha is using him as bait.

Yet, speaking of it, among the four-member team, none is more suitable as bait than he is, being the one with the lowest cultivation. In a setting like this, a cultivator of his level is unlikely, making him an irresistible target for any Star Abyss outsider.

Having instructed Lu Ye, Du Qingsha also uses some method, swiftly vanishing.

Nearby, Xsu Rong’s voice comes through, "Brother, don’t be afraid. We’re all beside you. At the slightest sign of trouble, we’ll rush to your rescue."

Lu Ye is unfazed; with a plan in place, he merely needs to fulfill his role.

Team A-3 likely uses this method to slay foes often. After all, if four appeared at once, even the most simple-minded Star Abyss outsider would know it’s wise to flee, not fight.

Lu Ye wanders cautiously, occasionally using his Mental Consciousness to sense the surroundings while minimizing his presence. Yet, despite his caution, his cultivation remains evident when he activates his mana.

This is already considered deep within the battlefield, with a much higher density of Star Abyss outsiders compared to where he and Jiu Yan were previously.

Thus, it’s only a moment before a Star Abyss outsider falls for the trap, unable to resist rushing out. This one looks like he has recently fought, his wounds still unhealed as he dashes aggressively toward Lu Ye, who feigns panic and flees.

The Star Abyss outsider suspects nothing and gives chase.

Suddenly, Snake Girl’s snake-shaped cover armor attacks from the side. Her timing is impeccably precise; after appearing, the serpent-like cover armor, as if alive, swiftly wraps around the Star Abyss outsider, ensnaring him tightly.

Xsu Rong’s cover armor follows closely, using the moment when the enemy is bound to smash his head with a powerful blow.

The fight ends just three breaths after Snake Girl appears, marking the death of a Star Abyss outsider who had entered the Dao Realm.

Snake Girl releases the corpse, and Xsu Rong precisely dismantles a bone from it, storing it away.

The two leap again, vanishing into nothingness.

The seamless execution of killing and plundering clearly shows their experience in this practice, while Du Qingsha’s presence remains unseen throughout.

"Well done, relocate now!" Du Qingsha’s voice reaches Lu Ye, acknowledging his fine performance.

Lu Ye follows her instructions.

In the following days, Team A-3 relies on this simple and brutal method to hunt Star Abyss outsiders within this range, engaging in battles multiple times daily.

During this period, Xsu Rong and Snake Girl are primarily responsible for killing the enemies. Du Qingsha only intervened once, during an encounter with a formidable foe with the power equivalent to the 3rd Dao. Even with Xsu Rong and Snake Girl teaming up, they failed to promptly resolve it, spurring the enemy’s fierce reaction, allowing him to shake off Snake Girl’s entanglement.

Yet, as Du Qingsha stepped in, the battle swiftly concluded.

On this battlefield, the earlier a cultivator ends a fight, the better—engaging in attrition is a burden no one can bear regarding Dao force loss. For this reason, despite Du Qingsha’s formidable strength, she requires a few members to assist her.

Furthermore, the sooner the battle ends, the more Dao force remains in the loot obtained, increasing its value.

On a dead star shattered into several pieces, the four members of Team A-3 found a secluded spot to rest and divide their spoils.

The four sat in a circle, with more than a dozen Dao bones in front of them, all gained from killing enemies in recent days. Du Qingsha scanned them with her Mental Consciousness, picked out two pieces, and tossed them to Lu Ye: "These are yours."

Then she picked another two pieces for herself, leaving the rest for Xsu Rong and Snake Girl.

Xsu Rong cheerfully stored away all the Dao bones.

Du Qingsha looked at Lu Ye and said, "Don’t feel like you’re getting the short end of the stick. The distribution of loot depends on the contribution during the fight. If you contribute little, you gain less!"

"Understood." Lu Ye nodded. In recent days, he had barely acted and served simply as bait, so getting two pieces of Dao bone was already quite good.

Though Du Qingsha also received two pieces, the quality of her pieces was undoubtedly better because they contained more residual Dao force.

Dao bones need to be refined promptly because the longer you wait, the Dao force within them dissipates gradually. Therefore, as soon as some spoils are collected, they should be divided quickly to avoid waste, while cultivators also need them to restore themselves.

Xsu Rong, hugging Snake Girl, cheerfully stood up and invited Lu Ye, "Brother, want to join us?"

"Join what?" Lu Ye looked up, puzzled.

Xsu Rong slapped Snake Girl’s round buttocks and grinned, "Life and death are unpredictable, we must enjoy ourselves timely!"

Snake Girl also threw a seductive look at Lu Ye, her tongue flicking out like a snake’s, licking her red lips with charm.

Lu Ye couldn’t help but twitch at the corner of his eye and politely declined, "Thank you for the offer."

"Hahaha, no worries, we can share good times together in the future!" Xsu Rong laughed joyfully, hugging Snake Girl as they headed in one direction, soon disappearing from sight.

After they left, Lu Ye took a while to recover, unable to resist asking, "Captain, aren’t they Dao companions?"

Du Qingsha replied with a nonchalant expression, "So what if they are Dao companions? The stellar space is on the brink of destruction, and nobody knows when they might die. With such little concern, the erosion of humanity and the collapse of morality are trivial compared to the future of the stellar space."

Lu Ye frowned, deep in thought without a word.

The state of this Yiyuan stellar space is the future of All Phenomena stellar space. Will it become equally chaotic one day?

He was uncertain.

Looking up at Du Qingsha, Lu Ye asked, "What about you, Captain?"

"Me?" Du Qingsha’s lips curved, "I only want to slay all those Star Abyss monsters!"

That’s the normal response, Lu Ye nodded in silent agreement.

Unexpectedly, Du Qingsha changed her tone, "Actually, I’m curious about one thing... make that two things." Without waiting for Lu Ye to speak, she directly asked, "How did you forge a Dao foundation with only Divine Realm Early Stage cultivation?"

She had always wanted to ask Lu Ye this, but never had the chance.

Lu Ye shook his head, "I haven’t forged a Dao foundation!"

Du Qingsha’s expression turned extremely surprised, "You haven’t forged a Dao foundation? Then how can you wield Dao force?" And not just any wielding, as previous experiments indicated, Lu Ye was at least a 3rd Dao cultivator.

This was a skill possessed only by Star Abyss monsters; stellar space cultivators had never exhibited such a trait.

Lu Ye couldn’t explain, and simply said, "I’m not sure either, perhaps my physique is unique."

Du Qingsha frowned, seeming skeptical. Were it not for the absence of the distinctive aura of Star Abyss outsiders on Lu Ye, she might truly suspect he was from the Star Abyss.

"And the second matter?" Lu Ye changed the topic.

Du Qingsha recovered, "Why is your background such a mystery? At this stage, the origins of any cultivator can be traced, with complete records during registration, and I have never seen one like yours."

Lu Ye paused, then said, "About this, you can ask the fort master; he is well aware."

The fact that he and Jiu Yan came from another Yiyuan stellar space was ultimately hard to disclose. Du Qingsha, being the captain of the hunting camp, should be able to reach the Thunderbolt Battle Fortress’s fort master, who would naturally explain if willing.

"Chen Wulei, huh..." Du Qingsha murmured, glancing at Lu Ye with a thoughtful expression, "Seems like your background isn’t ordinary."

Otherwise, how could it involve a person of the fort master’s caliber?

Turning perplexed again, if Lu Ye indeed had a significant background, why would he need her nomination opportunity?

Lu Ye offered no explanation, gripping the two Dao bones he earned, he activated the power of the Talent Tree to refine them. Soon, additional threads of Dao force appeared on the leaves of the Talent Tree, nearing a breakthrough of a hundred count once again.