Sage of Humanity

Chapter 186 Mushroom Kill

They sized each other up, confirming each other's cultivation levels.

The two facing them were Level 7, carrying swords at their waists, appearing to be combat cultivators.

Before they even got close, one of the slightly thinner figures loudly called out, "Which camp do Fellow Daoists belong to? We are from the Haotian Alliance!"

The distance was still not enough, so the battlefield markings on the back of their hands had not reacted yet. However, if they had been close enough, their affiliation would have been clear at a glance, just like when Lu Ye and Hua Ci first arrived here and encountered two from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge, with the markings on their hands shimmering faintly.

This was a rule during the Spirit Stream Defense Battle, convenient for verifying each other's positions.

Lu Ye looked at him expressionlessly and did not answer.

The thin cultivator then said, "If it's convenient for Fellow Daoist, please show the battlefield marking to avoid misunderstanding."

Lu Ye silently activated his spirit force, raised his hand, and a fat firebird flapping its wings charged towards them. The corpulent firebird was so plump that it momentarily stunned Hua Ci, who then followed up with a magic spell as green as an arrow.

This was the first time she had seen Lu Ye use a magic spell, and of such a form too. If the situation hadn't been inappropriate, she probably couldn't have helped but laugh out loud.

That's when she realized why Lu Ye had put away his sword...

The two spells, one after another, blasted towards the opposite side. It wasn't that Lu Ye saw that they were lying, but rather that the newcomers inherently harbored ill intentions.

In the Nine Provinces, on the Spirit Stream battlefield, strange cultivators meeting each other wouldn't easily reveal their stance—it was common knowledge. The fact that they declared themselves from the Haotian Alliance right off the bat was suspicious.

Even if they truly were from the Haotian Alliance, it wouldn't matter, they could simply apologize later after the two islands merged.

But if the others were from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge... they were definitely from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge.

Striking first was simply to take the initiative.

With spirit force bursting forth, the shouting thin cultivator angrily burst out, "How daring, to launch a sneak attack! It seems you are tired of living!"

Though he said so, his actions did not stop as both of them dodged and moved around.

Neither Lu Ye's Fire Phoenix Technique nor Hua Ci's Green Arrow Technique were very powerful, and they weren't fast either. With a certain distance between them, dodging wasn't difficult; as one side fought merrily, the other evaded spiritedly, with the two islands quickly drawing closer.

Perhaps feeling too embarrassed by just taking hits without retaliating, the two combat cultivators opposite communicated briefly and each reached into their storage sacks at their waists, pulling out Spirit Talismans and activating them to attack Lu Ye and Hua Ci.

For a time, the sea was extremely lively with firebirds, green arrows, Golden Arc Slashes, and ice spikes crisscrossing back and forth.

While fighting back, the thin cultivator sneered, "Two Level 6 junior magic cultivators, just you wait, you'll get what's coming to you soon!"

As the words fell, all four of them staggered as the two islands collided.

Lu Ye and Hua Ci stumbled in a highly synchronized manner, appearing extremely disheveled. Meanwhile, the opposites stabilized themselves quickly, each pushing off powerfully with their feet, one rushing to the left and the other to the right towards them.

As the distance closed, the markings on the back of their hands gradually began to glow.

The backs of their hands blazed with red light—not from the Haotian Alliance at all, but clearly from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge.

"You're dead!" said the thin cultivator, his voice chillingly cold. Dodging several of Lu Ye's magic spells, he had already rushed close to him, and the other was targeting Hua Ci, who immediately left Lu Ye behind in a panic to flee.

"Haha," laughed the thin cultivator heartily, as if enjoying the sight of 'birds of a feather flocking together until disaster strikes and they flee separately.'

Dodging another magic spell, the thin cultivator leaped high, his longsword drawn from its sheath, a confident expression on his face.

One cultivation level above his opponent, and with a magic cultivator within reach, he was confident!

Then he saw Lu Ye reach into his storage sack and pull out a longsword...

"Huh?" A flicker of unease crossed the thin cultivator's mind.

And as Lu Ye drew his sword, with a flash of the blade, that unease soared to its peak, turning into terror.

With a clang, the longsword was knocked flying, and the thin cultivator, suspended in mid-air without any leverage, watched as Lu Ye's sword was enveloped in a fiery red spirit force, burning like the entire blade was aflame, then slashing down a second time!

"Ay!"

A scream echoed as a spray of fresh blood burst from the thin cultivator, who was hacked aside, one arm flying off.

Only then did he realize—the young Level 6 wasn't just a magic cultivator; this guy was also a combat cultivator!

But could a combat cultivator cast spells that fast? He hadn't had any doubts about this earlier, but the rapidity of the opponent's spellcasting had dispelled his suspicions; such swift spell formation couldn't be achieved without long-term practice.

Cunning little thief! The thin cultivator inwardly cursed, clenching his remaining hand in a magic gesture, frantically urging his spirit force, causing the flown-out longsword to tremble with a buzzing sound, turning into a stream of light.

However, before he could even activate this sword stream of light, his vision was already filled with slashing light, his life force rapidly fading.

From his charge at Lu Ye to now, it was only a matter of three breaths...

After slaying this man, Lu Ye immediately chased after the other cultivator, who was pursuing Hua Ci. Though Hua Ci was fast, she inevitably wasn't quicker than a combat cultivator. Just as she was about to be overtaken, the scream from behind startled that man.

When he turned his head to look back, he saw Lu Ye charging towards him with a fierce momentum.

His own companion had died? How? And, wasn't this youth a magic cultivator? What did it mean that he was holding a sword?

In that instant, one question after another erupted in his mind, none of which he could answer.

He hesitated for a moment between turning to face the enemy and continuing his pursuit, and before he could decide, he suddenly felt dizzy.

Beneath his feet, a gray mushroom was crushed, and its nearly imperceptible spores swirled around him, being inhaled into his lungs.

Although he did not know what had happened, he instinctively stimulated his spirit force and dispelled the uncomfortable sensation.

But in that blink of an eye's delay, Lu Ye had already rushed up close, and facing the sword strike from him, the cultivator could only fight back.

The sound of clanging rang out, and as the Spiritual Artifacts clashed, sparks flew everywhere.

The fleeing Hua Ci also stopped and turned around, with spirit force surging around her, and as she acted, the spirit light that blossomed from the Level 7 cultivator's body began to dim and become obscure.

Lu Ye felt that his opponent's moves were getting weaker and weaker. At the beginning of the battle, the opponent performed just like any other Level 7 cultivator, but after two moves, it seemed like his strength was greatly suppressed, and the fluctuations of spirit force on his body were now on par with his own.

He could kill a Level 7 cultivator, let alone a Level 6. Wanting to see Hua Ci's methods, he did not deliver a deadly blow but kept entangling with the opponent.

After a while, the other side's spirit force fluctuations dropped even further, falling to the level of Level 5. Not only that, but what had happened at Mount Ying occurred again: small mushrooms began to sprout from the cultivator's orifices, looking extremely terrifying.

The opponent clearly also realized something was wrong. After forcing Lu Ye back with a move, he stood his ground, clenched his teeth, and roared, "What have you done?"

"Is this the limit?" Lu Ye asked Hua Ci.

"Pretty much."

"Then kill him."

"Should I do it?"

"Mm, killing one yields 14 merit points."

"My hands are meant to save lives and heal wounds, not to kill," Hua Ci said somewhat aggrieved.

"I'll fight you guys!" the cultivator from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge roared angrily, charging fiercely towards Lu Ye. Neither of his enemies took him seriously, discussing the value of his life right in front of him—no one could bear such humiliation.

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But as he charged towards Lu Ye, the mushrooms in his orifices quickly grew larger and then suddenly exploded, a sequence of sounds followed, and his face looked as if it had corroded, he slumped to the ground, and two red lights floated towards Hua Ci and Lu Ye respectively. Under him, the blood that flowed out was not a normal scarlet but leaned towards green.

The merit went to Hua Ci, while Lu Ye received the blessing from Heaven's Augury Pillar.

Lu Ye looked up at Hua Ci.

This woman smiled kindly, "The mushrooms killed him, what does that have to do with me?"

Lu Ye was left speechless and gathered the spoils of war.

When checking the battlefield marking, he realized that this time he received not one but two blessings from the Heaven's Augury Pillar…

So, these two cultivators from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge had also killed a group of people before, taking away their blessings, and now ended up sending them here.

Realizing this, Lu Ye raised his eyebrows, meaning that moving forward, the benefits of killing enemies would become greater.

By the end, killing a group might bring unimaginable benefits because, as the participants in the Spirit Stream Defense Battle kept dying, the Heaven's Augury Pillar's blessings would accumulate towards a few people.

The exploration of the island revealed that the two islands had not truly fused together but clung to each other like two magnets, strongly attached, drifting together in a certain direction.

Hua Ci walked towards the opposite island with cheerful steps, intending to plant mushrooms there, turning all the gathered islands into undetectable traps, so that anyone daring to rush over would get no good out of it.

Lu Ye did not follow. The enemies were killed, and there was no danger on that side.

He noticed that after the island grew larger, the nature's spiritual energy also became richer. However, he had not expended much in the recent fight, so he only needed a bit of simple rest.

Two hours later, Hua Ci returned, humming some tune and appearing to be in a very good mood.

"The power of your mushrooms seems to have increased," Lu Ye commented on his suspicion. Back at Mount Ying, although Hua Ci had implanted mushrooms in that Level 7 cultivator, they had not been this powerful or acted this swiftly.

"Second Senior Sister gave me some pointers," Hua Ci explained.

Lu Ye was surprised, "Second Senior Sister knows about this?"

"She doesn't know, but with her insights and experience, giving pointers to a junior cultivator like me is no problem at all."

That made sense.

Seeming to see what Lu Ye was thinking, Hua Ci smiled and said, "Every healing cultivator is adept at using poison; it depends only on whether they want to and are willing to use it. How can you heal without understanding poison? Don't underestimate those gentle-looking healing cultivators in the future."

"I never underestimate anyone, enemy!"