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When Tao Zhengyu and Yi Yi rendezvoused with Lu Ye at the New Moon Sect outpost, little did they realize that they would be beholding a scene that would be etched into the fabric of his memory for the rest of his lifetime.
Corpse after gruesome corpse lay scattered upon the blood-spattered flagstones on the floor, their positions twisted and chaotic. The blood stains on the ground painted a macabre canvas that depicted how savage was the earlier skirmish, a morbid trail of red and dismembered limbs that led straight to the forecourt of the New Moon Sect’s Sanctum of Providence.
Upon the steps of the Sanctum of Providence was a solitary figure sitting there, leaning in a casual recline with an air of nonchalance and a saber lying beside him. A serpent of violet lightning was slithering all over him, crackling in its serpentine dance.
Watching how the amethyst lightning was gnawing at the physique of the person gave Tao Zhengyu a disconcerting discomfort. It was nigh impossible to fathom the torment one would endure within the embrace of such a thunderous hue.
Beyond the shadow of the Sanctum’s edifice, deep inside its recesses, a miasma of crimson malevolence hung heavy, where no less than a score of lifeless corpses lay amassed.
The New Moon Sect outpost sat right inside the core regions of the Battlefield, a place where every Cultivator was at least a Ninth-Order if not higher.
Yet, these practitioners who once held dominion over heights, in Tao Zhengyu’s eyes, now lay dead within the pool of their own blood, their warmth steadily fading.
Tao Zhengyu could have sworn that he counted at least fifty dead bodies.
When his eyes set upon the person seated upon the steps, Tao Zhengyu was overcome by such a crippling sensation as if he was gazing upon a towering mountain summit that stretched beyond the clouds overhead—a height that he would never, ever, be able to scale.
This was Lu Yi Ye, the fifth acolyte of the Crimson Blood Sect—his senior brother.
Months ago, he had made history when he single-handedly tamed every Thousand Demon Ridge sect and order through his savage might. It wasn’t until he ascended into the Cloud River Realm that they rejoiced and celebrated with unbridled elation.
But who would have guessed that the most feared Annihilator of Sects would revisit the Spirit Creek Battlefield after just a three-month absence, only to lay waste to the outpost of a major Thousand Demon Ridge sect?
Tao Zhengyu climbed the steps and greeted, “Brother Lu Yi Ye.”
“Go,” motioned Lu Ye, “Go inside and do your thing.”
“Yes, sir,” answered Tao Zhengyu, knowing full well why he was brought here. He stepped inside the Sanctum of Providence and with his credentials as legate of the Crimson Blood Sect outpost, he stripped the Divine Opportunity Column of the New Moon Sect outpost of all its Blessings.
This was his first time, but it wasn’t hard. All it took were a couple of tries and Tao Zhengyu easily got the hang of it.
Yi Yi placed before Lu Ye the Storage Bags she had gathered from the dead bodies she had ransacked. With a worrisome tone, she asked, “Are you all right, Lu Ye?”
The Judgment of the Heavens was anathema to the human soul and spiritual entities like Yi Yi would find themselves affected greatly just by being near it. Even a glance was enough to induce a sense of vertigo in her.
“I am fine.”
Lu Ye responded casually. With the Tree of Glyphs consuming the invasive Judgment of the Heavens, he felt rather well. Even the pain felt relatively tolerable.
If anything, he was more bothered by the loss of his Contribution Points, which was a two-thousand-point deficit.
The Heavens’ rewarding of Contribution Points clearly took him for a Cloud River Realm Third-Order, even though his rank would remain at the Heaven Nine stage for as long as he stayed here in the Spirit Creek Battlefield.
And as a Cloud River Realm Cultivator, every kill would not win him points, but rather, a deduction of his Contribution Points.
What a huge loss it had been.
He had come here seeking remediations for the losses he had sustained but instead of gaining points, he was losing more points.
But he had collected enough loot and Storage Bags from the enemies he had slain to make up for the deficit. Lu Ye stuffed a few Spirit Pills into his mouth to recuperate while he took the time to undo the magical seals that held the Storage Bags.
Nevertheless, there was little to be expected of the loot he had collected from Cultivators who were still of the Spirit Creek Realm. Even Tan Li’s, a Heaven Nine Cultivator, hardly fared better.
Lu Ye finally finished undoing the magical seals of his booty.
That took approximately half an hour, revealing nothing that might have dazzled him nor stirred his heart.
Tao Zhengyu, having deftly purloined every Blessing he could get his hands on from the New Moon Sect’s Divine Opportunity Column, emerged from the Sanctum of Providence with an air of invigoration. He strode towards Lu Ye and asked, “Where to after this, Brother Lu?”
Lu Ye carefully stowed away his plunder, not forgetting to stuff a few Spirit Pills and Stones into a separate Storage Bag which he tossed to Tao Zhengyu, saying, “Gimme a minute.”
He spun on his heels and headed into the Sanctum of Providence whereupon he reached the foot of the Divine Opportunity Column. He extended a hand, and touched the divine obelisk, and entered the Vault of Providence, selling his loot there in exchange for Contribution Points.
That brought his Contribution Points tally up to seven thousand. Without the faintest hint of hesitation, he proceeded to convert all accrued Points into buying Flames of Earthen Spirits. The reason was simple enough: the Tree of Glyph appeared to have been fully drained of its fuel and swift replenishment was imperative. Or else, the Judgment of the Heavens would go on inflicting its damage on him, which could encumber his plans.
The consumption of the Tree of Glyphs’ fuel in eradicating the effects of the Judgment of the Heavens far exceeded that of venomous toxins. Whether there was still enough fuel for the Tree or not, Lu Ye did not know. But what he did know was that a small portion of the sustenance for the Tree was always stockpiled as reserve whenever the Tree was to unlock new Glyphs.
The only time when the Tree of Glyph had fully run out of sustenance was during the Battle of Goldentip.
He was still a very lowly Spirit Creek Realm Cultivator at the time and he did not have enough Contribution Points—which was how the Tree’s sustenance became fully expended at the time.
But since he began acquiring Flames of Earthen Spirits from the Vault of Providence, his Tree of Glyphs was never short of sustenance.
Until now, which was the second time this happened.
The Tree of Glyphs devoured one Flame of Earthen Spirits after another like a starving wolf as the vast expanses of smoky ash ignited billowed. Still, the violet thunderbolts crackling all over him showed no sign of diminishing.
Over fifty lives had been taken by him and in the aftermath, the growing effect of the Judgment of the Heavens because of their deaths was poised to take a lot of Flames of Earthen Spirits to fully eradicate.
But what astonished Lu Ye the most was how the Tree of Glyphs refused to exhibit any reaction no matter how many Flames of Earthen Spirits he had consumed. He could only surmise that the Tree must have perceived his precarious circumstance and was focusing on removing the Judgment’s effects above all else.
With himself now beleaguered by the Judgment’s effects, the Flames were clearly being used by the Tree as fuel to combat the Judgment’s effects, not to unlock any more new Glyphs.
In mere moments, the Flames he exchanged from the Vault of Providence for over seven thousand Contribution Points were fully consumed, the boughs of the Tree of Glyphs now shrouded by an unceasingly thick smog that refused to dissipate.
A brief half-hour later, the Tree of Glyphs lay dormant, its leaves unmoving, and its reservoir of fuel once more completely depleted.
Still, the arcing electricity of the Judgment of Heavens persisted in its vibrant shade of purple upon Lu Ye, its vigor undiminished.
[All that for nothing?! What a loss!]
A flicker danced at the corner of Lu Ye’s eye, a telltale sign of his inner turmoil. His initial plan to seek restitution from the New Moon Sect for the losses he had sustained at first had ended up with even more Contribution Points bleeding away instead with every kill he took and trying to eradicate the Judgment of the Heavens had cost him a huge load of Points too. Instead of regaining Points, the hole was only just getting bigger and bigger, much to his dismay.
But if he were to take into account the Blessing Tao Zhengyu reaped from the enemy outpost, the balance undoubtedly swayed in favor of profit.