Sage of Humanity

The Butcher did not provide Lu Ye with many answers; perhaps he did not know, or perhaps some matters were difficult to discuss.

However, as a result, Lu Ye's original plan had gone awry.

He had thought that under this calamity, Xianyuan City would have been completely overrun by the Insect Race, the Xianyuan Guards annihilated, and feared that even the seemingly powerful City Lord and the woman in red could not survive; he only needed to sneak into the City Lord's Residence under the cover of his own Insect Race squad to plunder the Soul Cleansing Water.

But things were not as he had imagined.

Within Xianyuan City, there were still many Xianyuan Guards active; the City Lord was also most likely still alive.

If the City Lord was not dead, even if he entered the City Lord's Residence, he would not be able to get the Soul Cleansing Water... That was somewhat troublesome.

This was not to say that Lu Ye wished for the City Lord's death, but that his original plan could no longer be executed.

"When will Senior go to the City Lord's Residence?" Lu Ye inquired.

Although the prospect seemed slim, he still wished to try; after all, it was a rare opportunity to be here, and compared to the battle merits he might collect, he was more eager to obtain the Soul Cleansing Water, which had a crucial role in his upcoming plans.

Besides, he also wanted to ask the City Lord some questions, such as how he could leave this place.

Having inadvertently entered Xianyuan City, he could not stay here forever, and he ultimately had to leave, but Lu Ye was also unclear about the specifics of how to do so.

Perhaps the City Lord of Xianyuan City could provide an answer.

The Butcher gave him a glance and spoke, "My task is to clear out the Insect Race extending from this area to the outskirts; I won't return until it's done."

Lu Ye understood, nodding, "I will help, too."

If the Soul Cleansing Water was beyond hope, then at the very least he had to earn more battle merits. The Butcher was of Divine Sea Realm, and most of those Xianyuan Guards were of True Lake Realm. It would be safer to act alongside them, and as long as the Butcher accomplished his mission, then Lu Ye would be able to go with him to the City Lord's Residence.

"Suit yourself!" The Butcher did not refuse, as a mere Lu Ye alone might not bring much benefit to them, but Lu Ye's Insect Race squad could indeed exert an extraordinary force.

The Insect Race, with their low spiritual intelligence, would probably never imagine dying at the hands of their own kind.

"By the way, Senior, what's the deal with these buildings hanging lanterns at the entrance? I remember last time I was here, the Xianyuan Guards couldn't enter."

This was another point of confusion for him; last time when he entered, these special buildings sheltered the foreign cultivators, blocking the Xianyuan Guards from pursuing them. Lu Ye initially thought that these buildings were like forbidden lands for the Xianyuan Guards.

But now it seemed not to be the case at all; the Xianyuan Guards could enter!

Just as the foreign cultivators had relied on these buildings for shelter to evade the pursuit of Xianyuan Guards the last time, this time the Xianyuan Guards could make use of these buildings to rest and avoid the Insect Race's pursuit.

"I've said it before, it is ultimately a game, what you see is only what you see, and... heaven never seals off all exits, understand?"

Lu Ye seemed to understand a bit, but also seemed not to, yet he quickly realized that the emphasis of the Butcher's words was on the last sentence.

Indeed, Heaven's Augury was omnipresent.

Whether it was the opening of the secret realm last time or this Insect Race siege, these buildings endowed with absolute protection provided cultivators with a space for evasion and rest.

Though the Butcher was of Divine Sea Realm, he did not possess the dignity of one; perhaps because he had not spoken with living people for a long time, he talked with Lu Ye about many things, especially about the current situation in the outside world. Lu Ye spoke casually, the Butcher listening with interest, occasionally asking questions with Lu Ye responding yi-yi.

He also asked about Lu Ye's method of commanding the Insect Race. Lu Ye did not hide anything, upon learning that it was the power of divine runes, the Butcher was greatly surprised.

He had originally thought that Lu Ye was a cultivator from the beast-taming faction, whose ability to command the Insect Race came from the art of beast taming.

After resting for less than a two hour period, a group of Xianyuan Guards set off under the guidance of the Butcher.

They all had missions to fulfill.

Moreover, Xianyuan Guard squads like theirs were not few in number throughout Xianyuan City; each team was responsible for a different area.

Lu Ye had not encountered them before primarily because he was on the outskirts of Xianyuan City; most of the Xianyuan Guards were now in the middle sectors of the city. Since Lu Ye had traveled all this way, it was natural that he had not come across them.

A squad led by a Divine Sea Realm with seven or eight in the True Lake Realm was a formidable force, and the Insect Race they encountered had practically no capability to resist. However, the number of Insect Race in Xianyuan City was so vast that once caught in a fierce battle, causing too much commotion would bring an endless stream of Insect Race reinforcements.

Therefore, even though the team's overall strength was strong, they did not act recklessly. The Butcher always first identified nearby special buildings as retreats and, after slaying a batch of the Insect Race, would lead the Xianyuan Guards to retreat and rest, repeating this cycle of advance towards the outskirts of the city.

Lu Ye's Insect Race squad proved to be of great help many times; in the midst of chaotic battles, the seven Insect Race managed to take advantage of many situations, allowing Lu Ye's battle merits to continuously increase, while also alleviating the Xianyuan Guard squad's pressure.

If the Butcher and the rest were normal cultivators, then this would undoubtedly be a battle without much suspense.

Regrettably, all of them being spiritual bodies, the energy consumed during battle could not be effectively replenished, so as time passed, they grew weaker and weaker.

The few Xianyuan Guards of only Cloud River Realm pedigree already appeared somewhat transparent.

They seemed unfazed, carefree, laughing, and chatting with Lu Ye during breaks.

It was rare for living beings to come to Xianyuan City, especially ones who could communicate with them, so the Xianyuan Guards were exceptionally enthusiastic around Lu Ye, each one of them engaging him in conversation, chatting about anything and everything.

Even a fiery-tempered female Xianyuan Guard asked some questions that were hard to fend off, leaving Lu Ye speechless while the others chuckled.

After another fierce battle ended, the Butcher led the Xianyuan Guards back to retreat and recuperate.

As before, even though they appeared extremely weak and their bodies had become translucent, the Xianyuan Guards did not seem to care in the least.

They gave Lu Ye the impression that they had long accepted life and death, showing no hint of fear even in the face of death itself.

Lu Ye couldn't help but feel respect for them.

After hesitating for a long time, he finally decided to go up to the second floor alone to find the Butcher.

"What's the matter?" The Butcher looked at him curiously.

Lu Ye said, "The Soul Cleansing Pool contains Soul Cleansing Water that should be able to restore you, right? Didn't you bring any with you?"

He had thought that the Butcher and the others would surely have brought some Soul Cleansing Water with them to replenish their strength, but it seemed they had not, otherwise they would not have gradually weakened like that.

"The soul pool contains soul mist, not soul water. It cannot be condensed by ordinary means and cannot be taken out," the Butcher explained.

Lu Ye was taken aback, not expecting it to be like that. He thought that indeed the Soul Cleansing Pool was filled with soul mist. Previously, he had constructed a large spirit energy gathering funnel to condense the soul mist into Soul Cleansing Water, which wasn't something others could do, even those in the Divine Sea Realm.

What Lu Ye did not know was that for thousands of years, the spirit bodies of Xianyuan City had lived this way; death was not something they feared but merely the beginning of a new journey.

The soul pool was crucial, being the foundation of Xianyuan City and even the other Boundless Mirage Realms. As long as the power of the soul pool was not exhausted, Xianyuan City would not fall. Therefore, since ancient times, no one had ever thought of condensing the soul mist from the soul pool into soul water to take out.

Doing so once or twice might be okay, but doing it too many times would certainly impact the soul pool.

So even a powerful being like the City Lord, capable of condensing soul water, would not do so.

"You know about the soul pool?" The Butcher was somewhat surprised.

"Mhm, I've been there once," Lu Ye nodded, recalling the trade he had done with the City Lord which allowed him to enter the soul pool with Amber and Giant Armor to cleanse his psyche. He had scooped out some Soul Cleansing Water, which had infuriated the City Lord quite a bit.

"I don't have much of this stuff left. Use it sparingly," Lu Ye said, taking out a jade vial and passing it to the Butcher.

The Butcher took the vial with suspicion. Upon opening it, his eyes revealed surprise, "Where did you get this?"

As a spirit body of Xianyuan City, he recognized at a glance what was in the vial. He couldn't figure out how Lu Ye had such a thing.

"What do you think?" Lu Ye gave him a sidelong glance.

The Butcher quickly realized and burst into laughter, "The City Lord didn't kill you, huh!"

It seemed he hadn't killed him, otherwise Lu Ye would not still be alive.

The Butcher finally understood why the City Lord had been somewhat irritable after the last opening of the secret realm. It was because of this.

"Kid, I owe you one," the Butcher said, patting Lu Ye on the shoulder, then taking a single drop from the vial to swallow, and in an instant, the weakness lingering around him dissipated at a visible pace.

The Butcher then went down to the first floor and shared the remaining Soul Cleansing Water from the vial with the other Xianyuan Guards.

One by one, the weakened Xianyuan Guards quickly regained their vigor.

Knowing that the Soul Cleansing Water had been contributed by Lu Ye, the already warm feelings the Xianyuan Guards had towards him grew even warmer.

The female spirit body named Yooi Qing, with her fiery temperament, acted as if she was willing to offer herself in gratitude, causing Lu Ye quite a bit of embarrassment while the other Xianyuan Guards watched the spectacle, secretly delighted by his discomfort.

They resumed their campaign, led by the Butcher, using special structures as strongholds to clear the Insect Race off one street after another.

Despite having their powers replenished, the task of eliminating the Insect Race in this area remained a daunting one. After successive battles, as their personal strength waned, the Xianyuan Guards once again became weakened.

This time, however, there was no more Soul Cleansing Water for them to recover with.

Lu Ye's battle merits had exceeded a hundred thousand, but he did not feel much joy.

Looking at the Xianyuan Guards who, despite their weakness, still wore smiles on their faces, Lu Ye was filled with confusion—were these guys really not afraid of death at all?

Even as spirit bodies, facing death shouldn't be taken so lightly.