Sage of Humanity

The Spirit Stream Ranking is a list generated naturally by Heaven's Augury, and among the countless cultivators of the Spirit Stream battlefield, only a hundred are selected. One can imagine the difficulty of making it onto the list. Read new adventures at My Virtual Library Empire

Over the years, the cultivators of the Nine Provinces have already figured out the rules for entry into the Spirit Stream Ranking.

There are two ways to climb onto the Spirit Stream Ranking.

The first method is to battle in public, displaying one's strength during combat. If the displayed strength is sufficiently powerful, it would be included in the Spirit Stream Ranking and assigned an appropriate position.

Hence, as long as one's strength is great enough, it is guaranteed to make it onto the Spirit Stream Ranking. Of course, if a cultivator wishes to hide his capabilities and never reveals his strongest strength in public, even if he is qualified, he would not be selected.

Take Li Baxian for example. The first time Lu Ye met him, he was ranked tenth on the Spirit Stream Ranking because he had always concealed his full strength from others.

It wasn't until after the battle at Golden Light Peak and his agreed fight with Yanh Xing that he exposed his foundation. The Spirit Stream Ranking then promptly adjusted his position from tenth to third.

Recently, after Li Baxian's spiritual orifice was fully repaired and with his 9th Heaven level cultivation, he killed Yanh Xing outside the Mad Saber Sect's territory and jumped from the third place to the top of the list.

This was because, in the judgment of Heaven's Augury, the strength he had displayed had surpassed Feng Yuechan.

Another method is to challenge someone on the Spirit Stream Ranking.

Heaven's Augury has its own set of criteria and methods for challenges. If someone off the ranking succeeds in the challenge or kills the ranked person, they would replace that person's position on the list.

It is very beneficial for a cultivator to climb onto the Spirit Stream Ranking. These benefits, bestowed by Heaven's Augury, greatly aid in cultivation.

It is precisely because of these various benefits that many cultivators with profound backgrounds and 9th Heaven level cultivation are unwilling to ascend to Cloud River. They remain in the Spirit Stream battlefield largely for the Spirit Stream Ranking. If they could get onto the ranking and obtain the blessings granted by Heaven's Augury before ascending to Cloud River, their potential would be even greater in the future.

When cultivators reach the 9th Heaven level, the disparities in their foundations slowly become apparent.

Even amongst cultivators with the same cultivation, their strengths vary.

Although Lu Ye has killed quite a few 9th Heaven level cultivators recently, if he were to truly face a powerhouse from the Spirit Stream Ranking, who would win is truly uncertain. The strength he has demonstrated so far has not been enough to allow him to climb onto the Spirit Stream Ranking—this is Heaven's Augury's fair judgment.

Until now.

In one fell swoop, Fire Phoenix annihilated more than two hundred Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators, among which five were on the Spirit Stream Ranking, and the highest-ranked of them was Woo Beihan at thirty-third...

According to the rules of the Spirit Stream Ranking, by killing Woo Beihan, Lu Ye, regardless of the means used, would take over his spot.

In fact, considering the terrifying power displayed by Fire Phoenix, not even the first-ranked on the Spirit Stream Ranking could withstand it. In theory, Lu Ye could have immediately ascended to the top of the ranking.

However, Heaven's Augury has its own set of standards for judgment, and perhaps it felt that Lu Ye's method was a bit opportunistic. Therefore, it only allowed him to replace Woo Beihan's position.

After all, under normal circumstances, Lu Ye wouldn't have the opportunity to use that spirit rune in a fight. His spirit force would be insufficient and depleted before he could, so how could he use it?

This time he succeeded because he had prepared in advance, storing up to sixty percent of his spirit force using two spirit energy storing spirit runes. In a real combat situation, he wouldn't have the time to do all this.

At this moment, on that huge ranking list, amidst the uniformly listed 9th Heaven level cultivators, a 7th Heaven Level 7 cultivator had mixed in, occupying the thirty-third position, shining brightly and nearly blinding both friendly and hostile cultivators alike!

Never before has anyone started off so high on the Spirit Stream Ranking; most cultivators climbed up from the very bottom of the list step by step.

This unprecedented event unfolded right before everyone's eyes.

Through the communication of various cultivators, the news rapidly spread throughout the Nine Provinces. Within a short period, every cultivator in the Nine Provinces knew about it.

The Nine Provinces were shaken!

The shock wasn't merely from Lu Ye's attainment of the thirty-third position on the Spirit Stream Ranking with his 7th Heaven cultivation but also from the terrifying method he employed. No one knew exactly how he had done it, but somehow he had conjured the figure of the Vermillion Bird, one of the Four Auspicious Sacred Beasts, and wiped out more than two hundred people from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge in one go.

At this moment, Lu Ye's plight was hard to voice, as if he had swallowed a bitter pill. Originally, the Ten Thousand Poisons Forest was rife with poison barriers, and he began to flee the instant he fell. With his powerful perception and the trace-erasing bangle and Concealment Spirit Runes, as long as his luck wasn't too awful, he generally didn't worry about being discovered by the people of Ten Thousand Demons Ridge.

But now the Spirit Stream Ranking was like a massive flag waving suddenly above his head!

That flag accurately indicated Lu Ye's position to the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators. In an instant, those who had been aimlessly searching for Lu Ye converged in the direction indicated by the Spirit Stream Ranking.

Lu Ye was full of bitterness, as if he had chewed on coptis. What made him even more annoyed was the name displayed for him on the Spirit Stream Ranking—what was going on with that?

Even Heaven's Augury had decided to call him Lu Yiye?

His name was clearly Lu Ye!

Yue Shan, you wretched scoundrel, just you wait!

Dragging his weary body and mustering his spirits, Lu Ye quickly delved deeper into the Ten Thousand Poisons Forest. For other cultivators, the omnipresent poison barriers might be troublesome, but for Lu Ye, they were not a threat at all.

As long as the fuel reserves in his Talent Tree were sufficient, any poison that invaded his body would be burnt clean.

With his strong perception, Lu Ye often detected the presence of those searching for him among the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators before they did. Moreover, the view within the Ten Thousand Poisons Forest was obscured; at a glance, the entire forest was filled with colorful mists and barriers of poison drifting directionlessly.

The trace-erasing bangle was already on his wrist. As soon as he sensed someone nearby, he would promptly activate the power of the bangle to conceal himself.

Madam Yun's Spiritual Artifact came in handy at this time, helping Lu Ye a great deal. Although the spirit force within his body was rapidly recovering, it was best to conserve energy whenever possible during such times.

The spirit force required to activate the trace-erasing bangle was much less than that needed for the Concealment Spirit Runes, and moreover, the concealment effect of this Spiritual Artifact was somewhat superior to that of the runes.

Continuously, Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators passed by nearby, searching all around.

Only after they had left did Lu Ye continue his escape.

In this stop-and-go fashion, suddenly, Lu Ye felt a strong premonition in his heart, and he quickly stopped and concealed his tracks.

All around was deathly quiet with no signs of Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators searching, causing Lu Ye to frown. He thought he was mistaken, but just as he was about to deactivate the power of the trace-erasing bangle, that premonition emerged out of thin air again.

He stood still, holding his breath, and carefully inspected his surroundings.

His perception, far exceeding that of a Spirit Stream Realm cultivator, played a critical role at this moment as Lu Ye detected a faint sign of life not far from him.

There was someone at that spot!

And to be able to conceal their presence and figure to this extent clearly indicated an extremely powerful ghost cultivator.

Quietly stimulating the Insight Spirit Runes to enhance his eyesight, sure enough, he saw traces of spirit force flowing in a human shape at that location.

The ghost cultivator seemed to have sensed something and, while concealing his figure, roamed around nearby. Moments later, he actually approached within a short distance of Lu Ye.

The two of them, each having concealed their presence, were now separated by a mere thirty feet, each sizing up the other's location.

The flow of spirit force within the ghost cultivator suddenly sped up significantly, leading Lu Ye to immediately deduce that the other party was preparing to strike.

It wasn't that the other party had detected his presence, but rather that the ghost cultivator seemed to be testing the waters...

With a ringing sound, from the supplies box on Lu Ye's waist, nine streaks of Liu Guang shot forth towards the front.

Having sensed the other's intention to make a move, Lu Ye certainly wasn't going to wait foolishly.

The ghost cultivator, who had not yet made a move, was evidently startled, revealing his figure in haste; an ordinary-looking face emerged, which belonged to none other than Spectral Shadow, ranked ninth on the Spirit Stream Ranking.

As the spirit force surged, Spectral Shadow's dagger turned into a blur, and with a series of clinks, all nine weapon-controlled items were blocked.

Looking up again, Lu Ye had already soared into the sky with weapon control.

Spectral Shadow was furious. It was the first time someone had pierced through his concealed presence and discovered his trail. He had no idea how Lu Ye did it, but this was something unthinkable and unacceptable for any ghost cultivator.

Without any delay, he summoned his Flying Spirit Artifact and pursued closely.

At the same time, shouts rang out from all directions.

"Lu Yiye is here!"

Those were the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators who had been searching for Lu Ye in the sky and had found him.

In an instant, the scene became lively as multiple figures chased after Lu Ye, casting spells and magic from a distance, forcing Lu Ye to maneuver his controlled artifact to evade the attacks.

Heading deeper into the Ten Thousand Poisons Forest, not long after, a streak of light rushed toward him.

Lu Ye focused his eyes and saw a broad figure standing on the Flying Spirit Artifact with a greenish spirit light all over his body, evidently poisoned heavily, with a White Tiger on his shoulder.

Giant Armor!

Previously, when Lu Ye had contacted Yiyi, he had hoped they would come to offer their support. Now that his whereabouts had been exposed, Giant Armor was no longer hiding.

The two quickly met, and Lu Ye leaped onto Giant Armor's Flying Spirit Artifact, after which Giant Armor immediately turned and headed deeper into the Ten Thousand Poisons Forest.

A mass of lights pursued them relentlessly from behind.

But as the chase continued, some began to falter.

The deeper one went into the cursed land of Ten Thousand Poisons Forest, the stronger the toxicity of the poisonous barrier became. Even though the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators had taken Detoxification Pills in advance and prepared some poison-warding Spiritual Artifacts, many could no longer endure it upon reaching there.

Continuing the chase would leave them uncertain of Lu Ye's fate, but it would certainly spell death for themselves.

To their surprise, Giant Armor, who was clearly poisoned, was still stubbornly clinging to life, which was truly shocking.

Gradually, the number of pursuers dwindled until, after a period corresponding to the burning time of an incense stick, there were no more chasers.

Going so deep meant that Spirit Stream Realm cultivators had reached their limit of endurance. Staying longer than the time it takes one incense stick to burn, even with detoxifying elixir pills, would not be of much help.

Giant Armor also began to sway, the Spiritual Artifact he controlled becoming unsteady, and he could no longer hold on, plummeting towards the ground below.

It was true that he and Yiyi had not ventured to such depths before.