Sage of Humanity

Within the inner and core circles, Heaven's Augury Marketplaces were everywhere, with even a city named after Heaven's Augury called Heaven's Augury City.

Although cultivators could enter the Heaven's Augury treasure vault using the Heaven's Augury Pillar if they had sufficient merits to purchase anything they desired, merits were hard to come by, and no one would use them carelessly.

Under normal circumstances, when cultivators wanted to purchase items, they predominantly opted for the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union, as transactions there were conducted using Spirit Stones. Only in urgent situations or when desiring rare items would cultivators use their merits.

The existence of Heaven's Augury Marketplaces and Heaven's Augury City made transactions incredibly convenient for cultivators, and also provided a foothold for independent cultivators who yearned for freedom, while also housing many commoners in those numerous cities of Heaven's Augury.

This particular Heaven's Augury Marketplace was not small. It could be said that within the core circle, no marketplace was insignificant, as the cultivators here practiced Heaven Rank techniques, making business transactions frequent. This, in turn, contributed to the wealth of the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union.

At the entrance of the marketplace, a youth carrying a sword stepped in, immediately greeted by a maid.

In the outer circle, these welcoming maids were not highly cultivated, but here, their cultivation started from Level 7-8, and each one's appearance was exceptional, giving anyone who entered an instant feeling of returning home.

As the maid saw the young man's face, her smile briefly stiffened, but she quickly recovered, bowing gracefully, "I have seen the martial brother before. Are you here to buy or sell?"

"Both."

"Please come inside, martial brother."

Sometime later, in a private room, a Mercantile Union manager responsible for transactions entered. The manager was not young, appearing around forty or fifty years old, but his cultivation was only at Level 9, with spirit light that was pure and bright, clearly an experienced Level 9 cultivator, though it was unknown if he had any hope of advancing to Cloud River in this lifetime.

The manager greeted with a fist and palm salute, "Fellow Daoist Yiye, I have seen."

In the compartment, Lu Ye sipped his tea delicately.

Being recognized at a glance was something he had grown accustomed to, for his image had long been circulated across the entire battlefield by the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge, so how could the people of Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union not pay extra attention?

"What is your honorable surname?"

"My surname is Zhou."

"Fellow Daoist Zhou."

As Lu Yiye spoke, Manager Zhou said, "Having Fellow Daoist Yiye come to the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union is an honor for us. Please accept this humble gesture," while presenting a storage sack and pushing it towards Lu Ye.

Lu Ye looked puzzled. He had visited the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union many times, but this was the first time someone presented a gift right away.

Manager Zhou smiled and explained, "The Mercantile Union is a place of business, unable to withstand clashes between two major camps; it's not anyone's refuge. Please understand, Fellow Daoist Yiye."

Lu Ye knew the other party had mistaken him for seeking refuge at the mercantile union.

"I've heard of the Mercantile Union's foundation. There's no need for Manager Zhou to belittle it; moreover... both the Heaven's Augury Marketplace and Heaven's Augury City have always been places of truce. Others have sought refuge here before, why should it be different with me?"

Manager Zhou replied, "People should not be compared. The enmities involved with those people were trivial, but now, Fellow Daoist Yiye, you're indeed causing the involvement of two major camps. Of course, if you insist on staying, the Mercantile Union won't refuse. As long as you remain within the Union, the Union will ensure your safety. Nobody would dare harm you here. We strive for wealth through harmony, yet we do not abstain from thunderbolt measures."

These words were stated neither obsequiously nor haughtily, clearly conveying the stance of the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union: they did not seek trouble, but were not afraid of it either.

Lu Ye had long sensed that the background of the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union was not simple, evident even from its name; across all of Nine Provinces, this was the only power that dared to name itself after Heaven's Augury. No other forces from either the Haotian Alliance or Ten Thousand Demons Ridge used the name 'Heaven's Augury'.

"I didn't come for refuge," Lu Ye said as he pushed the storage sack back towards Manager Zhou.

Manager Zhou was stunned, "Then I have indeed misunderstood you, Fellow Daoist."

Lu Ye took out another two storage sacks and a jade slip, "I want to sell some items and also buy some array banners and other things."

Manager Zhou took the storage sacks and the jade slip; after a brief check, his eyes involuntarily twitched in shock. How many people had Lu Yiye killed to possess such an extensive and varied collection of spoils? As for the items listed in the jade slip he wanted to buy, they were nothing major—mostly common array banners that Lu Ye could purchase in any amount.

"When do you need them, Fellow Daoist?"

"That depends on when you want me to leave. I don't want to be blocked here, I just went through such a situation a few days ago and it left a bit of a psychological shadow!"

"Please wait a moment, Fellow Daoist!" Manager Zhou said, as he was about to turn and leave.

"Lend me the Heaven's Augury Pillar of your mercantile union for a moment."

"Please follow me, Fellow Daoist."

Following Manager Zhou out of the private room, and under the guidance of another maid, they entered the Heaven's Augury Hall of the Mercantile Union.

There was also a Heaven's Augury Hall within the union, containing a Heaven's Augury Pillar. The pillar in the union was not restricted by faction or alliance pact, and anyone could use it, but it was said that each use required the payment of some merit.

Essentially a usage fee.

The Heaven's Augury Hall was empty. Lu Ye approached the Heaven's Augury Pillar, activated the mark, and connected to the Heaven's Augury treasure vault.

As expected, using the Heaven's Augury Pillar of the mercantile union to access the Heaven's Augury treasure vault required the expenditure of fifty merit points.

Although 50 merit points are not considered a lot, they are by no means insignificant. Calculated by the lives of cultivators, with Lu Ye's current cultivation, he would need to kill several Heaven rank cultivators.

Checking his own merit points, 9,843 points remain after deducting the 50 points for service fees.

In the Three Saints Sanctuary, to purchase array banners for array setup, he spent all his remaining merit points; in just under three months, he had nearly ten thousand merit points again.

Across the entire Spirit Stream battlefield, in terms of the speed of acquiring merit points, perhaps no one has ever surpassed Lu Ye since ancient times.

The main reason is that he killed enough, especially when he fought enemies while at the 7th Heaven cultivation, killing a Level 7 earned only ten merit points, but killing a Level 8 earned twenty-two points, and killing a Level 9 earned a full thirty-six points.

The merit points gained from defeating higher-level enemies multiplied several times over the base number.

After some consideration, Lu Ye spent 8,000 merit points and bought forty portions of Earth's Core Fire, thus leaving only 1,843 merit points.

For him at this moment, the largest use of merit points was to buy Earth's Core Fire, then to have the Talent Tree consume it, unlocking new spirit runes.

It was always necessary to save some merit points for emergencies, so he rarely spent all his merit points.

Having just stepped out of Heaven's Augury Hall, Manager Zhou was already waiting outside. It must be said, to prevent Lu Ye from staying too long in the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union, their efficiency here was also extremely high.

Handing back two storage sacks, Manager Zhou said, "These are the array banners you need, Fellow Daoist please check them."

Lu Ye opened the storage sack and briefly checked, giving a slight nod of approval.

He didn't calculate the value of these array banners compared to the items he sold; in the current situation, the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union certainly wouldn't take advantage of him.

They would rather he leave quickly, to avoid attracting disaster to this place.

Having secured the storage sacks, Lu Ye strode outside.

Inside the hall, several pairs of eyes were fixed on him; they were evidently Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators who had rushed over after receiving the news. The number was not very large, only four to five people.

Since he entered the mercantile union, it had only been half the duration of a cup of tea, but the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge had already received the news. It could be foreseen that at this moment, a large number of Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators were rushing over.

If he didn't leave now, he really would be surrounded again!

Exiting the mercantile union, Lu Ye summoned his spirit ark and with a surge of spirit force, soared into the sky.

No sooner had he left, those few Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators followed right behind. At the same time, a large group of cultivators from outside the marketplace hurriedly chased after him.

In an instant, streaks of light raced through the sky, the momentum staggering. During the pursuit, those Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators continuously sent messages all around, calling for reinforcements.

"Be careful, he's coming back!" suddenly, someone shouted loudly.

The numerous Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators looked up and saw Lu Ye indeed turning around, boldly charging towards them on his own.

Even though the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators had gathered tens of people, they couldn't help but feel somewhat panicked at this moment.

The battle above the Ten Thousand Poisons Forest had given them a real sense of Lu Ye's terror; a thousand people encircling and chasing him had failed to subdue him—how could a few dozen now succeed?

But avoiding battle was absolutely impossible. The speed of their weapon control wasn't fast enough, and if they avoided battle, they would be picked off one by one.

Therefore, a leading Level 9 cultivator immediately roared, "Prepare for battle!"

Dozens of people immediately arranged their formations, anxiously watching the rapidly approaching figure.

Weapons and spells struck first. Lu Ye nimbly weaved through the attacks, with the glow of Defense Spirit Runes appearing on his body from time to time to block the unavoidable attacks.

From the supplies box, nine spirit weapons flew out, clearing the path in front, quickly closing in on the enemy formation.

In the front, several physique cultivators stood at the forefront, each holding their protective Spiritual Artifacts, looking solemn.

Lu Ye collided with the lowest level physique cultivator there, and at the same time a long saber wreathed in flames slashed down.

That physique cultivator instantly crashed downward like a meteor falling from the sky, and Lu Ye's figure, unimpeded, directly broke through the enemy lines with the Boulder Mountain Saber, drawing a trail of blood.

As he passed through the enemy lines, several more followed the fallen physique cultivator, plummeting downward.

In a single encounter, several were killed, rendering the expressions of the dozens of Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators even graver.

The Level 9 cultivator shouted lowly, "Don't panic, he can't last many more times!"

Although they had lost a few people, during that momentary clash, Lu Ye also endured many attacks, all of which were blocked by Defense Spirit Runes, allowing him to emerge unscathed.

But such combat was hugely draining on his spirit force, and the Heaven rank cultivators were not fools; they naturally knew that Lu Ye couldn't keep up this ferocity indefinitely.

Moreover, if they could delay Lu Ye here until more of their companions arrived, even a few deaths would be worth it.