Sage of Humanity

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Before the ten-day period was up, just seven days after Lu Ye had announced his terms, only two wooden plaques remained in front of him.

That meant that of all the sects within the Core Circle of Ten Thousand Demons Ridge, only two had not come.

Those two plaques bore the names New Moon Sect and Yunyang Sect, respectively.

Those two were not going to come.

With their bases destroyed and disciples harmed, why would they come to deliver supplies to Lu Ye?

Lu Ye had anticipated this and didn't mind too much.

Getting to his feet, he stretched languorously. Days of rest had left him feeling exceptionally revitalized. Now that the matters of the Spirit Stream battlefield were resolved, there was no need for him to linger here.

However, before leaving, he could pay a visit to Hua Ci. He had no idea how she was doing now, but considering the time, she should have advanced to Cloud River by now.

Summoning his spirit ark, he shot into the sky and flew towards Ten Thousand Poisons Forest.

Atop Heavenly Sword Peak, the wind howled, leaving behind only two wooden plaques with different names.

Lu Ye's collection of massive quantities of resources from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge twice had made Heavenly Sword Peak a poignant memory in the hearts of many cultivators from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge. Even many years later, cultivators from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge would go out of their way to avoid it, unwilling to set foot on Heavenly Sword Peak lightly.

Ten Thousand Poisons Forest was situated within the Core Circle, not too far from Heavenly Sword Peak. A day later, when Lu Ye leisurely arrived above Ten Thousand Poisons Forest, his expression turned to one of amazed suspicion.

He discovered that Ten Thousand Poisons Forest had changed from before.

The most obvious change was that the entire forest seemed to have shrunk considerably. Areas once enshrouded by poisonous fog had become safe zones.

Overall, it had diminished by at least thirty or forty percent.

This was a forbidden land of the Spirit Stream battlefield, a place where cultivators were loath to tread carelessly. Not only was there a deadly invisible poison fog, but also various poisonous creatures that lived in the forest.

Even a 9th Heaven cultivator couldn't penetrate too deeply into it.

Was the shrinkage of Ten Thousand Poisons Forest related to Hua Ci?

Lu Ye knew Hua Ci's cultivation required her to refine the poisonous fog, but it had only been a few months, and the forest had already changed so much. If Hua Ci were given more time, would this cultivator's forbidden land completely disappear?

This woman... truly was terrifying!

He ventured into the forest, heading deeper inside.

When he reached the front of the wooden hut he remembered, he saw a high fence constructed in front of the small courtyard, with the gate tightly closed.

Lu Ye approached and knocked on the gate, "Is anyone home?"

There was no response.

After a brief perception, it seemed there were also no signs of life within the hut.

Hua Ci wasn't there?

Lu Ye was somewhat surprised; he thought she had been here cultivating all along. But now there was no trace of her, leaving him uncertain of her whereabouts.

He pushed open the gate and entered the house, surveying his surroundings. Everything within was spotless, which undoubtedly meant Hua Ci still resided there, but at the moment he didn't know what she was doing.

Exiting the house, Lu Ye thought for a moment and then went towards the place where Hua Ci used to cultivate.

When he had previously stayed here, Hua Ci didn't cultivate inside the house because there was a Formation laid out by Lu Ye nearby. The Formation, as long as maintained, could ward off the invasion of the poison fog, which made it inconvenient for her to practice.

Not far into his walk, Lu Ye suddenly heard a soft, melodious singing accompanied by the sound of running water.

This woman... seemed to be in very good spirits, and he had no idea what she was doing.

He concealed his presence and hid his form, ready to give her a scare.

She had been alone here for several months without any interaction with the outside world, and she hadn't sent any messages to him in these days, clearly unaware that he had already arrived at the Spirit Stream battlefield.

If he suddenly appeared before her now, it would certainly be a surprise.

Following the sound of the singing, he made his way through a patch of low shrubbery, and as he looked up, Lu Ye's expression stiffened.

An unfamiliar pond had appeared; not too large, with a length and width of a few meters each. The water in the pond rippled with a weird green color that was unquestionably not normal.

Just looking at that water caused a great deal of discomfort, and one could imagine how deadly the water must be.

Lu Ye didn't know how Hua Ci had managed to create this pool of poisonous water; it wasn't there when he and Yiyi had been here, so clearly, it was Hua Ci's doing afterward.

Most importantly, Hua Ci was currently bathing in the pond.

She was almost entirely submerged, only her neck and above peeking out of the water, her arms pale and delicate like lotus stems, gently swaying on the surface. Occasionally, a few dainty toes would naughtily pop up, as she hummed an unknown little tune to herself.

Just from her current state, Lu Ye could imagine what she looked like!

This... If he were to be discovered, wouldn't he be beaten up for being a rogue?

He hadn't expected to come across such a scene.

Just as he was about to quietly back away, the singing suddenly stopped, followed by Lu Ye feeling a pair of sharp eyes locked onto his hiding spot.

He immediately sensed trouble!

With a splash, as Hua Ci flicked her wrist, a green water arrow shot out from the pond with incredible precision towards Lu Ye's position.

Should I dodge? Or should I not?

In that instant, Lu Ye's mind was in turmoil. To dodge would seem cowardice; to stay put would definitely reveal him.

Before he could decide, the water arrow hit him squarely in the chest. It caused no harm, but the arrow suddenly turned into a cloud of green mist, enveloping Lu Ye entirely and breaking his concealment.

Then, Lu Ye felt his Talent Tree start to be clouded by a mass of gray fog…

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"Ah..." In the pool, with only her head poking out, Hua Ci covered her mouth in a surprised shout, "I thought it was some small animal, but it turns out to be a beast!"

She looked utterly shocked, spouting words more poisonous than the water in the pool.

"Give me a break!" said Lu Ye, annoyed, "In this damned place, who else but me could get in? You must've guessed it was me already, stop putting on an act."

It was evident from the non-lethal water arrow, Hua Ci knew Lu Ye was immune to all poisons, so the focus of the water arrow was the poison, not the attack itself.

Of course, if it were anyone other than Lu Ye, they would probably be waiting for death by now.

The poison in the pool was several times more fierce than any Lu Ye had experienced in the Ten Thousand Poisons Forest before.

"I didn't know, how could I have known."

Hua Ci pursed her lips and chuckled lightly, her hand stirring the pool water, "But why are you here? Isn't the Cloud River battlefield fun?"

"Fun, it's too fun." Since his whereabouts had been revealed, Lu Ye simply walked forward, came to the other side of the pool, crouched down, and scooped up some of the water.

More mist was rising from the Talent Tree...

Considering that he might not have much fuel left for his Talent Tree, Lu Ye dared not play any longer; otherwise, he would definitely be at Hua Ci's mercy.

"Ran into some trouble, and then came here, and stopped by to check on you."

"So it was just in passing..." Hua Ci's expression suddenly turned mournful. If someone ignorant saw this, they would probably think that Lu Ye had led her on and then abandoned her.

While she spoke, her hands kept moving; her slender neck, fair skin, and more loveliness were partly hidden and partly visible. Paired with her moisture-laden hair and woeful expression, she was truly heart-stirring.

If she claimed it wasn't intentional, Lu Ye wouldn't believe it even if he were beaten to death.

"Do I look good?" Hua Ci's cheeks flushed as she lowered her head slightly under Lu Ye's gaze, bashfully.

"Yes."

"Want to see more?"

Lu Ye instantly perked up, "Can I?"

Still with her head lowered, Hua Ci's voice was as thin as a mosquito's, "Of course not for others, but since it's you... it doesn't matter."

With those words, she gently closed her eyes, her long eyelashes trembling restlessly, and then she slowly stood up. The emerald pool water slid down her smooth neck, tracing the most beautiful imagery in this world.

Lu Ye's eyes bulged like brass bells.

"Hahaha, you big fool!"

Standing in the pool, Hua Ci, dressed in her gown, laughed heartily, full of mockery.

Lu Ye closed his eyes in agony. To have any expectations of this woman, I'm truly rubbish!

But who could have guessed that a woman soaking in a pool in such an environment would still be clad tightly!

Lu Ye stood up and walked away.

Behind him, Hua Ci called out, "Hey, where are you going?"

"None of your damn business!"

A heart set to admire the beauty had been lifted high only to be smashed into pieces on the ground. Don't I have any face left?

A few moments later, a neatly groomed Hua Ci appeared in the cabin, only to find Lu Ye lying on a hammock in the courtyard, his head resting on his hands, staring at the sky listlessly.

Hua Ci, bringing a breeze of fragrance with her, came to Lu Ye's side and bent down to look at him, "Are you angry?"

"What's there to be angry about," Lu Ye rolled his eyes, "I'm hungry, go make something to eat."

And truth be told, Hua Ci's cooking, though maybe not the prettiest, was really good, both in taste and effect - truly nourishing stuff.

"Okay!" Hua Ci said, and bent down even lower.

Before Lu Ye could react, she lightly kissed his forehead.

Before she could move away, Lu Ye grabbed her arm.

Hua Ci looked puzzled, "What are you doing?"

"What are you doing?"

"Aren't you angry? I'm apologizing," she said as if it were the most natural thing to do.

"Am I a child? Needing you to kiss my forehead?" Lu Ye's face showed his indignation. That was clearly a way of comforting a child.

"Then what do you want?"

Lu Ye's eyes shifted downward, staring at her moist lips.

Panic flickered in Hua Ci's eyes and she took a sharp breath, but soon enough, she put on an indifferent face, smiling sweetly, locking eyes with Lu Ye, those dazzling eyes shone like stars.

Time trickled by slowly as they held their pose, motionless.

It took quite a while before Lu Ye let her go.

Hua Ci stepped back quickly, taunting instinctively, "Coward!"

"Get over here!" Lu Ye roared in anger.

"Dream on!" Hua Ci laughed, darting even further away.

The gentle melody of a song rose again, clearly lifting Hua Ci's mood, and soon the fragrance of food wafted through the courtyard.