Chapter 174: Building Momentum (First Update)

"Too terrifying."

"The Dark Star Army of the Void Dynasty—once surrounded and trapped by various formations—can even slay Heavenly God Realm experts. Yet now, they've been utterly annihilated!"

"How is his aura now? Has it weakened?"

"No, it seems... stronger..."

"What?"

"We can't give him time to recover his True Essence. He must be bluffing—no one's True Essence is infinite. Keep attacking!"

Another wave of cultivators arrived.

They covered the mountains and plains, filling the skies and the earth.

Lu Ye charged forward with his sword. At this moment, a cultivation technique he had long considered useless began to shine.

This technique was called the *Primordial Devouring Scripture*!

Countless weapons turned to dust, their essence devoured and converted into True Essence.

Another technique, the *Infant-Refining Demonic Scripture*, shattered numerous Nascent Souls.

Yet another, *Flesh and Blood Return to Origin*, drew swirling blood mist toward Lu Ye.

A divine ability named *Sea of Malice and Demons*!

An Avenue known as the Avenue of Slaughter!

An Avenue known as the Avenue of Invincibility!

Death became the symphony of the Second Heaven.

Battle reports flew like snowflakes to every corner of the Second Heaven.

"Bloodbath at the Touch-the-Sky Plateau—three Heavenly God Realm experts, forty-seven Earth Immortal Realm cultivators, and two hundred nineteen True Human Realm warriors perished..."

"The Sword-Bearing Pavilion deployed the Supreme Nine Heavens Sword Formation to besiege the demon Lu Ye. Swords shattered, lives ended—the pavilion suffered heavy losses!"

"Battle by the Blackwood River—the Divine Desolation Sect laid down the Heaven-Severing Grand Formation. The formation broke, lives were lost, and the river ran red with blood."

"A demon—a true demon! He even wields the *Soul Banner*! Oh, Great Sage of the Nine Heavens, the demonic cultivators you once eradicated have now returned!"

"Slay the demon! Slay the demon! Slay the demon!"

Such was the nature of this world.

Even though everyone came to kill you first, just because your retaliation was too brutal, you became the demon.

Public opinion could melt metal.

Even if you weren’t a demon, you became one.

Fortunately, this lifetime wasn’t about the Avenue of Protection. If it were, Lu Ye would surely feel troubled.

In this dog-eat-dog cultivation world, one could only say the Avenue of Protection was a pitfall.

How much better was this?

The Path of Seeking the Dao!

These people are all stumbling blocks on his path of seeking the Dao. Crushing them underfoot, Lu Ye feels no psychological burden whatsoever.

The further he goes, the more formidable the opponents become.

Ordinary, reckless weaklings are finally cowed by the slaughter, no longer daring to approach.

Even if the rewards promised by the Jiang Family and the Eternal Sect are immense, one must be alive to claim them.

Initially, they clung to the hope of exhausting Lu Ye, thinking they might just snatch victory by chance.

Isn’t the so-called path of cultivation all about contention?

Thus, those who harbored such opportunistic thoughts became casualties themselves.

Someone was tallying the total number of lives Lu Ye had taken.

Unnoticed, the count had already reached six figures.

Another army arrived.

This time, it was the most powerful force of the Void Empire. They deployed the Spirit-Dispelling Grand Formation, turning the surrounding world into a vacuum devoid of any spiritual energy.

Without spiritual energy, how could he recover?

Lu Ye arrived, his robes pristine and neat, the faint bloodstains merely adorning his attire like scattered plum blossoms, even lending a refreshing air.

Were it not for his blood-red eyes, the overwhelming aura around him, and the Human Emperor Banner behind him billowing uncontrollable black smoke, countless souls wailing silently within—

Perhaps Lu Ye would resemble more a carefree young noble touring the mountains and waters.

Lu Ye sensed the absence of spiritual energy around him.

Then he heard their taunts.

The specifics of the mockery no longer mattered—no one argues with the dead...

Fine, even the words of the dead, Lu Ye would take to heart.

One step forward.

Who told you all that I need spiritual energy to recover my strength? With you here, why would I need even a shred of it?

Kill!

A path spanning 83,000 kilometers in total.

Lu Ye had already traversed 20,000 kilometers, his pace swift.

Pausing here, another swarm of powerful figures soon descended like bloodthirsty leeches.

Most were withered elders.

They had reached the end of their cultivation, the end of their lives, hoping to defy fate through the blessings of the Jiang Family and the Eternal Sect.

Yet even these elders, with their vast experience and knowledge, felt their scalps tingle at the carnage below, a deep chill seeping into their very souls.

The Nine Heavens had not seen a demon in a long time.

Many people cultivate and cultivate, and the most brutal slaughter they have witnessed is the war between cultivators, but that involves countless individuals fighting against each other.

Not like now, where all the slaughter stems from a single person.

Beneath that sword, heads roll endlessly.

Before that fist, blood mist spreads boundlessly.

Within the Human Emperor Banner, countless souls swiftly hunt for more souls.

Black mist intertwines with blood mist, and everywhere, flesh and limbs scatter in disarray.

Finally, even under the grand formation, these soldiers—weakest at the Tribulation Realm—felt fear.

The fear of death grips their throats like an unyielding hand.

Rout!

After two-thirds had fallen, the rout finally began.

"It's our turn now!"