Sage of Humanity

With such a treasure before him, Lu Ye truly did not have the heart to refuse. He took the wooden chest from Li Baxian, turned around, handed it to Hua Ci, and said with cupped fists, "All my fellow sect brothers and sisters honor us so, we will keep this in mind, thank you all."

Li Baxian laughed and said, "Since you have already obtained one Breath Fruit, you will not have a share of the subsequent auction proceeds."

"Of course."

Lu Ye would not covet the auction proceeds. The value of one Breath Fruit was enough; to desire more would be to lack understanding.

Li Baxian then looked around and said, "I will preside over this auction. Does anyone object?"

Who could object? Among everyone present, there might have been some older than Li Baxian, but those older did not have his strength, and the younger ones even less so. He was tenth on the Spirit Stream Ranking, having fought Yan Xing, who was second, to a standstill. In the crowd, only Feng Yuechan could possibly match him.

But everyone knew of Feng Yuechan's affection for Li Baxian. How could she possibly undermine him?

Moreover, this had been previously agreed upon, and everyone happily consented.

Li Baxian took charge without reluctance, "We will now start the auction for the first Breath Fruit, those interested please start bidding!"

Immediately Feng Yuechan called out with a smile, "Loyal Heart Sect bids 10,000 top-grade Spirit Stones."

No sooner had she finished speaking than another voice overruled her, "Tianyuan Sect bids 13,000."

"Qingxu Palace bids 10,000 top-grade Spirit Stones and an additional ten pounds of Blue Sky Divine Iron!"

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The atmosphere became extremely heated, with the bidders mostly coming from big sects of the Core Circle. They had profound foundations and ample resources, not something that sects from the inner or outer circles could contend with.

The foundation of a sect was not something built in just one or two generations, it required efforts from generations, and currently, the 2nd-3rd grade big sects in the Nine Provinces, each one had reached their position step by step. No one was born strong.

The bids were based mostly on top-grade Spirit Stones, some even added various special heavenly materials and earthly treasures, many of which Lu Ye had never even heard of.

As for top-grade Spirit Stones, he had never seen any. All the Spirit Stones he had obtained were low grade, supposedly above which were mid-grade, above mid-grade were top-grade, and then there was an even more special supreme-grade Spirit Stone.

The bidding continued in this intense yet peaceful atmosphere, and after round after round of raising bids, the first Breath Fruit was secured by a big sect from Wuzhou. When Li Baxian announced the result, the sect's Governor cupped his fists towards all sides, "Thank you for yielding!"

He flew up smiling, searched carefully, took one Breath Fruit, and sealed it in a container.

Then it was no longer his concern.

One after another, the Breath Fruits found their owners, the auction lasting a full two hours. Towards the end, Lu Ye distinctly felt the Governors intensifying their bidding.

In the end, the eight individuals who obtained the Breath Fruits were overjoyed, and those who did not were not too disheartened. One could not tell whether spending so much to secure a Breath Fruit was a gain or a loss.

The only one who clearly benefited was the Righteous Blood Sect.

The Governors represented their respective sects, and naturally, the bids they made here could not be fulfilled immediately. They would need to return to Spirit Stream battlefield and the Nine Provinces, report to their sects, and then representatives from the sects would gather the auction items and distribute them.

Haotian Alliance would naturally handle this affair. They had capable individuals who specialized in managing such matters. The distribution of proceeds from the bids would include not only the sects represented by the Governors standing there but also those who had died in combat.

Essentially, every sect that participated in the Spirit Stream Defense Battle would receive some benefits, though after being divided, the benefits would not amount to much.

"Junior Brother, once you bring back that Breath Fruit, hand it over to Second Senior Sister. She will take care of processing the pulp," Li Baxian reminded him from the crowd.

"Understood."

Li Baxian patted his shoulder and said, "You are growing quickly, but you must calm your mind and find time to settle your thoughts."

"Yes."

Thunderous sounds came from all directions as the entire province began to shake. The vast province started to disintegrate into numerous Chess Islands. The Spirit Stream Defense Battle was over.

Lu Ye could distinctly feel the scenery around him begin to warp and blur, as if overlapping with another dimension.

"Fourth Senior Brother, Senior Sister Feng, take care!" Lu Ye called out with cupped fists.

Standing by his side, Hua Ci also bowed graciously to the two.

"Take care!" Li Baxian nodded his head.

Farewells sounded from all around. Lu Ye turned his head, saw Lann Yudie, saw Gao Tai, saw the brother and sister Loo Yushan, and waved lightly.

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The distortion and overlap of space had gotten more severe. After a momentary daze before Lu Ye and Hua Ci's eyes, the two found themselves standing in the Heaven's Augury Hall of the Righteous Blood Sect's headquarters, the bustling crowds around them nowhere to be seen.

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Beside Hua Ci followed a mechanical wolf, its body draped with storage sacks.

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They turned their heads to look at each other and shared a smile.

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The Spirit Stream Defense Battle had lasted a month, and the time they had spent was rich and colorful, surely to become an unforgettable experience for both of them.

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"Both of you, you've finally come back."

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A voice rang from outside the great hall, and Lu Ye turned his head to see it was Chen Yu.

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Lu Ye instructed Hua Ci, "You go back to the sect first and report to the sect master and the Second Senior Sister that we're safe. I'll join you shortly."

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"Okay," Hua Ci acknowledged and used the Heaven's Augury Pillar to return to the sect headquarters, disappearing from sight.

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Lu Ye stepped outside and once he reached the outside of the great hall, he sat down on the steps with a relaxed posture and said, "If you're going to wait, you might as well go inside and wait. What's with skulking around outside every time?"

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The sect headquarters was always the safest place. Throughout the Spirit Stream Defense Battle, Lu Ye had been on constant alert, only now fully relaxing.

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Chen Yu hastily said, "The Righteous Blood Sect has allowed us independent cultivators to stay in its headquarters, which we are already immensely grateful for. How could we presume to enter the Heaven's Augury Hall, such an important place of the sect?"

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The independent cultivators were all quite cooperative, or to be precise, under the supervision of Chen Yu, they were very self-aware. Even though the headquarters had been without people for dozens of years, none of the independent cultivators had tried to take over the place.

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"What's the matter?" Lu Ye asked nonchalantly, stretching his neck. After several interactions, they were already familiar with each other. In fact, Lu Ye had previously entrusted Chen Yu to buy elixir pills with Spirit Stones.

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Chen Yu said with a smile, "I hear that the Righteous Blood Sect is going to accept disciples?"

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Lu Ye looked at him. "Your information is quite accurate."

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It was true as the Second Senior Sister had mentioned before. Previously, it didn't matter that the Righteous Blood Sect didn't recruit disciples, as she and the sect master had been waiting to be removed from the sect. But now that there were Lu Ye, Hua Ci, and others, they might as well widen this opening.

As a Governor, Lu Ye was qualified to accept disciples in the Spirit Stream battlefield, of course, those who he accepted would initially be disciples in name, requiring a period of assessment before becoming official disciples.

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Additionally, Shui Yuan had also said that many independent cultivators wished to attach themselves to the Righteous Blood Sect. Lu Ye was to recruit as many as he could, which was related to the future development of the sect. If the sect encountered any trouble, he would also have a pool of helpers available.

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Due to his participation in the Spirit Stream Defense Battle, Lu Ye had been too preoccupied to deal with this. Unexpectedly, before he could start, the news had already spread.

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It must have leaked from either Kong Niu or Ruan Lingyu, the latter being the more likely source, as the little girl liked to run off to the marketplace.

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"Is that so?" Chen Yu looked surprised and delighted.

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"What, you want to join the Righteous Blood Sect?" Lu Ye asked him surprisingly.

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"I do have that thought; just not sure if the opportunity will arise."

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"With your Level 7 cultivation, joining a sect shouldn't be difficult. Why set your sights solely on the Righteous Blood Sect?"

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Chen Yu gave a bitter smile, "Big sects actually prefer to nurture disciples from the ground up, as it fosters a higher degree of loyalty and identification with the sect. As for someone like me, even if I were to join a sect, I wouldn't be given much attention. What big sect lacks a Level 7 cultivator?"

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That was indeed the truth. Even the outer circle of sects, not to mention the 9th grade sects, had many cultivators at Levels 7 and 8; they just weren't seen often as they went to the inner circle to experience and grow.

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Someone like Chen Yu was actually qualified to serve as a governor for a 9th grade sect, but which sect would trust him enough to do so?

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Lu Ye couldn't help but remember Dong Shuye.

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Dong Shuye, who had served as a governor for the Nine Stars Sect, later defected to another power and ended up becoming a personal guard for a wastrel young master of that power. How sad that was.

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"I've been settled here since I was at Level 2, and now I am at Level 7. After such a long time, naturally, I've developed feelings for this place. It's not just me; many independent cultivators who have settled here feel the same way.

We are unaffiliated with any sect or clan, have no backing behind us, but because we are united here, we've also formed a force in and of ourselves, supporting one another. Even though the Righteous Blood Sect has never taken notice of us, we've already received protection from the sect."

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With a Little Gray in the headquarters, which sect from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge would dare to challenge us?

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"So I was thinking, if the Righteous Blood Sect truly opens its gates widely to recruit followers, could you perhaps consider us independent cultivators first? Our talents may be a little worse than others, but our loyalty and identification with the Righteous Blood Sect are stronger; it's just that we have never dared to consider ourselves disciples of the sect," Chen Yu said earnestly.

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"Is this just your personal idea?"

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Chen Yu shook his head, "It's not just me; many others feel the same way, and they've asked me to come here to get a clear answer."

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Lu Ye leaned back, with one hand supporting his chin and the other resting on his knee, his demeanor relaxed as he lightly tapped on his knee and said, "Do you all understand that the Righteous Blood Sect is no ordinary 9th grade sect? Once you are truly branded with the sect's mark, you will definitely face more dangers than others.

The incident I encountered at Golden Light Peak, I presume you've heard about it?"

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Chen Yu responded, "Which path of cultivation isn't fraught with risks? Right now, we indeed have no sect's branding, but if we were to encounter powerful individuals from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge, would they let us go just because of that? Fellow Daoist Ye's heroic deeds at Golden Light Peak are well known to us, and we hold them in high regard.

We independent cultivators might not have the same abilities as you, but if we're fortunate enough to be accepted into the Righteous Blood Sect, we'd swear to defend the sect's honor with our lives!"

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