Chapter 1999: Chapter 1997: The Robber Gets Robbed (Happy New Year)
On All Phenomena Island, the doors of Animitta Palace had opened, and a large number of cultivators from Animitta Palace gathered around, but no one dared make any rash movements.
More than ten Sun Blaze cultivators from three factions were gathered near All Phenomena Island, facing off from afar.
Shang Chengyue’s face was somber, for he had already realized one thing—this invasion of the All Phenomena Ocean by Animitta Palace was a complete failure.
Their plans were well-made, progress was smooth, yet none expected that just as they were about to retreat, a Lu Ye would pop up.
Looking at Lu Ye, Shang Chengyue’s gaze was deep, as if to memorize his appearance, then he turned to Ma Bin: "Fellow Daoist Ma, this Fellow Daoist Lu is..."
Ma Bin said indifferently, "Lu Ye saved my life. What do you want to do about it?"
Shang Chengyue sighed lightly: "In that case, we of Animitta Palace will give Fellow Daoist Ma some face!" Saying this, he lightly shouted, "Leave all the things behind!"
In such a situation, Animitta Palace had no chance to overturn the position. Admitting defeat to Green Demon King Ma Bin wasn’t considered disgraceful, as he was famous.
This was actually a way for Shang Chengyue to find an excuse for himself.
Everyone heard it, but no one revealed it.
At his command, the cultivators of Animitta Palace on All Phenomena Island, though unwilling, still threw the storage rings filled with plundered materials onto the ground.
In the blink of an eye, thousands of storage rings appeared in that area, capturing countless gazes.
Shang Chengyue then looked at Lu Ye: "Are you satisfied with this?"
Lu Ye looked at him: "All storage rings must be left behind before you can leave. If anyone dares to hide anything, don’t blame me for being ruthless!"
While speaking, he stared at Shang Chengyue’s right hand.
Shang Chengyue was stunned and subconsciously touched the storage ring on his right hand: "This is my own..."
"That must stay too!"
Shang Chengyue laughed in anger, this was indeed the first time such a situation occurred, where the robbers were being robbed, yet he couldn’t tear his face off either, because at this moment, it wasn’t just Lu Ye and Ma Bin watching them, but also six Sun Blaze cultivators of All Phenomena Ocean glaring from the side.
He was certain that Yuan Se and others were eager for them to conflict with Lu Ye and Ma Bin again, so they could join forces and apply pressure, making it impossible for the people of Animitta Palace to leave.
Suppressing the anger in his heart, Shang Chengyue nodded slightly: "Alright, as you wish!"
Saying this, he took off his storage ring and threw it towards the area on All Phenomena Island.
"And those few others!" Lu Ye raised the Boulder Mountain Saber, pointing at several Sun Blaze cultivators beside Shang Chengyue.
These Sun Blaze cultivators from Animitta Palace showed expressions of utter humiliation, but since Shang Chengyue had already handed over his storage ring, how could they resist?
With no alternative, one by one, they took off their storage rings and threw them out.
From afar, countless cultivators watched this scene, feeling a sense of great relief and satisfaction, regardless of which star system they came from or domain they hailed from, once in the All Phenomena Ocean, they were making a living here, part of this place. Animitta Palace suddenly invaded, treating them like livestock, slaughtering at will, and the All Phenomena Galaxy could not protect them, failing to resist in any way.
And it was in such a desperate situation that Lu Ye from Three Worlds Island emerged, forcefully killing Sun Blaze cultivators, intimidating all sides, severely dampening Animitta Palace’s arrogance. Now, not only did he force these bandits to abandon their looted goods, but they couldn’t even keep their own storage rings.
This was indeed satisfying to the heart, compared to the various responses of the All Phenomena Galaxy in this invasion event, Lu Ye’s approach undoubtedly had more popular support.
"Can we leave now?" Shang Chengyue asked Lu Ye as he looked at him.
Lu Ye’s face was cold and silent, while in another direction, Yuan Se’s gaze was fixed intently on him, eyes filled with anticipation, just waiting for a command from Lu Ye so he could immediately lead other Sun Blaze cultivators to slaughter the people of Animitta Palace.
Now that their goods had been returned, naturally, they wanted to root out every last one...
However, much to his disappointment, Lu Ye clearly had no such intention.
"Go back and tell your Palace Master of Animitta Palace that from now on, I call the shots in the All Phenomena Ocean. Disturb us again, and no matter how many come, all will be killed. Get lost!"
Upon hearing this, Shang Chengyue blinked, looked at Yuan Se and the others nearby, and then said: "Fellow Daoist, the kindness shown today by you shall be remembered by my Animitta Palace!"
While speaking, his body floated back, and within a few steps, he arrived at the doorway, giving the order: "Go!"
Only at this moment did the cultivators of Animitta Palace, who had been waiting for a long time, hurriedly begin to retreat through the portal. The constellation sections left first, followed by Moon Jade, with Shang Chengyue leading a few Sun Blaze cultivators at the rear.
He was continuously vigilant of Lu Ye and Ma Bin, but until the Sun Blaze cultivators had successively disappeared through the portal, Lu Ye and Ma Bin made no moves.
"Tricked!" This thought flashed in Shang Chengyue’s mind, finally confirming one thing—the treasure that could emit golden light indeed had limitations. Lu Ye could no longer activate the power of that affiliated treasure, or else they wouldn’t be allowed to leave so easily!
With the bizarre power of that affiliated treasure, a single Lu Ye was enough to hunt them down relentlessly.
But at this moment, confirming this matter no longer held any significance. In other words, although he had suspicions before, such matters truly can only be fully determined after retreating—it was an unsolvable situation.
The portal slowly dissipated, evidently closed from the Animitta Palace’s side.
This invasion battle ended with the withdrawal of the Animitta Palace cultivators.
However, before the observing cultivators from afar could rally in cheers, another twist occurred.
"Take action!" Following Yuan Se’s command, four of the six Sun Blaze cultivators from All Phenomena Ocean attacked Ma Bin, while Yuan Se teamed up with Yean Guyi from Celestial Flames World to besiege Lu Ye.
No one knew why such an event transpired, because just a moment ago, the All Phenomena Galaxy seemed to be tacitly joining forces with Lu Ye to pressure the Animitta Palace.
But once the Animitta Palace people retreated, they immediately turned hostile, leaving the spectators stunned and marveling at how quickly the Sun Blaze’s thoughts and stance changed.
"I knew you were unwilling!" Lu Ye turned to Yuan Se, his expression extremely fierce, yet he wasn’t surprised at the actions of the six Sun Blaze from All Phenomena Ocean, rather as if he anticipated them.
Yuan Se snorted coldly: "This All Phenomena Ocean isn’t for you to dictate!"
For a fox as old as him, with unknown years of age, his thoughts were undoubtedly hard to fathom, but it was undeniable that such veteran Sun Blaze always had incredibly sharp insight.
At the final moment of retreat, Shang Chengyue confirmed that Lu Ye could no longer activate that gold light of the affiliated treasure; Yuan Se naturally realized the same point.
What they feared was no more than that bizarre gold light. Regarding Lu Ye, a newly ascended Sun Blaze... without that affiliated treasure, who would spare him a second glance?
Additionally, one other fact—Ma Bin was the enemy of the All Phenomena Galaxy! He had forcibly stormed All Phenomena Island in the past and killed a Sun Blaze governor.
Besides, today, with the deaths of Yuan Du, Guk Xi, and Chen Xuanba, Yuan Se already confirmed the deaths of these three on the way, initially believing they were most likely slain by the Animitta Palace.
However, after witnessing Lu Ye’s means and hearing Muh Qing’s report, Yuan Se immediately determined Yuan Du and the others were actually killed by Lu Ye!
Because Yuan Du was injured, and Guk Xi and Chen Xuanba were immobilized by gold light, a scene Muh Qing witnessed firsthand, and the Animitta Palace had yet to invade at that time.
Both Lu Ye and Ma Bin had deep enmity with the home galaxy, and previously facing the invader Animitta Palace, Yuan Se could stand on the same side with them, but as soon as Animitta Palace left, this fragile alliance naturally shattered instantly.
What truly solidified Yuan Se’s decision was a single statement from Lu Ye.
He previously claimed that the future of All Phenomena Ocean would be dictated by him... this clearly indicated an intent to meddle in All Phenomena Ocean!
And given his current prestige, taking advantage of resolving the major situation with the Animitta Palace invasion, should he stand up, he’d probably garner more support than the All Phenomena Galaxy itself.
All Phenomena Ocean always belonged to the All Phenomena Galaxy; when was it the turn of an outsider to dictate terms? If Lu Ye isn’t dealt with today, the home galaxy will completely lose control over this treasure land of All Phenomena Ocean.
Indeed, the home galaxy handled this foreign invasion poorly, and if not for Lu Ye intervening at the last moment, all looted resources from Animitta Palace would have been taken.
But this doesn’t mean the home galaxy has to be grateful to Lu Ye. His actions and words have already touched the core interests of the home galaxy.
This is what Yuan Se couldn’t tolerate.
Lu Ye here likely couldn’t activate that affiliated treasure’s gold light anymore, and Ma Bin... according to Mo Wenli, he was already injured before, and now, after exerting great effort to kill Black Cloud, the Great Demon Venerable, his state must be even worse.
It can be said there couldn’t be a better opportunity than now to eliminate Lu Ye and Ma Bin. Once successful, All Phenomena Ocean can return to the control of the home galaxy.
The battle reignited; to swiftly take down Lu Ye, he even personally joined the fray, with Yean Guyi beside him coordinating.
Although convinced Lu Ye couldn’t activate the affiliated treasure’s power anymore, they still needed to guard against any eventualities—should Lu Ye suddenly be capable of activation; two against one suffices to ensure one can capture him.
Yet what shocked him the most was that faced with their assault, Lu Ye, after saying his final words, directly dove towards All Phenomena Ocean, with just one phrase echoing: "Just you wait!"
A splash sounded, water sprouting everywhere.
Yuan Se was dumbfounded, as was Yean Guyi...
They had envisioned many possible scenarios, including Lu Ye reactivating his gold light, but never had they imagined that facing their attack, Lu Ye would intentionally plunge into All Phenomena Ocean!
Is it so easy to dive into All Phenomena Ocean? Yuan Du, a Sun Blaze like him, merely stayed in the sea momentarily and was horribly eroded, his mana terribly muddled; Lu Ye, a newly ascended Sun Blaze, would face worse than Yuan Du.
Yuan Se was initially pleased—as it turned out, he judged correctly, and Lu Ye indeed couldn’t activate the gold light anymore; otherwise, he wouldn’t dive into the sea.
His expression quickly turned bewildered; no one acts death-seeking voluntarily, particularly a Sun Blaze cultivator—unable to fight at all, they would struggle a bit, before diving into the sea only as a last resort—and what’s more, Lu Ye had left such words, clearly not intending to yield meekly.
Could he resolve the erosion issue from All Phenomena Ocean’s waters? Otherwise, why would he choose to dive for escape?
