Sage of Humanity

Half a day later, Tan Sheng, dressed in green, appeared atop the spirit mountaintop. He had hurried along his journey, fearing he would arrive too late.

The hunting ground had been open for half a month and could close at any time. Once it closed, even if one had acquired that item, it might not be of much use anymore.

Moreover, once the hunting ground closed, the rankings on the Kills Ranking would be set, and many rewards would be distributed.

Gazing at the sky, he took out a ten-part map to check, confirming that this was the agreed-upon location, and immediately sent out a message.

After waiting for a moment, a message came back. He perused it briefly and murmured softly, "The sun and moon hang high, the twin rivers run side by side."

To himself, he scoffed at the ridiculous secret code...

As he finished speaking, he saw two figures emerging from their hiding places below.

With a flicker of his form, he dashed towards them and in an instant landed in front of the two people.

Jiang Liuzi stepped forward, cupping his fist and asking, "Are you Senior Brother Tan Sheng?" They had never met Tan Sheng before and didn't know what he looked like, but the secret code was correct, and the cultivation level matched, so it couldn't be wrong.

Tan Sheng nodded, "It's me. Where's the item?"

Jiang Liuzi took an object resembling a compass out of his storage sack. The compass seemed ancient and unadorned, with no trace of spirit force fluctuations. If one were to come across such an item in the wild, they would hardly take a second glance.

Yet this compass was key to precisely locating Lu Ye's whereabouts, and it was also a stroke of fortune that Jiang Liuzi and his brother had previously obtained.

"Give it to me," Tan Sheng extended his hand. The item looked no different from what the rumors described, but whether it was the same, he still needed to verify.

Jiang Liuzi shook his head, "Senior Brother Tan, my brother and I are not of high cultivation, and we have previously provoked a strong cultivator from the Haotian Alliance. Our lives are in peril, and we must ask Senior Brother Tan to ensure our safety."

The item certainly could not be handed over to Tan Sheng. If it were truly given to him, why would he take them with him? This item could only ensure their own safety if they kept it in their possession.

As for asking Tan Sheng to avenge Master Loo Shu, it simply wasn't realistic. Tan Sheng was at Level 9 realm, yes, but so was the person who had killed Master Loo Shu. With equal cultivation levels, even if Tan Sheng agreed, he did not have the capability, so Jiang Liuzi did not bother mentioning it.

The matter of revenge, they would handle themselves. Both of them were of notable talent and confident in their ability to surpass in cultivation the enemy who killed Master Loo Shu. When the time came, they would make him pay.

"Besides, if we truly manage to kill that Lu Yiye, we want forty percent of the bounty," Jiang Liuzi added another condition.

A cold gleam flashed in Tan Sheng's eyes, "You're not being greedy, are you? Aren't you afraid of biting off more than you can chew?"

Jiang Liuzi spoke confidently, "Senior Brother Tan must have heard about the amount of the bounties offered by the various sects of the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge. Such a vast amount of resources—even if we brothers claim forty percent, it would still be enough for Senior Brother Tan to live comfortably for a lifetime."

Those 2nd-3rd grade sects had almost all issued bounties on Lu Ye. The bounty from any one sect was significant, and the total was unimaginable.

Hearing this, Tan Sheng was expressionless for a moment before saying, "Give me the item, and I'll give you forty percent."

Jiang Liuzi shook his head, "I need it for myself." Right now, it was most important to follow Tan Sheng. Only then could they leverage his power to prevent the Haotian Alliance's strong cultivator from acting rashly. If Tan Sheng took the item and fled, leaving the two brothers behind, they would be defenseless if their enemy attacked.

If they died, they would lose everything.

So even though he felt Tan Sheng's impatience, Jiang Liuzi couldn't relent. As for whether Tan Sheng might simply seize the item by force... the chances were slim. They were all from the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge, and it would be disgraceful for Tan Sheng to do such a thing. Even if he attempted, Jiang Liuzi could render the compass useless beforehand, making their parting unprofitable for both parties.

Seeing Tan Sheng's hesitance, Jiang Liuzi pressed on, "Senior Brother Tan, the hunting ground has been open for half a month and could close at any moment. If that happens, you can forget about the number one reward on the Kills Ranking. Besides, once the hunting ground closes, even with this item, it might not be possible to kill Lu Yiye."

Not to mention that if the guy hides in the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union or returns to the Nine Provinces, where could they go to kill him?

Finally, Tan Sheng gave in, "Twenty percent. You use the item, and I'll take you both."

Jiang Liuzi frowned, but it was not good to haggle further at this point. Twenty percent of the bounty was sufficient for their use. He immediately nodded in agreement, "Fine."

"Let's begin," Tan Sheng urged.

Without delay, Jiang Liuzi raised his hand, bit the tip of his finger, and with his blood, wrote "Lu Yiye" on the surface of the compass.

The compass swiftly absorbed the bright red blood, and the ancient and plain compass immediately emitted a halo of light, its needle in the center spinning wildly. In just a short moment, the needle suddenly stopped, pointing in a specific direction. At the same time, a blood-red light burst forth from the compass, rapidly streaking toward that direction and disappearing from view.

Indeed, it was that item of legend, and Tan Sheng's eyes brightened at the sight. With this item, Lu Ye would have nowhere to escape.

"Let's go!"

Tan Sheng barked the order, taking the lead and flying in that direction, with the Jiang brothers closely following behind.

On the ground below, a figure watched silently—it was the same Haotian Alliance strong cultivator who had previously slain Loo Shu. He had been searching for the Jiang brothers in the vicinity but, unfortunately, had not been able to find them as they hid well.

It wasn't until now that the brothers voluntarily showed themselves, but there was a Level 9 cultivator with them, which caused him quite a bit of frustration.

"Tan Sheng?" he muttered softly to himself, "Since when did the New Moon Sect and the Changtian Sect team up?"

Tan Sheng hailed from New Moon Sect, while the Jiang Liuzi brothers came from Changtian Sect, both major sects of Ten Thousand Demons Ridge.

Unable to figure it out, so be it, they're just two at Level 5 realm, if I can't kill them, then so I won't kill.

At the same time, in another part of the hunting grounds, Lu Ye, hidden in the shadows, suddenly furrowed his brow. Just a moment ago, an inexplicable sensation arose in his heart, as if someone was secretly watching him.

This made him shiver inwardly.

The Concealment Spirit Runes he used to hide his figure were somewhat similar in principle to the stealth techniques used by ghost cultivators. While he couldn't claim his concealment was perfect, someone would need to be at least in Level 7 and also quite close to him to see through it.

Had someone managed to approach him undetected?

Lu Ye was secretly alarmed and immediately stimulated his Insight Spirit Runes to enhance his eyesight, looking around in every direction.

Yet he found nothing, with no trace of anyone lurking around.

After some thought, he turned his head and whispered a sentence, and Yiyi immediately flashed out from the Amber and burrowed into the ground to search around.

After the time it took one incense stick to burn, Yiyi returned and slowly shook her head at Lu Ye. She had meticulously searched a range of five hundred yards but found nothing at all.

By then, that strange feeling of being watched had also vanished, which puzzled Lu Ye greatly.

Was it just his imagination earlier?

He calmed his mind and sensed again, making sure there was nothing unusual.

However, ever since he obtained that gold-hued spirit fortune stick, his luck hadn't been great. He had been lying in ambush here for half a day with nothing to show for it.

Looking up at the Kills Ranking, Tan Sheng's kill points, for some reason, hadn't changed for half a day, which was very odd. This allowed the person in third place to steadily close the gap, and now, that person was less than one hundred kill points behind Tan Sheng.

As time slipped by, after more than two Shichen, Lu Ye suddenly felt that sensation of being watched again, and this time, it was much more intense than before.

His expression turned grave.

Something was not quite right.

If it had been just one occurrence, he could have dismissed it as his imagination, but to feel it again, what did that mean?

He swiftly constructed the Insight Spirit Runes, scanning the surroundings, but still found nothing. Still, he instinctively felt that something was off, as if continuing to stay here would bring a grave crisis upon him.

With that thought, Lu Ye quickly messaged Li Baxian, informing him of his intention to retreat.

Whether or not someone was secretly watching him, it was better to be safe than sorry.

Just as he was sending the message to Li Baxian, more than ten miles away, three figures were following the guidance of a compass toward him, and as they drew closer, the light on that compass gradually became blood-red and more profound.

"He's nearby!" Jiang Liuzi's eyes flashed with joy. Considering the vastness of the hunting ground, he had thought that even with the compass to guide him, it would take a lot of effort to find Lu Yiye. Unexpectedly, they were not far from each other, arriving in the general area in just more than a Shichen.

This was a pleasant surprise indeed.

On the ground, Lu Ye had just finished communicating with Li Baxian and was about to pack up the array banners and leave when he suddenly saw three streaks of light heading straight for him from above.

The leader among them had particularly strong spirit force fluctuations, evidently a Level 9 cultivator.

Are Level 9 cultivators starting to move in groups now? Lu Ye was alarmed, but after sensing the spirit force fluctuations of the other two, he found they were only at Level 5.

He guessed that these three probably belonged to the same sect; otherwise, it made no sense for a Level 9 cultivator to be accompanied by two at Level 5.

Just as he watched the three streaks of light fly over him, to Lu Ye's dismay, they suddenly stopped in mid-air.

In the sky, Jiang Liuzi, holding the compass, stared at the suddenly changing needle and called out in a low voice: "They're right below us!"

Tan Sheng's eyes lit up and he immediately descended, with the Jiang Liuzi brothers following closely behind.

The moment he landed, Jiang Chengzi vanished without a trace, employing his ghostly methods of stealth.

Meanwhile, Lu Ye was intently observing Jiang Chengzi.

He had never imagined that, in this hunting field, he would not only encounter Wei Que but also these bothersome brothers. This was indeed like a bad haunting.

What made Lu Ye more cautious was that compass in Jiang Liuzi's hand; as he drew closer, Lu Ye's sense of alarm grew stronger. As if there was some mysterious connection between the compass and himself.

Somehow, Lu Ye felt that these three people were searching for him specifically; otherwise, there was no reason for them to have flown past only to descend again, and clearly, Jiang Liuzi was currently relying on that compass to search for something.