Sage of Humanity-Chapter 1625 - 1623: Shrouded in Mystery

Ever since Ban Ci left the secret realm ahead of time, neither Chu Shen nor Lu Ye had seen her again. It was as if she had vanished into thin air.

What happened that time was an accident and unavoidable, as they were influenced by the Great Lust Demon Spider. Ban Ci wanted to lure it out, and could only choose that method; otherwise, both she and Lu Ye would have died in that secret realm.

The outcome was decent in the end, as the Great Lust Demon Spider did appear and was slain by their combined efforts.

Before this, Lu Ye's interaction with her was scant, hardly enough to call them acquainted.

This woman... truly free-spirited, Lu Ye thought silently. If even a woman can be so free-spirited, he surely wouldn't entangle himself further, so although he hadn't seen Ban Ci since then, he hadn't thought of seeking her whereabouts.

Meeting by chance, forgetting in the rivers and lakes.

The reason for his inquiry now was mainly because he discovered someone in the Cheling World.

Brought by Aunt Yue, he saw a figure of a young girl, about ten years old, in the valley. At the time, she seemed somewhat familiar, as if he had seen her before, but he didn't ponder deeply.

Moments ago, a spirit light flashed in his mind, faintly recalling that the young girl's face resembled the little girl he and Ban Ci had rescued in that domain years ago.

Years ago, as he and Ban Ci passed through that domain, all the beings within it were massacred by the Great Lust Demon Spider. The two acted separately, and Ban Ci found a survivor in a cellar.

That was the sole survivor of the domain, later placed by Ban Ci into a miniature world for safekeeping.

If the young girl he saw truly was the one rescued from that unknown domain, then the matter becomes quite intriguing.

If Ban Ci was not from the Cheling World, how did the little girl end up here? Calculating the time, several years have passed, and the little girl has grown. Her features indeed resemble those of the little girl saved years ago.

Or could it be that Ban Ci had some connection with the Cheling World unknown to Chu Shen, and she sent the little girl there?

"When I arrived, I saw a young girl, about ten years old..." Lu Ye described the scene and the girl's appearance from then.

Chu Shen immediately knew who he was talking about: "You must be referring to Ban Xia."

"Ban Xia?" Lu Ye narrowed his eyes slightly, Ban Ci, Ban Xia... if it's just a coincidence, it's quite a coincidence.

"She's a disciple that Aunt Yue took in a few years ago. I don't know where Aunt Yue found her from. At the time, I was on Unparalleled Island and only heard Aunt Yue saying that Ban Xia is a realm child, blessed with fortune, and destined for great accomplishments in the future!"

"What does realm child mean?" Lu Ye asked with some curiosity.

Chu Shen sighed and said, "Aunt Yue said that Ban Xia is also a pitiable child. The domain she was born in underwent a cataclysmic upheaval, with everyone in the domain perishing, leaving her as the sole survivor. Aunt Yue said that in such circumstances, the fortune of the entire domain would converge upon one person. Even if her cultivation aptitude was poor, she would have great opportunities in the future, achieving significant accomplishments. Otherwise, Aunt Yue wouldn't have considered taking a disciple, nor would she have accepted her. But looking at the current situation, it seems that Ban Xia not only is blessed with fortune but also possesses superb cultivation aptitude. Aunt Yue has high hopes for her."

Lu Ye was slightly moved at heart.

There was no mistake. The young girl named Ban Xia was definitely the one Ban Ci took away back then.

But it's strange. Since Ban Xia is here, where has Ban Ci gone? Why did Chu Shen say Ban Ci isn't from the Cheling World?

"Do you know Ban Xia?" Chu Shen asked in confusion. There was no reason for Lu Ye to suddenly ask about Ban Xia unless he had met her before.

"I don't know her, just asked offhand." Lu Ye shook his head, then stood up and said, "Take me to see how Old Tang and the others are doing."

The situation with Ban Ci was unclear, and it wasn't appropriate to ask, so he decided not to dwell on it.

"Follow me, big brother," Chu Shen said, getting up and leading the way outside.

In the vast Hidden Flower Valley, at a place of picturesque scenery, multicolored flowers vied in splendor. Several ladies gathered together, picking flowers to adorn their hair, enhancing their beauty.

Not far from them, there was a clear lake. An old man sat by the lakeside, holding a fishing rod, with a leisurely expression.

Suddenly, the old man's expression shifted, turning his head in a certain direction, just in time to see Lu Ye walking toward him.

"I heard from Chu Shen about what happened earlier, I thought you, old man, would be bedridden and barely breathing, didn't expect you to have this leisure," Lu Ye walked to Tang Jun's side, looked him over, finding him apparently unharmed, though his breath was slightly weak.

He even had the leisurely mood to fish here, it seemed his recovery had been good recently.

"The old man almost died, and you come gloating!" Tang Jun couldn't help but roll his eyes.

Nearby, Cai Xing, Cai Yue, and others saw Lu Ye approaching and came over to greet him joyfully. Lu Ye's gaze swept over them, confirming they were unharmed. Presumably, even if they were injured before, their injuries weren't as severe as Tang Jun's, so they'd already recovered.

Moreover, the cultivation levels of several ladies have all improved; previously, they were all at Constellation Early Stage, and now they've collectively advanced to Constellation Mid-Stage.

"When did you return?" Tang Jun took a chair out from his storage ring, placed it beside him, and only after Lu Ye sat down did he start to ask.

"Half a month ago," Lu Ye replied.

"How was the result of this journey?" Tang Jun asked again, as this was the matter he was truly concerned about. Since Lu Ye had returned, it meant he had indeed traveled to Jade Conch and then made his way back.

"Not too bad. Within the Jade Conch Galaxy, our Three Worlds have already allied, and all have sent people over."

"How many from Qingli Dao World came?"

"A hundred people, though we encountered some incidents on the way, resulting in about twenty deaths."

In the battle with the Insect Race and Blood Race outside the Indeterminate World, the Three Worlds cultivators collectively suffered over sixty casualties. Only about ten were from Nine Provinces, while the rest were from the other two worlds.

Tang Jun's face twitched, clearly pained, although he understood that during such a prolonged stellar space journey, encountering some incidents along the way was only natural; losing only twenty out of more than a hundred was considered quite fortunate.

"Wu Zhuo has been somewhat cautious," Tang Jun sighed, lamenting how despite the prestige of All Phenomena Ocean, such a rare opportunity was met with the dispatch of only a hundred people, which was somewhat atypical of Wu Zhuo's past disposition. Fearing Wu Zhuo might not believe Lu Ye, he had especially entrusted Lu Ye with a jade slip to bring back.

"It's not Wu Zhuo's fault; I reckon he wanted to send more people over, but with only a hundred from Jade Conch World, he probably felt it inappropriate to send more."

With only a hundred from Jade Conch, it was out of a cautious mindset, as they didn't have anyone in All Phenomena Ocean, and all information was transmitted from Wu Zhuo and Lu Ye's side, making it unwise to easily believe without firsthand witnessing.

With only a hundred dispatched from Jade Conch World, Qingli Dao World naturally couldn't surpass that in numbers, whereas Nine Provinces had no such concerns and sent three hundred directly.

The fishing rod dipped slightly, indicating a catch, yet Tang Jun had no interest in reeling it in; he instead let out a heavy sigh: "I have let you down; Unparalleled Island could not be kept."

He was roughly aware of the situation concerning Unparalleled Island; although Chu Shen was its apparent manager, in truth, half of Unparalleled Island belonged to Lu Ye.

When Lu Ye left years ago, he had entrusted Unparalleled Island to him to guard, and now Lu Ye had returned, with Unparalleled Island gone...

If Unparalleled Island were intact, the arrival of the Three Worlds cultivators would have a natural foothold, and such a prosperous place, ranking high across All Phenomena Ocean, meant that the Three Worlds cultivators coming from Jade Conch would effectively reach the top, never having to worry about cultivation resources in the future—merely focusing on cultivation to continually enhance their cultivation and strengthen their respective domains.

But now, Unparalleled Island had changed hands, and even its name had been altered, leaving little to discuss regarding the future.

Having mingled in All Phenomena Ocean for so many years, Tang Jun had become a seasoned hand and naturally understood how difficult it was for ordinary cultivators to establish themselves there. Even with the Three Worlds cultivators allied, they lacked sufficient strength on the Moon Jade level, suggesting that future days might prove harsh; capturing Spirit Island would be a challenge, occupying desolate islands would have little significance, and the notion of the Three Worlds' many cultivators merely handling chores to earn spirit jade was hardly appealing.

Reflecting on this, he felt a bit relieved that only a hundred from his domain had come.

"Unparalleled Island is gone, so be it; as long as we're alive," Lu Ye remarked.

Tang Jun was visibly surprised: "Do you not hold me accountable for my poor performance in battle?"

Lu Ye found it odd: "They had greater strength, and you were simply a stone against an egg; surviving is already commendable; you could hardly expect to drive them all away. That's unrealistic."

Moreover, Lu Ye wasn't even present during the great battle, contributing not even an ounce of effort, leaving him unqualified to reproach those who risked their lives despite nearly losing them.

Tang Jun stared deeply at him, and after quite some time, chuckled: "Old habits die hard; I've been rather foolish; you, the younger one, see far clearer than I! Such regret!"

Lu Ye asked, "What's troubling you?"

Tang Jun lamented, "If I had known you held such thoughts, I wouldn't have resisted so fiercely; in the end, it served no purpose and only caused the Island Master to lose all years of profitability!"

Had there been no desperate struggle earlier, their enemies likely wouldn't have harbored killing intent, and there wouldn't have been the incident of Chu Shen offering spirit jade to purchase their lives.

Thus, even if Unparalleled Island were lost, they would likely have preserved at least sixty million of profits.

That whopping sum of sixty million... Tang Jun had never witnessed such an amount of spirit jade in his lifetime. Every time he thought of losing so much spirit jade due to his stubbornness, his heart ached.

Lu Ye raised his hand and patted his shoulder: "As long as we're alive, everything is still possible; spirit jade can be earned again in the future. When you're older, be at peace, live a bit calmer, don't let thoughts burden you, or you might cut your life short!"

Tang Jun's expression was quickly one of feigned outrage: "Don't use that father lecturing son tone with me; I'm old enough to be your ancestor; show some respect!"

Despite his words, Tang Jun's melancholic demeanor seemed considerably relieved.