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Translator: Truth
Editor: Dhael Ligerkeys
While recalling the arrangement of a certain ward, Lu Ye set down the sixteen ward keystones around the buildings and the Spirit Spouts. Then, he activated them.
A defensive ward was at its weakest when it first took form. It was because its defensibility scaled in proportion to the amount of Spiritual Power it absorbed. The richer the ambient Spiritual Qi, the stronger its defense would become.
In addition, the defensive ward kept the World Spiritual Qi emanating from the Arcane Glade from leaking beyond its boundaries.
The sky gradually brightened, and a considerable amount of Spiritual Qi had been generated in the Arcane Glade. It was nowhere close to reaching its limit though. Usually, it took several days for the Arcane Glade to stabilize enough to gauge its level.
While this was going on, Lu Ye continued to install more wards in the Arcane Glade.
Looking at Lu Ye’s cultivation level alone, it would not be inaccurate to call him a bottom feeder. However, his strength could never be defined by his cultivation level, not to mention that he was fairly proficient in the Way of Wards. Given enough preparation, he could deal with ordinary Fourth or Fifth-Order Cloud River Realm cultivators.
If the Arcane Glade hadn’t revived, then he could’ve stayed under the radar. Now that it had, it wouldn’t be long before he, the current owner of the Arcane Glade, attracted all sorts of attention. He was sure that trouble was on the horizon, so he needed to prepare as much as possible before the inevitable happened.
He was still working when he sensed something and looked up. An alluring woman was looking down at him with a curious and amazed expression on her face. She had clearly noticed the unusual activity beneath her.
When their eyes met, the woman exclaimed in surprise, “It’s you?”
Lu Ye was plenty surprised himself. The woman was none other than the one who had tried to rob him of his Amulets before circumstances forced them to work together. He did not think he would run into her again.
The Cloud River Battlefield was massive, but already they had run into each other twice in two days. No wonder people said that coincidences could happen even in the unlikeliest of circumstances.
The female cultivator looked back and forth between her 10-point map and Lu Ye. When she confirmed that the Arcane Glade beneath her definitely wasn’t marked on the 10-point map, she asked, “Is this a newborn Arcane Glade?”
She was mistaken, but Lu Ye wasn’t going to explain things to her. He simply watched her in silence.
The female cultivator slowly descended until she was outside the grand ward. She brushed her hand against the screen of light before asking, “Are you a ward cultivator, handsome?”
Ward cultivators were easily the most popular faction in the Cloud River Battlefield. It was because they could set up wards that made an Arcane Glade so much more defensible.
In fact, nearly every Arcane Glade in the Cloud River Battlefield was guarded by a ward cultivator. It was because it was impossible to protect an Arcane Glade for a prolonged period of time without one.
This was an Arcane Glade, and Lu Ye looked like a ward cultivator. Naturally, the woman could not help but be excited about this. Not even Lu Ye’s cold indifference could extinguish her passion.
“Are you alone, handsome? I can help you if you want! I know I don’t look like a strong fighter, but I assure you that judging this book by its cover will be a mistake!” The female cultivator tried really hard to promote herself. Consciously or not, she even puffed up her huge breasts to further appeal to Lu Ye. In Amber’s body, Yi Yi clicked her tongue loudly when she saw this.
“If you really are alone, you should understand that you cannot defend this place by yourself even if you are a ward cultivator. Please take me in, handsome. I can help you!”
She was practically making puppy eyes at him at the end of her sentence.
Despite his outward indifference, Lu Ye agreed with her. He had never plotted to claim this Arcane Glade all to himself because he knew that it was unrealistic.
According to the rules of the Cloud River Battlefield, the discoverers of a small Arcane Glade could form a temporary alliance with each other. They would share the Arcane Glade and defend it from outside threats.
Of course, rules were made to be broken. Assuming Lu Ye had enough manpower, he would’ve rejected the woman already.
However, Ju Jia was nowhere to be seen, and his fourth senior brother and Feng Yuechan could not be contacted for whatever reason. This meant that he could not turn her down even if he wanted to. If she spread word of the existence of this Arcane Glade, his would-be competitors would show up sooner than expected and attempt to drive him out of the Arcane Glade. He had no doubt that they would succeed.
This was why the first few cultivators who discovered a virgin Arcane Glade always banded together.
“What’s your cultivation?” Lu Ye asked.
The female cultivator puffed up her chest and declared proudly, “I’m a Fifth-Order Cloud River Realm cultivator! Not only that, I was a Heaven-Nine cultivator and the forty-sixth ranker on the Scroll of Supremacy! May the Heavens smite me if anything I said is a lie!”
Lu Ye had to admit that her accomplishments were pretty impressive, though of course it was nothing compared to his. She must come from a powerful Tier-Three sect at minimum if she could enter the Scroll of Supremacy. As for her faction… that wasn’t important in the Cloud River Battlefield.
“If you take me in, I promise to cooperate with you and protect this Arcane Glade to the best of my abilities. Anyone who dares to challenge our ownership will face my wrath.”
“Come in,” Lu Ye finally said while waving his Control Jade. A gap immediately appeared on the defensive ward.
The female cultivator stepped in while cheering in delight. “Hell yeah!”
Of course she was happy. She had been wandering aimlessly until she stumbled upon this virgin Arcane Glade that hadn’t even stabilized yet. Even better, the first discoverer lacked the manpower to secure it. If this wasn’t good luck, then she didn’t know what was.
Lu Ye took a moment to examine his new companion. He had to admit that she was both beautiful and sexy. She was wearing a sleeveless shirt, and her soft, white skin kept catching his attention like a magnet.
The female cultivator examined her surroundings curiously before realizing too late. “Wait, this isn’t a newborn Arcane Glade. Did… did the Spirit Spout revive?”
If this was a newborn Arcane Glade, there wouldn’t be so many abandoned buildings in the area. The fact that there were buildings meant that someone used to live here, and seeing as this hill was located in the middle of nowhere, an Arcane Glade was the only reason anyone might choose to live here.
“Yeah.”
“You must be insanely lucky then. Arcane Glade revivals happen so rarely that some people even thought they’re myths! Of course, I’m pretty lucky myself, hehe. Oh right, where are my manners? What is your name, handsome?”
The female cultivator possessed a carefree personality, but she also had a distinctly feminine charm.
Lu Ye declared, “My name is Ye Six!”
It took leaving the Spirit Creek Battlefield altogether to obtain a new beginning. He wasn’t going to waste it by spilling his own name, especially since Lu Yi Ye of the Crimson Blood Sect was infamous throughout the Spirit Creek Battlefield and Jiu Zhou. Even the reclusive in the Cloud River Battlefield must have heard of his name. That was why Lu Ye had decided to change his name before he even entered the Cloud River Battlefield.
“I see… Well, my name is Kitty Shen! Nice to meet you, Fellow Cultivator Ye!”
An awkward silence hung between them after the introduction. It was because “Ye Six” was obviously a fake name, and Kitty Shen was no better.
Then again, it was pretty common for cultivators to use fake names in the Cloud River Battlefield.
“Let us make a Sacred Pact then. I leave the terms to you,” Lu Ye broke the silence. He knew that it was common practice to make a Sacred Pact when forming a temporary alliance and sharing an Arcane Glade with a stranger. It was the only way to guarantee full cooperation and ensure that there would be no betrayal down the line.
However, Lu Ye had never done this before, so he wasn’t sure what kind of terms he should outline in the Sacred Pact. That was why he left it to Kitty Shen. It would be a good learning opportunity.
“Okay!” Kitty Shen agreed without hesitation before muttering something under her breath. A few seconds later, a beam of golden light descended from the sky, and Kitty Shen grabbed a Sacred Pact from it.
Lu Ye had seen his fourth senior brother doing the same thing during the Battle of Goldentip, so he wasn’t surprised by it.
“Please take a look, Fellow Cultivator Ye. If you think it’s okay, then we can sign it right away,” Kitty Shen passed the Sacred Pact to Lu Ye.
Lu Ye read it carefully and discovered that the terms and conditions were quite comprehensive. It clearly stated the obligations and responsibilities both of them were expected to fulfill. It did not allow them to harm each other or reveal the existence of this Arcane Glade without the other person’s permission. This was mainly to prevent one cultivator from summoning friendlies and kick out an existing owner. For example, Kitty Shen would be in a disadvantageous position if Lu Ye were to summon his fourth senior brother and Feng Yuechan to this Arcane Glade. She would have to worry constantly if Lu Ye and his friends would attempt to drive her out or harm her in some way.
It was due to these considerations that temporary alliances were a thing in the Cloud River Battlefield.
Kitty Shen even mentioned future allies in the terms and conditions. A small Arcane Glade like this was normally occupied by three to five cultivators only, and there were only two of them right now. Their defense would hold up better if they could recruit more allies.
“There’s something I need to tell you before I sign this pact,” Lu Ye looked up from the Sacred Pact and said.
“Sure. Go ahead,” Kitty Shen replied candidly.
“I’ve already told a fellow disciple about this Arcane Glade. However, I’m not sure when he’ll show up.”
“You’ve only told one person about the Arcane Glade?”
“Just one.”
“Then it’s okay. Just make sure you discuss it with me if you plan to reveal it to more people in the future.”
“If there are no more problems, then let’s get this over with.”
Lu Ye bit his finger and pressed a bloody thumbprint on the Sacred Pact. Kitty She did the same. The Heavens’ mysterious power enveloped them both, and a Sacred Pact was formed just like that.
Lu Ye put away the Sacred Pact. Kitty Shen visibly relaxed when all was said and done. She might look like a careless person, but she had been on her guard until the Sacred Pact was signed.
Kitty Shen looked around for a bit before asking, “Where do you live?”
After Lu Ye pointed out his building, Kitty Shen pointed at the opposite building and said, “I’ll be staying here then!”
She held up the hems of her skirt and hopped into her chosen building. It wasn’t long before he heard the sounds of cleaning. Lu Ye returned to his wards as well.
It wasn’t until evening did Kitty Shen finally finish tidying her room. She was covered in dust when she was done. She said to Lu Ye, “I’m going to take a bath.”
After Lu Ye had opened the defensive ward, she flew into the sky and vanished in the blink of an eye. It was impossible to say where she had gone.
It was nighttime when Kitty Shen finally returned. Lu Ye was already resting inside his building.
After a full day and night of accumulation, the World Spiritual Qi in the Arcane Glade had become very rich.
When Lu Ye was at the Spirit Creek Battlefield, he had visited many Core Circle Outposts. Their World Spiritual Qi was rich enough for Core Circle cultivators to cultivate.
Using that as a reference, the World Spiritual Qi in the Arcane Glade was three times thicker than any Core Circle Outpost’s. Naturally, the environment was good enough for a Cloud River Realm cultivator to cultivate.
Even better, the Arcane Glade hadn’t stabilized yet. It was going to be even better when it had fully stabilized.
Technically speaking, it was still way faster to cultivate using an Amulet. However, an Arcane Glade was a stable and long-lasting cultivation resource, while it was questionable if one could even obtain an Amulet, much less a good one.
Thanks for the Chapter.