Sage of Humanity

As the thick yellow color dissipated, Lu Ye suddenly found himself in a place of transparent spirit force, where the birds sang and flowers bloomed.

This is definitely not the Nine Provinces, the native nature's spiritual energy there isn't this dense, so... we've arrived?

This is the real transmission, the entire process felt almost like nothing, unlike the previous time traveling through the Liyuan Great Array to the Unparalleled Continent, that experience was truly unforgettable.

The scene before me, amidst green verdant hues were bursts of purple and pink, surrounding the tip of my nose were all kinds of subtle yet fragrant floral scents… seems there's another unique fragrance?

Just as Lu Ye was about to carefully observe his surroundings, he suddenly sensed something wrong, swiftly moved to the side, and pressed his hand on the handle of the Boulder Mountain Saber, his eyes steadily fixed on where he previously stood.

There was still a silhouette at that spot, but it wasn't Yang Qing who had brought him, rather a remarkably enchanting and alluring figure.

The fragrance that lingered at the tip of his nose moments ago, besides the unique floral scents of the place, was this woman's personal scent!

When Lu Ye looked over, what caught his eye was a dazzling snow-white, making him a bit dizzy.

Without a doubt, the woman was stunning, and possessed an indescribable graceful and seductive demeanor. Lu Ye had seen various beauties in the Nine Provinces, but in terms of allure, none could compare to this woman by eleven parts.

Plus, coupled with her alluring figure, she was the type with slender branches bearing abundant fruits, giving a strong visual impact, any male creature would find it hard to resist taking a few more glances.

Now Lu Ye only had one question on his mind.

Where did Yang Qing go?

And who is this woman?

In contrast to Lu Ye's baffled suspicion, the woman appeared much more composed, after a brief pause, she realized what had happened.

This is the benefit of having a reliable elder around, before coming here, her elder had already informed her of potential situations she might encounter, so she could readily adapt to whatever came.

In contrast, Yang Qing seemed less reliable, but you couldn't blame him, having been sealed for tens of thousands of years, and this being the first time taking a junior as an elder, where would he think to remind too much, and the Dragon Race naturally wasn't known for being meticulous.

This led Lu Ye to feel completely baffled at the moment.

When Lu Ye noticed the woman, she obviously noticed him too, tilted her head and glanced at him, upon seeing Lu Ye's attire, she immediately felt a bit overwhelmed: "Combat brute..."

In the stellar space, the major sects all have their own nicknames, so-called beefy savage brute, magic nerd, Sword Madman, combat brute, Spectral Shadow...

All relate greatly to their own combat styles.

It's not that anyone looks down on anyone particular, but inevitably some ideologies will conflict.

Of these, magic cultivators were most willing to cooperate with physique cultivators, because physique cultivators were tough enough to charge ahead and draw fire, giving them ample time and energy to wield all kinds of mighty spells.

The least willing to cooperate were Sword Madmen and combat brutes, strictly speaking, these two types of people were peas in a pod, killing with no sense of coordination whatsoever.

Even if Lu Ye were a Ghost Cultivator, this woman wouldn't be so perturbed, but one look at Lu Ye's attire and she knew he was a combat cultivator.

Once the words left her lips, she quickly raised a hand to cover her red lips, mouth slightly smiled: "This one's misspoke, Fellow Daoist please don't mind!"

Lu Ye merely stared at her, right now he didn't fully grasp what was happening, but there was one thing certain, the woman standing before him, who suddenly appeared, seemed not to harbor any hostility.

This made his previous actions seem a tad over-exaggerated.

The woman gathered her skirts in a salute: "Yuk Yaorao of Jiuxuan, greetings to this Fellow Daoist."

Is she introducing her origin?

Jiuxuan should be the name of the domain this lady is from, as for the specific location in the stellar space, that's unknown.

Since she's being courteous, Lu Ye naturally couldn't fall short, what's more, this close distance, it's she who should be more cautious.

Yuk Yaorao could see Lu Ye's combat cultivator background, so how could he not see thru Yuk Yaorao's magic cultivator path?

Lu Ye raised a hand in greeting, "Nine Heavens, Lu Ye."

One is Jiuxuan, the other Nine Heavens; they sound similar, yet Nine Heavens is false, while Jiuxuan is true.

Yuk Yaorao pondered briefly, realizing she hadn't heard of a domain called Nine Heavens. However, the stellar space was vast, and it was normal for someone at the Divine Sea Realm like her to have limited knowledge. The fact that he could come here indicated it was a large domain, so she didn't pay it much mind.

"Junior Brother Lu seems somewhat perplexed about his own situation?" Yuk Yaorao was undoubtedly the type to become easily acquainted. She had just addressed him as a Fellow Daoist, and now she called him Junior Brother, because when Lu Ye had placed his hand on his saber earlier, his spirit force fluctuations were unmistakably clear, indicating his cultivation was one level lower than hers.

This inevitably surprised Yuk Yaorao somewhat because, as far as she knew, those eligible to be brought here by the elders were all at Divine Sea Level 9, just a step away from taking that final leap.

Apparently, there had never been a precedent of someone at Divine Sea Level 8 coming here.

After all, which large domain wouldn't have a Divine Sea Level 9? It made no sense to forgo a Level 9 and instead bring a Level 8.

"I was just about to ask this Senior Sister about it. I came here with an elder from my family, but after arriving, the elder disappeared and I saw you instead. What's happening here? Where is this place?" Since she was willing to be friendly, Lu Ye naturally went along with it.

"Didn't that elder explain anything to you?"

Lu Ye replied, "He only said he would bring me to the Reincarnation Tree, but from what I can see, there doesn't appear to be a Reincarnation Tree here." It was more a place of birdsong and fragrant flowers, lush with greenery, possessing an otherworldly transcendence, but beyond that, nothing appeared worth particular notice.

Yuk Yaorao laughed softly, "That elder of yours is really unreliable."

She straightened her expression and began, "This is indeed the Reincarnation Tree. To be precise, it's a Tree World. A Tree World is a series of miniature worlds inside the Reincarnation Tree. There are so many, they're innumerable; one could say they're nearly infinite. I don't know which specific Tree World this is, but as for why we're here..."

She paused slightly, seemingly organizing her words, then continued, "The Reincarnation Tree is a supreme treasure of the stellar space. It's existed for countless millennia. It embraces all, making no distinctions. Therefore, in this vast stellar space, many lost domains or those who must wander for various reasons come to the Reincarnation Tree to find a place to stay. For this, the Reincarnation Tree never refuses. After all, it has many Tree Worlds, ample to house those tribes and races roaming without homes. Of course, many come attracted by its reputation as well."

"Therefore, you can entirely view the Reincarnation Tree as a microcosm of the stellar space. The species in the stellar space are mostly present here too, including us humans, who have claimed many Tree Worlds here. However, many races cannot coexist peacefully, leading to frequent skirmishes and disputes. Since everyone is here to survive, they generally restrain themselves. Except in one situation!"

"What situation?" Lu Ye asked timely.

"Not all who come to seek refuge with the Reincarnation Tree hope simply for a place to stay. Some harbor malicious intentions! They arrive with the aim of plundering rare species because some rare species in the stellar space possess very special abilities. Most of the disputes and skirmishes among the Tree Worlds of the Reincarnation Tree stem from this."

Lu Ye was somewhat surprised, "If that's the case, couldn't the Reincarnation Tree just expel them? It should have the ability to discern good from evil, right?"

Yuk Yaorao smiled, her expression charming and full of grace. How a woman in her twenties could possess such poise was unknown.

"The Reincarnation Tree indeed has this ability, but its guiding principle is to embrace all phenomena. When species and tribes come, it accepts them but won't expel them! Nor will it actively do anything for them."

Lu Ye appeared thoughtful, "It won't act proactively, so it can act passively?"

Yuk Yaorao cast him an amazed look, "Junior Brother, you're quite perceptive, exactly right! Take this domain, for example. It must have encountered some disturbances, so no matter which species survives in this domain, they can request the Reincarnation Tree for help, asking it to send someone to assist them. That's why we're here; the Reincarnation Tree sent us, and what we need to do is help the beings of this Tree World deal with some issues! You can think of this as a test. If you pass, you qualify to participate in the next Divine Sea contest. If not, you might just have to return whence you came."

Lu Ye was tempted to ask what this upcoming Divine Sea contest entailed, but decided against it, planning to ask Yang Qing later; asking here would only show his ignorance.

Up till now, he hadn't known why Yang Qing brought him here, as Yang Qing had only mentioned coming to snatch something, without specifying what.

However, based on the current information, it seemed he and Yuk Yaorao shared a natural ally relationship since their experiences in this Tree World would determine their subsequent travel qualifications.

This being the case, there was no need to guard against her anymore.

Lu Ye glanced around, "Then, what species does Senior Sister think lives in this Tree World?"

Yuk Yaorao replied, "In any case, it won't be humans!"

If it were humans, there would be traces of human activity. Though unaware of the size of this Tree World, neither of them sensed any living creature within their Mental Consciousness range.

"As for which species, they will naturally come find us."

As soon as Yuk Yaorao finished speaking, the surrounding trees suddenly radiated a faint brilliance, followed by points of light drifting out from the woods, converging in front of the two.

Within the enveloping light, an ethereal figure appeared, bowing slightly, "Thank you for your patience, esteemed guests, and first of all, thank you for coming."