Sage of Humanity

Lu Ye was not buying something from Heaven's Augury treasure vault for the first time, so he naturally knew how to quickly find what he needed.

Just a moment later, he stood inside the Heaven's Augury treasure vault, surrounded by shelves filled with Spiritual Artifacts, searching through each one.

The types of Spiritual Artifacts here were numerous, meeting the needs of any cultivator.

As his Second Senior Sister had said, the Spiritual Artifacts for weapon control and those for direct combat were actually different. The former needed at least three types of restrictions – spirit energy storage, foundation fortification, and Sharpness.

The spirit energy storage restriction ensured the endurance of weapon control, storing the cultivator's spirit force within it and gradually consuming it during weapon control.

Without this restriction, one would encounter the situation Lu Ye had before, needing to recall the Spiritual Artifact after just a few moments of control.

As for foundation fortification and Sharpness, these were present in every Spiritual Artifact; the former reinforced the artifact itself so it wouldn't break easily, while the latter increased its lethality.

After browsing around, Lu Ye found it difficult to choose. The prices of the Spiritual Artifacts here were generally higher than ordinary ones. For example, his Boulder Mountain Saber with nine spirit runes was already the limit for a low-grade spirit artifact, costing only one hundred and thirty-five points of merit.

Yet, the price of a similarly restricted artifact suitable for weapon control was close to two hundred points.

By this measure, the Boulder Mountain Saber he initially bought was quite a bargain.

Just as he was about to make a purchase, he suddenly remembered that he didn't need to buy from Heaven's Augury Hall at all, as Hua Ci should have many Spiritual Artifacts.

In the Chess Sea, she didn't kill many people, but with her help, the cultivators of the Haotian Alliance slew countless enemies. Out of gratitude for her contribution, Hua Ci would always receive a share of the spoils after the battlefield was cleared.

When she returned last time, her mechanical wolf was loaded with storage sacks, and that was after some of the contents had been consolidated. If not for that, there would have been even more storage sacks.

Exiting the Heaven's Augury treasure vault, Lu Ye sent a message to Hua Ci, and in no time at all, she walked over from the training room.

"You've reached Level 7?" Hua Ci looked at Lu Ye in surprise. Since their return from Chess Sea, everyone had been diligently cultivating, and there were few opportunities to see each other. If Lu Ye hadn't sent her a message, she wouldn't have known that he had reached Level 7.

"Yeah, do you have any Spiritual Artifacts suitable for weapon control?"

"Oh yes, I've kept some aside, but they're not on me," Hua Ci said and then, turning around, beckoned, "Come with me."

She headed straight for the training room.

Before long, the two of them walked side by side into Hua Ci's exclusive training room. Lu Ye looked and saw a large pile of storage sacks in one corner of the room, all brought back from Chess Sea.

"You haven't dealt with them yet."

"I kept them for you," Hua Ci replied.

"For what?"

"Second Senior Sister said you've made quick progress on the Path of Spirit Runes, and you might need these storage sacks before long."

Lu Ye didn't understand; what did his progress on the Path of Spirit Runes have to do with these storage sacks? After a moment of thought, he had a sudden realization: "That's thoughtful of you."

Hua Ci selected three sacks from the pile and handed them to Lu Ye, "The Spiritual Artifacts are inside. Look for yourself. I don't know exactly what you're looking for."

Lu Ye took them, sat down cross-legged, and started searching.

Hua Ci didn't disturb him, busying herself with her own cultivation.

The Spiritual Artifacts obtained from Chess Sea were varied and numerous. Toward the end, Hua Ci couldn't carry any more storage sacks, and the cultivators from the Haotian Alliance gathered the Spiritual Artifacts left behind by the defeated Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators all into one storage sack and gave it to Hua Ci.

Among them were many suitable for weapon control.

The Spiritual Artifacts in these three storage sacks numbered several hundred, covering all types. If all these Spiritual Artifacts were sold to the Heaven's Augury treasure vault, the amount of merit Hua Ci could earn would be an enormously large number.

However, she wasn't lacking in merit points at the moment and decided to keep these Spiritual Artifacts, which could later be used as rewards for disciples.

Now the Deputy Governor of the Righteous Blood Sect, she was accustomed to and accepting of her new identity. Her Second Senior Sister treated her very well. As a healing cultivator guided by her Senior Sister, she was able to avoid many detours and naturally wanted to contribute to the Righteous Blood Sect.

After a long search, Lu Ye chose a dagger about a foot long.

The weight and length of the dagger were just right, and at first glance, it was clearly intended for weapon control because it didn't have a handle—just sharp points at both ends.

This Spiritual Artifact, left behind by some Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivator after death, had nine spirit runes. A Spiritual Artifact like this would cost at least one hundred and eighty points of merit or even more in the Heaven's Augury treasure vault.

Among the nine spirit runes, two were for spirit energy storage, three strengthened the blade, two increased the lethality of the Spiritual Artifact, and the remaining two Lu Ye couldn't identify, but they were certainly enhancements for weapon control.

"Pick a few more. I've heard that if one has enough control over one's own spirit force, it's possible to control several Spiritual Artifacts at the same time," Hua Ci advised Lu Ye as he made his selection.

"I'll practice with this one first. If I need more, I'll come back to you."

"Sure, it's not like I'm going anywhere," Hua Ci replied.

"Why do you make it sound like someone has you tied up?"

"Well, who knows."

...

After leaving Hua Ci's training room, Lu Ye entered his own training room and began to channel spirit force into the dagger.

This hiltless dagger was different from the Boulder Mountain Saber. The Boulder Mountain Saber was bought by Lu Ye from the Heaven's Augury treasure vault and was an unowned object, ready to use as soon as he got it.

But this hiltless dagger originally belonged to a Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivator. Even though that cultivator died, he left many traces of his own spirit force within the dagger. Simply put, the dagger had already adapted to its former owner's spirit force, and if someone else tried to use it hastily, they might not be able to unleash its full power.

What Lu Ye needed to do now was to nurture it with his own spirit force, to make it adapt to him so that he could fully utilize the dagger's power.

Previously, Lu Ye had acquired a tiny bell, a Spiritual Artifact from the Young Master of the Nine Stars Sect, which he had initially been unable to wield to its full potential. It was only after getting guidance from a locksmith of the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union that he gradually figured it out.

Therefore, in battle, picking up someone else's Spiritual Artifact haphazardly would be useless—only those that belonged to oneself were the best.

With his current Level 7 cultivation and such pure spirit force, it wouldn't take too long to nurture a Spiritual Artifact. After just half a day, the hiltless dagger turned into a streak of light under Lu Ye's control and flew around the training room with extreme agility.

Lu Ye was in tears...

After several bumps and knocks, he finally found the correct way to control the weapon.

The training room was too small for him to maneuver freely, so Lu Ye stepped outside. Soon after, there were sounds of breaking air from outside the training room.

Lu Ye discovered that the range of his weapon control reached about thirty-five zhang, which surprised him, as usually a Level 7 cultivator would not be able to control a weapon beyond thirty zhang.

Don't underestimate these extra five zhang. If Lu Ye faced off in a weapon control battle with an enemy, having five zhang more in attack range would allow him to strike first and seize control of the battle rhythm.

Moreover, the speed of his weapon control seemed much faster than that of an average Level 7 cultivator. Having seen many Level 7 cultivators using weapon control to defeat enemies in the Chess Sea, he quickly discovered his own advantages after a comparison. Stay connected with My Virtual Library Empire

With longer range, faster speed, and even stronger power than others in weapon control, Lu Ye could kill his opponents without lifting a finger when facing off against cultivators of the same level.

Many disciples were attracted by the commotion here and ran over to watch, admiring the streak of light flying through the air and loudly cheering.

There was a sudden rumble from the edge of the sky as clouds gathered and lightning cracked.

Lu Ye retracted the streak of light and waved his hand, "It's thundering and about to rain; let's disperse."

He turned and walked back into the training room.

His weapon control had just made minor achievements, but to truly test this method of killing enemies, he had to verify its effectiveness in actual combat. It was useless if all the flashy weapon control he practiced didn't work in real battle situations.

Lu Ye planned to enter the Mirage Realm.

He took out the Breath Fruit Core, went into the small room, spent fifty merits, opened the door, and walked into the fog.

As soon as he steadied himself, the fog began to churn, and a large insect, comparable to Lu Ye in cultivation, burst out of the fog.

However, as soon as it revealed itself, a streak of light had already shot towards it, effortlessly piercing through its body and spraying green blood.

The formidable insect had just appeared and was already knocked to the ground.

Lu Ye raised an eyebrow. The Path of Weapon Control was indeed useful; this was much easier than wielding the Boulder Mountain Saber to slash at it.

As the fog churned again, two insects rushed out. One was killed just like before as soon as it emerged, while the other only took two steps.

The streak of light swept by, and one insect after another was slain. By the time he reached the 5th Checkpoint, relying solely on weapon control was no longer sufficient. Even with its incredible speed, there were limits, and these insects were not slow. Lu Ye, with the power of the Boulder Mountain Saber, killed the insects that approached him.

Upon reaching the 8th Checkpoint, the spirit force within the dagger was exhausted. Before it was completely depleted, Lu Ye withdrew it and fought bloodily in all directions with the Boulder Mountain Saber in hand.

Moments later, back in the training room, Lu Ye opened his eyes, pale faced. Just now, he had only made it to the 8th Checkpoint before being overwhelmed by the insects.

The Level 7 insects were quite different from the Level 6 ones, showing a significant increase in strength. The same was reflected on cultivators; not to mention that having an additional weapon control technique greatly enhanced a cultivator's overall strength.

Although he hadn't reached the 9th Checkpoint, Lu Ye was not dissatisfied. He had only advanced to Level 7 a few days ago, and his Weapon Control Technique had just been mastered. Before this, he had only reached the 5th Checkpoint. With an extra Spiritual Artifact for weapon control, he managed to push to the 8th Checkpoint, which was a significant improvement.

If he had two or even three Spiritual Artifacts, Lu Ye felt he might be able to break through the 9th Checkpoint. Then, he could face off against cultivators in the fog.

Still, he needed to visit Hua Ci to obtain a few more Spiritual Artifacts suitable for weapon control. During the control session just now, he had felt quite at ease and believed he could manage one more Spiritual Artifact—a benefit of having an adequate command over his spirit force.

Outside, the thunder kept rumbling, as if a heavy downpour was imminent.

The battlefield marking suddenly stirred. Lu Ye checked and saw a message from his fourth senior brother. It was only a simple line: "Junior brother, be careful – the Insect Plague is coming!"