"Get down!" Lu Ye called out and was the first to swoop downward. They were too conspicuous in the sky, and although the fight just now was brief, it was inevitable some noise had attracted the nearby Blood Race. He had something he wanted to figure out, so he naturally needed to find a suitable place for conversation. The Blood Race hurriedly followed. In a short while, Lu Ye and a Blood Race arrived at a secluded location. Lu Ye stood still and looked at the obedient, respectful Blood Race following him closely. After planting Soul Taming, this guy became his soul slave, so such respect was natural. "Humble Loo Chang," the Blood Race replied with his head lowered. "Lift your head and look at me." Loo Chang quickly raised his head to look at Lu Ye and, after a moment, revealed a puzzled expression. "Saintly Venerable... are you of the human race or the Sacred Race?" Although those imprinted with the Soul Taming Psyche would be endlessly loyal to Lu Ye, incapable of rebellion, their spiritual intelligence wouldn't be affected, nor would their thinking ability be impaired. So, Loo Chang was truly puzzled at this moment because he initially thought Lu Ye was a Sacred Venerable disguised as a human. But, upon closer inspection now, he seemed not to be. "Which race do I look like?" Loo Chang shook his head. "The humble doesn't know." Lu Ye slightly activated the Blood Technique, and instantaneously, a blood mist enveloped his body. Loo Chang was suddenly extremely terrified. "Saintly Venerable, please don't be angry. If the humble has spoken or done wrong, please enlighten me, Saintly Venerable." Without activating the Blood Technique, the Blood Race couldn't feel the bloodline suppression. However, once he activated the Blood Technique, the bloodline suppression would become evident, which was why Loo Chang was so terrified. This was something Lu Ye hadn't anticipated. Just like the changes in the Blood River, if not displayed, it was entirely undetectable. When the Blood Race army besieged the Righteous Blood Sacred Land last time, Lu Ye, while preparing to ascend to the Divine Sea Realm, delved deep into the Blood Sea and, through a coincidence, refined a drop of Sacred Blood, obtaining the Blood Race's bloodline inheritance. The Sacred Blood is key to the Blood Race achieving the Sacred Seed. Every Sacred Seed has once received Sacred Blood in the Blood Sea. After refining that drop of Sacred Blood, Lu Ye ascended to the Divine Sea Realm. However, since then, he hadn't fought with the Blood Race again, so he naturally wasn't aware that he had acquired some abilities of the Sacred Seed, such as bloodline suppression against ordinary Blood Race. In some sense, he could be considered a Sacred Seed now, but he remained part of the human race. Logically, the Talent Tree could burn away all impurities. Even if the Sacred Blood had something special, it would lose its ability to create a Sacred Seed after being burnt. Hence, he shouldn't have the ability to suppress the bloodlines of the Blood Race. But thinking again, if even the Blood Race's inheritance could be obtained, obtaining the abilities of a Sacred Seed didn't seem so strange. Within the Sacred Blood, there must have been something even the Talent Tree couldn't burn or didn't need to burn. After refining and absorbing it, he not only gained the bloodline inheritance from the Blood Race but also acquired the competencies of a Sacred Seed. An unexpected delight! When he set out from the Thousand Streams Blessed Land, Lann Qiyue once gave him a piece of Sacred Blood Jade, a creation nurtured by her own bloodline, wielding great deterrent power against ordinary Blood Race when activated. However, over the years, the Sacred Blood Jade had gradually lost its effectiveness, or Lu Ye would have used it against the enemy this time. Now he possessed the saintliness of a Sacred Seed, rendering the Sacred Blood Jade unnecessary. This means he has the power of life and death over ordinary Blood Race and can plant Soul Taming Divine Runes at will in any ordinary Blood Race. This would evidently greatly assist in his current mission. "Is there a Grotto Heaven nearby?" Lu Ye asked. Loo Chang respectfully replied, "Three hundred miles to the east, there is a Sea Leap Grotto Heaven. Humble has some acquaintance with Sea Leap Heavenly Venerable." Moments later, two beams of light soared into the sky, heading eastward. Before long, they reached the location of the Sea Leap Grotto Heaven. Loo Chang indeed had a close relationship with the Sea Leap Heavenly Venerable here, leading Lu Ye straight inside. Instead of obstructing them, the Blood Race inside the Grotto Heaven warmly welcomed them. Loo Chang inquired a bit, learning that the Sea Leap Heavenly Venerable was indeed inside the Grotto Heaven, so he didn't stop for a moment, heading directly to the Grotto Heaven's back courtyard. Moments later, they met, exchanging pleasantries. Sea Leap Heavenly Venerable was curious about Loo Chang bringing a human over, but Loo Chang claimed it was a newly acquired Blood Slave, earning much envy from Sea Leap Heavenly Venerable. It is known that although the Blood Race has the ability to enslave humans, the stronger the cultivation of the Blood Race, the less likely they are to do so, essentially finding no humans of substantial strength. Divine Sea Realm Blood Race enslaving those of Cloud River Realm or Spirit Stream Realm — what's the use of that? Generally, only Blood Race members with low cultivation take in blood slaves. So Lu Ye, a Blood Slave at the Divine Sea Level 5, was quite enviable. After a few idle words, Loo Chang mysteriously wanted to show Sea Leap Heavenly Venerable something good, so the Sea Leap Heavenly Venerable dismissed those around him. In an instant, the Blood River surged, and an invisible pressure suddenly descended, and the Sea Leap Heavenly Venerable experienced the same fate as Loo Chang. Though puzzled as to how a human could suppress his bloodline, the aura of the Sacred Seed was genuine, and he was confusedly imprinted with the Soul Taming Divine Runes by Lu Ye, becoming one of the soul slaves. After that, things progressed smoothly. Lu Ye had the Sea Leap Heavenly Venerable find a suitable and concealed location where he personally planted a Heaven's Augury Pillar, and instructed the Sea Leap Heavenly Venerable to make this place a forbidden land, prohibiting any Blood Race members from entering or exiting. The Sea Leap Heavenly Venerable naturally complied. From entering the Sea Leap Grotto Heaven to leaving, it only took about one hour. Proceeding along his route, he followed the map in a zigzag pattern, seeking suitable places to plant the Heaven's Augury Pillars. With Loo Chang providing cover, the journey was indeed much less troublesome, not to mention how entering various grotto heavens became much easier. Lu Ye keenly sensed that the Blood Race indeed had intentions of amassing a large army, as each grotto heaven housed a large number of Blood Race members, ready to rally into an army and march toward the Empyrean Sea. The reason for their inaction so far was clearly their effort to gather more troops. The Righteous Blood Sacred Land, a thorn in the Empyrean Sea for decades, finally presented a chance for complete eradication, and the Blood Race was determined to give it their all. The indications of the Blood Race army's assembly grew clearer the closer they were to the Empyrean Sea. Frequently, Lu Ye saw scenes of the Blood Race flying southward in groups in midair. In such cases, Lu Ye selectively intervened. He took out smaller groups of Blood Race members, while temporarily sparing the larger ones. His mission was to plant as many Heaven's Augury Pillars as possible. Time was of the essence, and he couldn't afford to waste it heedlessly. A month after leaving the Righteous Blood Sacred Land, he had used up roughly a dozen Heaven's Augury Pillars. At this rate, it would take him nearly half a year to plant them all. It was too long! Yet he had no better solutions, feeling somewhat troubled. He could only hurry along the way, swiftly converting Heavenly Venerable Blood Race into soul slaves whenever he found a suitable spot, secretly planting Heaven's Augury Pillars. A half month later, as Lu Ye and Loo Chang flew through the air, he suddenly sensed something and picked up a jade tablet from his waist. Focusing his mind, he distinctly felt a guiding signal emanating from the jade tablet. The jade tablet had been given to him by his senior brother before he left. All the senior elders leaving the Righteous Blood Sacred Land carried such a jade tablet, which could be used to contact each other or signal for help within a certain range. This device, unlike audio transmission stones, could not relay clear messages, but its effective range was much greater. His senior brother gave him the jade tablet to seek assistance in case of danger when traveling outside, with the hope that a nearby elder might come to his aid. But during his journey, Lu Ye hadn't needed to use the jade tablet, yet kept it attached to his waist for unexpected emergencies. The jade tablet's activity at this moment indicated that nearby, an elder was gathering people, or perhaps facing some danger and needed rescue. He did not dare to delay, promptly following that guiding signal. After flying for four hours straight, he landed on a barren mountain, searched around carefully, and found a concealed cave entrance where he sauntered inside. It was a cavern, quite spacious, yet devoid of any human presence. Lu Ye spoke up: "Which elder is here?" In the near distance, the Void rippled, revealing a familiar silhouette with a bewildered look: "Lu Ye, kid, why are you here? Have you returned from the Nine Provinces?" The one using the jade tablet to gather people was Wuchang! Among the elders, he was one of those who knew Lu Ye best. Lu Ye looked intently, closely inspecting. From the looks of it, Wuchang wasn't injured or facing any clear danger, so it was unclear why he had gathered people. But all these elders were scattered outside doing whatever they were up to, and unless it was something major, they wouldn't casually gather people. "Greetings, elder." Lu Ye greeted. Wuchang approached with a laugh: "You good kid, I knew you would make it back. When did you return?" "A month and a half ago," Lu Ye replied. "It's been some time then. I wasn't in the Sacred Land, so I didn't know. However, the Sacred Master seems at ease, actually allowing you to leave the Sacred Land alone. Did you come out for something specific?" "I'm on a mission, actually needing elder's help." Lu Ye was quite hopeful to see Wuchang, because when it came to placing the Heaven's Augury Pillars, ghost cultivators possessed unique advantages. He still had many Heaven's Augury Pillars on hand and could share some with Wuchang for assistance, thereby improving efficiency. Wuchang chuckled: "Let's hear it." Lu Ye then recounted the current situation in the Nine Provinces and the decision to soon embark on a Blood Refinement World expedition, inciting Wuchang's fervor and enthusiasm.