Chapter 96 - 95: Li Ye’s Lie Becomes Increasingly Real

Chapter 96: Chapter 95: Li Ye’s Lie Becomes Increasingly Real

Li Ye was still pondering the principles behind the emergence of his Derived Skills when he suddenly realized something was wrong with the situation around him.

The gazes Qu Hao and the other members of the Wenda Alliance occasionally sent his way were growing more and more fervent. Mixed in with these looks, however, were some that were sour and tinged with jealousy...

Meanwhile, the cultivators from the Flame Sect, who had just been absorbed and had yet to taste any real benefits, were listening to their lecture with meek, subservient smiles.

But after Li Ye awakened his skill, those sycophantic smiles instantly turned into undisguised, naked hatred—the kind that made them want to rush over and cut him down without a second thought.

’Holy shit!’

’The True Emotion Detector!’

’Doesn’t this mean I’ll know if there are spies around me or if my subordinates are truly loyal?’

’I’ll be able to tell with a single glance. They won’t be able to hide it even if they try, because their emotions will be stirred up.’

’The prerequisite of being in a leadership position is a bit demanding, but this is a genuine Divine Skill!’

’Isn’t the hardest part of being a leader telling what the people around you are thinking?’

’With this skill, I’ll never have to fear being plotted against again. From now on, I’ll only be surrounded by good people. This is practically an early-warning system against assassins!’

...

"You heretic! You’ve insulted my Flame Sect! One day, I will eat your flesh raw..." Seeing Li Ye staring straight at him, the Sect Leader of the Flame Sect couldn’t contain the turmoil in his heart and suddenly started cursing.

He trembled as he cursed, tears even streaming from his eyes. He knew it was wrong to curse Li Ye at a time like this, but for some reason, he just couldn’t stop himself.

"You little thief! Don’t be so smug now. One day, the Daoist Sects will grind your bones to dust! I’d like to see how long you can keep smiling!"

With someone taking the lead, the other Elders of the Flame Sect glared, their faces contorted with rage, and joined in the cursing.

’They’ve got guts.’

The surrounding Wenda Alliance cultivators all cast looks of admiration toward the men from the Flame Sect. When they themselves had been captured, they had hated Li Ye too, but none had been this defiant.

Under everyone’s gaze, the faces of the Flame Sect members grew paler the more they cursed. They trembled like leaves in the wind, regretting their actions to their very core, yet they couldn’t stop the stream of insults. It was as if they’d feel uncomfortable if they didn’t let it all out.

SMACK!

Annoyed, Lei Wenjie slapped the Flame Sect’s Leader across the face. "You old bastard! The Alliance Leader thought highly enough of you to guide you toward Ascension. It’s one thing not to be grateful, but to dare insult him? I’d say you have a death wish."

"I..." The Flame Sect Leader opened his mouth to explain, but the words that came out were completely different. "I... Ptooey! You running dog!"

"..." Lei Wenjie froze, a flash of anger crossing his face. He turned to Li Ye for instructions. "Alliance Leader, let’s just kill them. They’re a bunch of ingrates who don’t know what’s good for them."

"No need. Let them live. Right now, they simply don’t understand the Wenda Alliance. Once they get a taste of the benefits, you won’t be able to drive them away," Li Ye said with a smile. "The Wenda Alliance must be magnanimous."

The "tough guys" from the Flame Sect were still muttering defiantly, but a hint of gratitude had already appeared in their eyes. As their resentment faded, their gratitude intensified, and they gradually returned to their senses.

The Sect Leader lowered his head in shame. "Thank you for your mercy, Alliance Leader."

’Well, what do you know!’

’The True Emotion Detector!’

Li Ye shook his head and paid them no more mind, instead pointing to the jealous ones in the crowd. "As for those few over there, they can be expelled from the Wenda Alliance. We don’t raise people who bite the hand that feeds them."

Lei Wenjie followed the direction of Li Ye’s finger.

The few men who were jealous of Li Ye tried to hide their gazes in a panic, but they couldn’t conceal their feelings at all. One of them blurted out, "So what if he got lucky and obtained one of the Divine Abilities? What’s so great about that?"

"Exactly! If I had those Divine Abilities, I’d do an even better job than him."

The moment the words left their mouths, their expressions changed drastically.

"Alliance Leader, that’s not what we meant! I mean... you’re just a young brat who got a lucky break..."

The more they tried to explain, the deeper the hole they dug. The men fell to their knees, on the verge of tears, but the jealousy in their eyes remained unchanged. Their contorted expressions made them look like clowns.

...

"Feng Kai, after the Alliance Leader helped you raise your Skill Level so much, I can’t believe this is what you really think! I’m ashamed to be associated with you."

"Kong Kangze, I never knew you were such an ungrateful villain."

"Kill them! The Wenda Alliance only wants people of noble character. If we let them stay, they will ruin the Wenda Alliance’s reputation one day."

...

A chorus of accusations arose. Overwhelmed with shame, Feng Kai and the others felt their terror eclipse their jealousy. They knelt on the ground, kowtowing like pecking chickens. "Alliance Leader, spare us! Alliance Leader, have mercy! Our hearts were clouded by greed! We beg you, please don’t kick us out of the Wenda Alliance!"

"Alliance Leader, let’s just kill them!" Lei Wenjie said angrily.

"No need. Just expel them. The Wenda Alliance will one day unite the world, but an alliance without enemies will grow complacent and corrupt. Let them live; they will become the enemies of the Wenda Alliance. They can serve as a reminder to spur your own cultivation and growth," Li Ye said with a casual smile.

"Alliance Leader, please don’t make us leave! We are people of the Wenda Alliance in life and will be its ghosts in death!" Feng Kai’s face was streaked with tears, his heart filled with regret.

Only after losing it did he realize what a blessing it was to follow Li Ye.

"Qu Hao, Lei Wenjie," Li Ye said coolly, ignoring the groveling men. "At an Immortal’s side, no evil spirits can hide. I think I might be about to undergo Ascension."

As soon as he said this, the surroundings fell silent. Even Feng Kai and the others kneeling on the ground were stunned.

The news was too sudden.

But all of his unusual behavior today proved that it was all true...

After a long moment, Qu Hao finally asked in a trembling voice, "Alliance Leader, so soon?"

Li Ye nodded, his expression serene. "I have a premonition. I will leave this world in seven or eight months at the soonest, or a year at the latest."

The crowd was in an uproar.

’Is Wish Power Ascension really that fast?’

’We’ve cultivated arduously for hundreds, even thousands of years. What was it all for?!’

Before this, some had still insisted on following the ancient Path of Ascension through Divine Guiding.

At this moment, no one held that idea any longer. Leaving aside the speed of Wish Power Ascension, the Divine Abilities that occasionally manifested from Li Ye were enough to make this new path worth trying.

"Alliance Leader, but you’ve only been in this world for a few months..." Lei Wenjie stammered, completely flustered. "How can you suddenly be about to undergo Ascension?!"

"Wish Power Ascension is just that fast. When the conditions are met, Ascension happens naturally," Li Ye said with a smile, glancing at him. "Otherwise, how could I have crossed two worlds by my twenties? In the ancient texts I’ve read, even the sages and Saints of the past never took more than a century to achieve Ascension. This is normal."

’With his ironclad strength, he once again solidified everyone’s confidence and confirmed the lie he had fabricated. In any case, this world’s path of cultivation was already broken. It was a good thing to give them new hope.’

’Who knows, maybe one day the Wenda Alliance really will figure out a Path of Ascension!’

’In this vast universe, anything is possible.’

"Alliance Leader, what will we do after you’re gone?" Qiu Ming asked. "The Wenda Alliance is still very weak. Once you leave, if the orthodox sects or the Demon Sect decide to suppress us, I’m afraid we won’t be able to defend the Alliance’s foundation."

"Don’t we still have seven or eight months?" Li Ye smiled. "If we speed things up, seven or eight months is enough time for the Wenda Alliance to unite the world."

This was Li Ye’s true goal.

’The Cyan Sun Sect’s Cultivation Technique isn’t a good one. He had his sights set on the techniques of the Upper Three Sects and the Three Evil Sects. If he didn’t motivate these people, how long would it take to unite the world?’

’And if he didn’t unite the world, how could he get his hands on the good stuff he wanted?’

’Li Ye had already tasted the benefits in the last world. Only by becoming the most powerful person could he take whatever he wanted from the entire world. Anything he desired would be his!’

"Thank you for your consideration, Alliance Leader."

Qu Hao and the others hurriedly bowed to Li Ye in thanks.

After all, in their eyes, Li Ye was delaying his Ascension for their sake.

...

In the end, Feng Kai and the others were expelled. Li Ye wanted to maintain the purity and unity of his ranks, so he wouldn’t keep such bad apples around.

As for them leaking his secrets after they left, Li Ye wasn’t worried at all. Never mind whether anyone would believe something so absurd—even if the secret got out, he didn’t care.

Protected by so many Divinity Transformation Realm experts, he didn’t feel the slightest sense of crisis.

’Since coming to this world, Li Ye had barely been in any direct fights. Most of his work involved stabbing his own people in the back...’

’Li Ye hoped to awaken some combat-related skills, preferably ones related to time.’

’Otherwise, when he returned to Earth and handed over the watch, all of his time-related Divine Abilities would be gone. Who knew when he’d get another chance like this.’

’As for a frontal assault on the Daoist Sects or the Demon Sect, that was impossible. Leaving aside their deep foundations, their Mountain Defense Arrays alone could bury his entire group. Therefore, Li Ye could only wait for them to come out for field battles.’

’He would wear down their effective strength in the open and bolster his own.’

...

Following the Wenda Alliance’s rapid expansion, every Sect in the cultivation world was in a state of panic, terrified that the Alliance would show up at their doorstep one day.

The small and medium-sized Sects, unaware of the inside story, began to band together for protection. They all sealed their Mountain Gates, refusing to come out no matter who tried to lure them.

At the same time, a flood of distress letters was sent to the Upper Three Sects, begging them to suppress the Wenda Alliance and restore peace to the cultivation world.

But the Wenda Alliance was no longer the small group it once was. They now possessed hundreds of cultivators at the Divinity Transformation Realm and more than ten at the Void Refinement Realm.

Against such a massive force, even if the small and medium-sized Sects activated their Mountain Defense Arrays, they wouldn’t be able to withstand more than a few rounds of direct assault.

But if you push your luck too far, you’re bound to meet your match.

「One day.」

The Wenda Alliance had just broken through the Mountain Gate of a sect called the Snake Shadow Sect.

Suddenly, thick black energy erupted from the various peaks of the Snake Shadow Sect, and dark clouds blotted out the sun, trapping the entire Wenda Alliance within.

Four middle-aged men in black robes rose into the air, confronting the Wenda Alliance head-on.

The leader shouted sternly, "Lei Wenjie! Qiu Ming! Return to your posts! What are you waiting for?"

"The Formless Thunder Slaughter Array." Lei Wenjie’s face changed drastically. He looked at the four black-robed men opposite them and said to Li Ye in a low voice, "Alliance Leader, those are the four great Elders of the Demon Sect. The one in the lead is the First Elder, Mao Xiu. He reached the Harmonization Realm a hundred years ago and is an expert in Arrays.

The Formless Thunder Slaughter Array suppresses the cultivation of enemies inside it. The slightest carelessness can cause you to lose your bearings and suffer a devastating thunderous blow. Alliance Leader, you must stay close behind me. Whatever you do, don’t get separated from me."