Sage of Humanity-Chapter 1503 - 1501: Secret Domain

It seemed to be a cellar used by farmers to store grain. The cellar was several meters deep and had been opened by Ban Ci. Lu Ye came to the entrance, peeked down, and immediately saw a small, dirty face.

The young girl looked about seven or eight, and who knows how long she had been hiding there. Her face was sallow, clearly showing signs of malnutrition over a recent period. If this place hadn't been meant for storing food, she might have starved to death long ago.

In the dim environment, only her eyes appeared somewhat bright.

The young girl curled up at the bottom of the cellar, looking up at Lu Ye, posing defensively, like a little beast provoked to anger.

Ban Ci came up beside Lu Ye, looking down: "I wanted to bring her up, but she didn't want to come and even kicked and punched me. I was afraid of hurting her, so I didn't use force."

If it weren't for such concerns, why would Ban Ci be at a loss against a mortal young girl without cultivation? However, even if Ban Ci had used force, she wouldn't have been able to resist.

Lu Ye thought for a moment, then jumped down into the cellar.

As soon as he landed, the girl rushed at him frantically, slamming punches and kicks, just as Ban Ci had described.

Lu Ye silently endured, lifting his hand to try touching the girl's head.

But unexpectedly, she suddenly hugged his arm and opened her mouth to bite.

Lu Ye didn't dodge, letting her bite his hand without using any force to protect himself.

The girl bit his hand, glaring at him with wide, fierce eyes, as if he was the enemy responsible for her family's death.

The blood and tears in those eyes stirred something in Lu Ye's heart, making him sigh inwardly.

This domain wasn't large, yet there should have been at least tens of millions of human race; but in the face of disaster, almost everyone perished. Only this little girl survived, and it was hard to say if it was good or bad fortune.

The pain transmitted from his hand was negligible, akin to an ant bite. He gently raised his other hand, placing it on the girl's head, speaking softly, "It's okay now, don't be afraid!"

After a long while, the fierceness in the little girl's eyes gradually faded, and the force of her bite dwindled.

Moments later, Lu Ye picked her up, emerging from the cellar.

Such a small child, hiding in the cellar for who knows how long, did everything inside, so she was covered in filth.

Lu Ye seemed not to notice, turned to Ban Ci, "Take her for a bath!"

Ban Ci nodded and extended her hand to take the child.

Unexpectedly, the girl clung tightly to Lu Ye's neck, unwilling to let go, even burying her face into Lu Ye's chest, soiling his clothes.

Ban Ci was puzzled, "Am I that unlikable?"

No matter what, she was a beauty. She couldn't succeed in bringing the child out the first time, but Lu Ye did this time, yet the child ignored her.

Lu Ye coaxed and soothed, yet no matter what he said, the little girl clung to him, refusing to release her grip.

The two exchanged a helpless glance.

After experiencing such changes and living in constant fear and loneliness for so long, the girl had a strong sense of caution. Lu Ye had barely earned a bit of her trust, and now she quickly grew a strong dependency on him.

"You'll handle this?" Ban Ci chuckled.

And so, Lu Ye had to tackle it himself.

He carried the girl, fetched water from a well, heated it with magic, found a large wooden tub, adjusted the water temperature, and then placed the girl inside.

"Take off your clothes and clean yourself up," Lu Ye instructed her.

The girl, however, just sat in the tub, staring at him fearfully, as if he would vanish with a blink.

Lu Ye, troubled, persuaded for a while, promising he wouldn't leave. The girl then slowly started to move.

After changing the water several times, the girl was clean. Ban Ci had found some clothes among the ruins and helped her put them on.

This time, she seemed less resistant to Ban Ci.

Once clean, the girl returned to Lu Ye's side, grabbing his clothes and standing quietly.

A "gurgling" sound suddenly came from her stomach. Lu Ye glanced down, realizing she was probably hungry. He found some food from the domain, cooked it, and let her eat.

After the meal, the girl slowly fell asleep, peacefully and sweetly.

Lu Ye and Ban Ci were at a loss, looking at each other.

After a while, Lu Ye finally spoke, "What should we do?"

They were just passing through, originally intending to go to the secret place Ban Ci mentioned. Now, they'd rescued a little girl. With no experience in cultivation, carrying her around was impractical. Leaving her here was even less suitable.

In this entire domain, only she was left alive; leaving her behind seemed too cruel.

Ban Ci hesitated for a moment and said, "Leave it to me."

With that, she raised her hand and summoned an object. It looked insignificant, just like a lump of coal, but as Ban Ci activated her spirit force and illuminated the young girl's figure with the coal, a mystical ripple suddenly emerged from thin air, and the girl vanished without a trace.

Lu Ye stared fixedly at the coal in Ban Ci's hand, extremely surprised, "A miniature world?"

Ban Ci was also surprised, "Fellow Daoist Li, your perception is keen. You managed to recognize this as a miniature world."

Lu Ye said nothing. He hadn't recognized it; he was merely guessing. He never expected it to actually be a miniature world. After all, according to what he knew, only such objects could contain living beings.

He had seen some records in Xiyuan Pavilion and knew that this item was a very rare treasure. No one knew how such a treasure was born. From its appearance, one couldn't tell there was anything special about it, yet inside it was a world of its own.

This world might be small, lacking any offensive or defensive abilities but it had some unique attributes.

Containing living beings was just one of its insignificant uses.

The fact that Ban Ci possessed a miniature world made Lu Ye all the more unable to see through her. This was not something an ordinary cultivator could have.

"Don't let her starve to death," Lu Ye reminded. The little lass was just a mortal and still needed food and drink. Even if Ban Ci put her inside, neglecting her for a long time would surely lead to grave consequences.

"Don't worry," Ban Ci replied, putting away the food Lu Ye had found earlier. She then sought more food and water, tossing them into the miniature world.

Without any worries, they resumed their journey.

After hurriedly traveling for over a month, they finally arrived at the destination.

On a massive floating land, Ban Ci stowed away her starboat and stood shoulder to shoulder with Lu Ye before a deep cave entrance.

"Is this the place?" Lu Ye asked.

Ban Ci nodded.

Lu Ye looked around but couldn't see anything special.

Ban Ci knew what he was thinking and smiled as she explained, "Precisely because it doesn't seem special, it doesn't attract attention. Although this place is remote, some cultivators will pass by. If it really looked special, it would have been discovered long ago. The mystical quality of this secret location has limits; each time it's used takes a long time to recover. If, Fellow Daoist, you wish to metamorphose your spirit force in the future, you can also come here."

Lu Ye nodded, "Thank you for your kind offer, Fellow Daoist!"

However, if he truly wished to metamorphose his spirit force, he could simply go to the Constellation Palace, which would be far less troublesome.

"Let's go in," Ban Ci said, leading the way into the cave entrance, with Lu Ye following close behind.

But after entering, Lu Ye tossed a weapon nearby out of habit. Entering an unknown area like this, he always left a contingency behind.

He was somewhat puzzled, considering his recent observations of Ban Ci. This woman seemed to come from an extraordinary background; otherwise, she wouldn't possess something like a miniature world. Even so, if she needed someone for protection, why choose him?

It wouldn't make sense to say she had any ulterior motives regarding him. He hadn't felt any malice from her, and she even exposed the location of this secret place to him.

Unable to figure it out, he decided not to dwell on it.

The cave was very deep, extending downwards for dozens of breaths before reaching the bottom. Ban Ci, who had arrived first, had already placed some illuminating objects around, casting a hazy light.

Only then could Lu Ye see the place clearly; it seemed like a huge karst cave. All around were bizarre rock columns everywhere, and only at the forefront was there a series of peculiar stone slabs, resembling a stairway, extending upwards one level at a time. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Lu Ye found it intriguing, for the stone slabs had no visible support points, yet they floated in mid-air. There were ninety-nine slabs in total, extending nearly a hundred meters up, and on the topmost slab was a strange stone cauldron, from which a hazy mist was flowing out.

The mist spilled from the stone cauldron like a waterfall over the stone slabs.

Ban Ci observed carefully and smiled, "It seems no one has come here recently, Fellow Daoist Li. You just need to guard here in case someone intrudes. If they do, I would appreciate it if you could stop them."

Lu Ye nodded. Although the chance of such an occurrence was slim, Ban Ci had him come to guard against such events. Some things shouldn't be underestimated.

To ensure everything went smoothly, Lu Ye immediately started the array setup.

Ban Ci didn't rush to begin but silently sat in meditation for a while.

Once Lu Ye completed the setup of the formation, Ban Ci adjusted herself to peak condition. Then she rose and stepped toward the stairway.

Lu Ye was curious about how this place refined a cultivator's spirit force and naturally intended to observe.

What's more, he saw Ban Ci step onto the lowest step, but to his surprise, she seemed to endure considerable pressure with that step.

Her movements were very slow, taking a breath before stepping onto the next one.

Once she steadied herself, the white mist on the steps surged toward Ban Ci, seeped into her body, and vanished.

Lu Ye surmised that the mist must be the source aiding in spirit force refinement.

Ban Ci paused for a moment, presumably refining the power of the mist, then stepped onto the second step.