Chapter 2243 - 2241: The Yan Family Can't Handle It

"Let's go." Lu Ye found it amusing; back then, this guy didn't take Dark Butterfly seriously at all, but now he fears her like she's a tiger.

"You mentioned before that Giant Ant was refined from your Scale Armor and could be used for selection during the trial in the relics. How many pieces of Giant Ant did you make back then?"

Jiu Ying thought for a while and said, "Not too many, but there were at least twenty." Even with its expertise in the Path of Artifact Refining, creating a single Giant Ant wasn't easy. It had exhausted its Scale Armor, with most attempts failing, and only managed to refine twenty.

"Twenty pieces!" Lu Ye raised an eyebrow; that number didn't add up.

Currently, the human race has two pieces, the Giant Race one piece, and there's one hidden in the medicinal garden, totaling only four.

That's far from twenty.

This means more Giant Ants are still scattered out there.

This thing is a killing weapon at the Beginner level; it might not have a big impact in the presence of Dao Fusion, but one shouldn't underestimate its role on the battlefield.

In any battle zone or battlefield, Dao Fusion experts generally have corresponding Dao Fusions to counter them; often, it's easy to determine victory but hard to decide life or death.

At such crucial moments, if someone at the Beginner level wields a Giant Ant, they'd be unstoppable, tipping the scales of the entire battle with a slight advantage.

Lu Ye had done this before and found it effective every time.

Yet, historically, among the three forces within Branlan, none have easily deployed the owners of Giant Ants onto the battlefield.

Instead of killing on the battlefield, they're tasked with a more important mission: exploring relics.

But now, there's no longer a need to explore relics; Giant Ants' owners can totally head to battle. If the dozen or so Giant Ants scattered can be found, it'd be greatly beneficial for any force.

"Can you find them?" Lu Ye asked.

Jiu Ying chuckled, "Since Giant Ants are refined from my Scale Armor, I can certainly find them. But in my current state, I can't go searching."

Then, somewhat puzzled, he asked, "Why do you want to find Giant Ants, young friend?"

Lu Ye possesses a Hundred Dao Power; although Giant Ants are nice, even if they fit him, the help they offer isn't significant.

"Don't worry about it!" Lu Ye didn't explain, "What you should consider is how to find those Giant Ants given the current conditions."

Jiu Ying fell into deep thought, and after a moment, said, "If the young friend insists, I can only borrow your physical body."

Lu Ye glanced at him indifferently.

Jiu Ying quickly said, "Don't misunderstand me, young friend; given our oath, I wouldn't harm you, and besides, in my current state, I can't do anything to you. But to find Giant Ants, I must borrow your body to sense their locations."

Lu Ye nodded, "Will Dark Butterfly notice?"

If Jiu Ying's Spiritual Sense occupies his physical body, Dark Butterfly might detect something unusual.

Jiu Ying seemed to realize this, chuckling, "That depends on how the young friend explains it. Although the Insect Matriarch is formidable, she'd never guess that I'm not entirely dead yet and indeed getting along well with the young friend."

Lu Ye understood, "Alright, if she asks, I'll just make up a reason."

Surely Dark Butterfly won't dig too deep, especially given her obsession with the Talent Tree's power of incineration.

"Any other preparations needed?" Lu Ye asked again.

"No need."

"Then let's begin."

With a serious face, Jiu Ying said, "Please don't resist, young friend!"

Lu Ye gathered his thoughts, completely sinking into his Divine Sea, severing connection with his physical body.

In the next moment, a strange aura appeared around Lu Ye.

Dark Butterfly immediately noticed, her Mental Consciousness probing over, but Jiu Ying was utterly unafraid and unashamed.

He only didn't want Dark Butterfly to discover that he's still alive, not that he's genuinely afraid of her.

Under oath restrictions, Lu Ye can't let him die.

One incense stick's time later, Jiu Ying's Spiritual Sense returned to the Divine Sea, his ethereal body becoming increasingly transparent, clearly expending a lot.

"How was it?" Lu Ye asked hurriedly.

"Mission accomplished." Despite being weak, Jiu Ying looked proud, as Giant Ants were refined from its Scale Armor, and Branlan is its Dao soldier; as long as Giant Ants are within Branlan, he can easily sense their precise locations.

"Tell me the positions of those Giant Ants!" Lu Ye quickly interjected.

Jiu Ying promptly filled him in.

After listening, Lu Ye raised a hand to stop, "Enough, the way you're explaining is unclear. It's better to mark them on the star map."

Relying solely on a verbal description, the position of Giant Ants was indeed unclear.

"Good idea."

A moment later, Lu Ye took out a star map, marking it gradually according to Jiu Ying's articulation.

Dark Butterfly kept observing him secretly, apparently intrigued by the recent anomaly, but didn't question further, and shortly after, seeing no other irregularities, withdrew her Mental Consciousness.

After marking all the positions, Lu Ye took out his Alliance Guard Token and sent out a message.

Thankfully, he hadn't destroyed the token back then; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to contact anyone now.

His Alliance Guard Token at the moment could only connect with one person, and it was Yan Hong, whom he had recently encountered in the relic.

Almost as soon as the message was sent, Yan Hong replied, "Brother Lu, what's the matter?"

Lu Ye said, "I want to make a transaction with the Battle Alliance!"

In the stellar space, Yan Hong's figure swiftly flew by. Ever since he left the relic, he was on his way back to his home planet.

There was no longer any need to explore the relic. Huang Zhihuan of the Huang family had already gone into seclusion, preparing to ascend to Dao Fusion, and he had the same intention.

He had only parted from Lu Ye not long ago when he suddenly received this message from Lu Ye, wanting to make a transaction with the Battle Alliance, which made him feel a bit strange.

Beside him was a middle-aged man acting as an escort, none other than Yan Yong, whom Lu Ye had seen before.

Noticing Yan Hong's abnormality, Yan Yong gave him a curious glance, "Who contacted you?"

"Lu Ye, Brother Lu." Yan Hong did not hide the fact. He had a very good relationship with Yan Yong, who had escorted him all the way to the relic. He had fully reported to Yan Yong the conversation he had with Lu Ye in the relic.

"What's he contacting you for?" Yan Yong raised his eyebrows, "Could it be related to the relic?"

There were certainly secrets within the relic, and Lu Ye knew something about them, but unfortunately, Yan Hong had failed to uncover them, which left Yan Yong a bit restless.

So naturally, there were some speculations at this moment.

Yan Hong shook his head, "No, Brother Lu said he wanted to make a transaction with the Battle Alliance."

"A transaction with the Battle Alliance?" Yan Yong frowned. What level of transaction required the Battle Alliance to step in? And currently, Lu Ye's identity was quite sensitive. It's said that he's an undercover for the Insect and Blood Races, but he killed two Dao Fusion cultivators of the Insect and Blood Races before. On the other hand, calling him sympathetic to the human race, he acts in a very secretive manner.

Yan Hong contacting him privately wasn't a problem, but if too many people knew, it would affect the Yan family.

However, they couldn't sever ties with Lu Ye as they hoped to learn the secrets of the relic from him.

Moreover, the Yan family had traded with Lu Ye before and obtained a giant ant, which seemed profitable at the time. But now it doesn't seem as much of a gain, rather a loss, because the relic held no more exploration value, making the giant ant's importance drop significantly. Still, it remained a very formidable Dao artifact.

The Military Affairs Office had also traded with Lu Ye, obtaining the As-Close-As-Siblings Dao Runes.

"Ask him what kind of transaction?" Yan Yong thought for a moment and suggested.

There's no harm in asking; Lu Ye, who just entered the path, gives him a peculiar feeling. The only two transactions suggest that the things he offers are extremely valuable.

Now, with the idea of a transaction with the Battle Alliance, it indicates he has something to pique the Battle Alliance's interest.

Yan Hong had already asked and immediately replied, "Brother Lu said the item for transaction is the giant ant!"

Yan Yong's eyes lit up, "Ask him the price, if possible, our Yan family will take it. It wouldn't bother the Battle Alliance then."

Although the relic held no more exploration value, the giant ant was still exceedingly valuable. Yan Hong already had one, but such treasures are something nobody minds having more of.

A few breaths later, Yan Hong showed a bitter smile, "He said the Yan family can't afford it!"

Yan Yong was stunned, "It's just one giant ant, how can we not afford it? This boy really underestimates our Yan family."

Yan Hong gave a peculiar look, gazing blankly at his uncle, "He said it's not just one!"

"What do you mean?" Yan Yong was confused.

Previously, the human race Battle Alliance speculated Lu Ye had a giant ant, the compatibility was astonishingly high, otherwise, not even Huang Zhihuan could stand against him.

But with recent events, many higher-ups in the Battle Alliance began to realize Lu Ye's formidable strength seemingly had nothing to do with the giant ant. He could even kill Dao Fusion at the 5th or 6th Order, something not feasible by just one giant ant.

Especially this time, Yan Hong also encountered Lu Ye in the relic.

Yan Yong presently wasn't sure about Lu Ye's actual cultivation, calling him an entry-level path cultivator was absurdly strong, yet if he were Dao Fusion, how could he enter the relic?

After emerging from the relic, Yan Hong had personally attempted entry, to no avail.

Giant ants are scarce, the entire Banlan only has a few, how many could Lu Ye hold?

"Brother Lu said if the Battle Alliance is willing to trade with him, ten giant ants are no problem."

"Impossible!" Yan Yong exclaimed in shock.

Ten giant ants, the number was simply unbelievable for Yan Yong.

Yan Hong wore a bitter smile, "Brother Lu wouldn't deceive me." Though even he found it unimaginable.

Yan Yong's expression turned solemn, ten giant ants, if true, the Yan family indeed couldn't handle it.

But why did it feel so implausible?

"Ask him the price and the transaction method?"

Yan Hong transmitted the message accordingly.

In the insect hive, Lu Ye looked at Yan Hong's transmission, feeling a bit hesitant. He wasn't sure about the price of a giant ant either.

Earlier, he traded a giant ant with the Yan family, gaining considerable benefits, but the most useful remains the monthly supply of two hundred Dao Bones.

Yet times have changed, and since the relic holds no more exploration value, the giant ant's importance fell from grace. Now, it's merely a formidable Dao artifact.

Recalling his previous experiences in the Falcon, top-grade Dao artifacts were priced at eight hundred Dao Bones. Giant ants, being superior to top-grade Dao artifacts, would be more costly.

Having made up his mind, he sent a message over.