Sage of Humanity

The elderly lady could not be young, for the sect master had referred to her as an old friend, making a conservative estimate that she was from the same era as the sect master. Her youthful appearance was likely the result of special techniques for maintaining beauty.

"This is Madam Yun," the sect master introduced.

Lu Ye and Hua Ci both performed a salute: "We've met Madam Yun."

Madam Yun nodded slightly and sized up Lu Ye, then said, "The old immortals mentioned you encountered some fortunes at the Spirit Stream battlefield, including the inheritance of a spirit runes master?"

Lu Ye did not know how this misunderstanding had come about, but it probably had something to do with his ability to activate spirit runes in battle.

Lu Ye turned to look at the sect master, who nodded slightly to give him a cue.

Lu Ye responded, "Yes."

No matter how one thought about it, the Talent Tree was related to the inheritance of a spirit runes master.

"Activate your spirit runes for me to see," Madam Yun commanded.

Lu Ye hesitated for a moment, then opened his palm and activated a Defense Spirit Rune.

Madam Yun's expression showed surprise: "Such speed..." She had only heard from the sect master that this youngster named Lu Ye had an encounter related to a spirit runes master, but she had not asked for more details until now, and only now did she realize that this young man's mastery of spirit runes had reached the level of spontaneous activation.

However, she was also experienced and well-informed, knowing that disciples from top big sects who had studied the art of spirit runes from a young age might well have the opportunity to achieve this.

She stepped forward, bent down to inspect the spirit runes in Lu Ye's hand: "This is Defense... hmm? Your spirit rune..." She suddenly frowned and, for some reason she grasped Lu Ye's hand to examine it closely.

Lu Ye looked at the sect master for help.

The sect master shook his head slowly, signaling him to remain calm.

After a good while, Madam Yun finally let go of Lu Ye's hand, her expression turning deep in thought.

Seeing this, the sect master asked, "Is there a problem with his spirit runes?"

"No problem," Madam Yun shook her head, "It's just that they're somewhat different from the spirit runes in Nine Provinces, though they seem more logical. I need to do some comparisons to see the specific differences."

While speaking, she turned to Lu Ye: "Do you know any other spirit runes?"

Lu Ye truthfully said, "I know three more."

"Show them to me," she requested.

Lu Ye then activated the spirit runes Sharpness, Gathering Spirit, and Bloodstain, one after the other. After Madam Yun's careful examination, she confirmed, "The heritage you've received is extraordinary; the person who left behind these spirit runes must have had exceptional accomplishments on the Path of Spirit Runes."

"Oh?" the sect master expressed his surprise. It was rare to hear Madam Yun so highly praise someone, and he curiously asked, "How does she compare to you?"

Madam Yun shook her head: "She is more formidable than me. This person's approach to the Path of Spirit Runes has transcended the existing system in Nine Provinces, presenting a remarkably different way of expression, but each spirit rune is much more powerful than those from Nine Provinces." She looked at Lu Ye again: "What do you know about the Path of Spirit Runes?"

Lu Ye was embarrassed: "I only know how to use these four spirit runes; I know nothing else."

Madam Yun was surprised and laughed, "It seems that the inheritance you received was not complete, which is quite common." Indeed, many fortunes and incomplete inheritances from unknown powerful figures were found in the Spirit Stream battlefield.

In Madam Yun's view, although Lu Ye could spontaneously activate those four spirit runes, his knowledge about spirit runes was limited, which clearly indicated an incomplete inheritance. A complete inheritance would at least have allowed Lu Ye to understand the construction methods and basic characteristics of spirit runes.

"You can come to me regularly in the future. You provide these runes for my research, and in return, I can teach you some knowledge about spirit runes. How about that?"

As soon as she said this, the sect master standing beside Madam Yun gestured vigorously to Lu Ye, who caught on immediately: "Yes, thank you, Senior."

Madam Yun nodded with a smile, her expression towards Lu Ye becoming much kinder.

The sect master coughed lightly: "Don't forget the important matter."

"Come with me." As Madam Yun spoke, she led the three down a corridor to a small room with a bed in the middle.

A stool was also nearby.

Upon entering the room, Madam Yun formed a hand seal with one hand and lightly touched a spot on the wall. As spirit force surged, the room lit up brightly, illuminating the space like several powerful lamps, yet the light was not harsh but rather soft and gentle.

"Take off your shirt and climb up there," Madam Yun instructed.

Lu Ye was puzzled.

The sect master explained: "Madam Yun will tattoo a spirit rune onto your body. This kind of rune is known as a rune tattoo, which can bring the effects of spirit runes into play, and might give you some help during the Spirit Stream Defense Battle."

Lu Ye was hearing of such things for the first time and became curious. It seemed this was the reason why the sect master had brought him and Hua Ci here. Without hesitating, he untied his shirt and climbed onto the bed.

Madam Yun, sitting on the nearby stool, took out a jade box and opened it to reveal a collection of needles of varying lengths.

"The ingredient?" Madam Yun held out her hand to the sect master.

The sect master handed her a bottle, which she opened and sniffed, raising an eyebrow: "The blood of a big demon from the True Lake Realm, which demon beast?"

The sect master replied, "Fire entity!"

"It's rare indeed," Madam Yun nodded, then teased with a chuckle, "How unusually generous of you."

The sect master looked sheepish and didn't respond.

Madam Yun took a long needle from the jade box, dipped it into the blood of the fire entity, and unleashed her spirit force. The needle immediately came to life, greedily drawing in the beast blood, and in an instant turned a deep red.

She lifted the needle and placed her hand on Lu Ye's shoulder blade, "It's going to hurt a bit, bear with it."

As soon as her words fell, she stabbed the long needle into Lu Ye's back.

Lu Ye instantly felt a stinging sensation followed by a burning pain. The soreness was not intense, but it was extremely irritating and difficult to endure.

He clenched his teeth tightly.

Madam Yun's hands were very steady; the thin needles in her hand were changed one after another, her movements sometimes quick, sometimes slow, and even the fluctuation of her spirit force varied with her motions.

Hua Ci stood by, watching as a unique pattern of spirit runes slowly formed on Lu Ye's back.

After two hours, with the final needle down, Madam Yun let out a long sigh of relief and gently patted Lu Ye's back, "Done!"

Lu Ye stood up, and after sensing it for a bit, he dimly felt something extra on his back. This thing gave him a peculiar sensation, as if it were integrated into his body, yet also like an external object. He could sense that if he stimulated his spirit force, he could even activate it.

The sect master explained at his side, "Your cultivation is too low right now, not suited for a permanent wings spirit runes, so Madam Yun has given you a temporary rune tattoo. If you encounter an unbeatably strong opponent, activate it with your spirit force, and you'll have the power to fly."

"This spirit rune is called 'Wings'!" Madam Yun continued, "At full power, it can let you fly for just six hours. If you try to extend the time, the wings rune tattoo will lose its effect."

A spirit rune that allowed for flight! Lu Ye was deeply moved and felt the sect master's care.

He and Hua Ci were about to participate in the Spirit Stream Defense Battle, and they couldn't enhance their strength by much, but with this wings rune tattoo, even when faced with an unbeatable powerful opponent, they would have a chance to escape.

However, the cost of such a rune tattoo was not small, not to mention it required a sophisticated expert like Madam Yun, and the blood of the fire entity was a rare treasure as well.

Using the blood of a big demon from the True Lake Realm on someone in the Spirit Stream Realm like Lu Ye was indeed somewhat wasteful.

Lu Ye's heart was full of emotion.

"What are you waiting for? Get out!" Madam Yun suddenly said sternly, ushering them away.

The sect master and Lu Ye quickly left, embarrassed.

The door was closed tightly behind them. The sect master led Lu Ye out of the hall.

"You need practice to master the art of flying. Yiye, would you like to give it a try now?" the sect master asked.

"I was planning to," Lu Ye nodded, a small excitement in his heart.

Flying! Although he had experienced air travel before, it had always been with someone else carrying him. He had never tried flying by himself and thought that he would have to wait until he reached Level 8-9, but now he could experience it ahead of time.

Although the wings rune tattoo could only last six hours in total, the sect master was right: such things needed to be practiced in advance to grasp the essentials; otherwise, any missteps could occur when danger arose.

Stimulating his spirit force and pouring it into his back, the wings rune tattoo activated with a rustling sound. On Lu Ye's left and right shoulder blades, two fiery-red wings of flowing spirit force emerged.

The wings were not thick but quite thin. And by the looks of the wings, they resembled those of a demon beast.

Lu Ye guessed that the appearance of these wings was probably similar to those of a fire entity.

With a flicker of thought, the wings fluttered lightly, a gust of wind howled, and Lu Ye suddenly turned into a streak of firelight, shooting off at a diagonal.

The sect master swept his hand, and a gentle spirit force enveloped Lu Ye, stabilizing him in mid-air.

Looking at a big tree not far in front of him, Lu Ye's forehead broke out in a cold sweat, thankful that the sect master was there to watch him; otherwise, he would have had a hard crash.

As the sect master's spirit force slowly retracted, Lu Ye once again controlled the spirit force wings behind him, attempting to fly.

After numerous failures and several close calls, he slowly got the hang of it and began to fly more steadily, although he still didn't dare to go too fast for fear of losing control.

After practicing for one hour, Lu Ye finally let go, flying around freely in the air, thoroughly enjoying himself.

Considering the wings rune tattoo's limited time, Lu Ye landed with some reluctance as the fiery-red wings on his back slowly disappeared.

This thing was definitely a life-saving tool. The only downside was that it was incredibly draining; he felt that after just one hour, only about thirty percent of his spirit force remained. So unless it was absolutely necessary, he should not activate the wings spirit runes at will.

Hua Ci came out after a little while.

The sect master took Lu Ye to bid farewell to Madam Yun, who waved her hand and then turned back into the house.

Lu Ye raised an eyebrow to Hua Ci, "Want to try flying? The sect master said you need a lot of practice to get the hang of flying."

Hua Ci happily responded, "Sure!"

As spirit force surged, a pair of green wings emerged on her back, and soon she began to float up slowly, wobbling from side to side before stabilizing gracefully.

In a short while, watching Hua Ci dance in the sky like a butterfly, Lu Ye's eyes twitched—how come people were just... different?