Chapter 2365 - 2363: Chen Wulei's Choice

"How is the progress?" Lu Ye asked.

Chen Wulei sighed, "I'm ashamed to say, Brother Chen has betrayed the trust of Tree Elder and World Lord Gu, wasted time, and squandered a lot of Dao Bones."

The plan to create Dao Fusion started several years ago.

Chen Wulei had attempted to break through several times, but unfortunately, he never succeeded. Not only was his painstakingly accumulated Dao force completely depleted, but the Dao Bones were slightly damaged. He needed to recuperate for months before starting over, and three months ago, he tried once more and failed again!

He did not care about the damage to his own Dao Bones; he cared about the waste of Dao force.

It should be known that since the execution of this plan, he had not gone out to kill enemies. Of course, his 9th Dao strength meant that no enemy could match him one-on-one, but killing enemies also took a toll.

That's why he stayed here all the time; the Dao Bones he refined all came from the battle fortress, eighty-plus Dao Bones collected by those who Entered the Path, with half sent to him for refining.

Seeing his expression, Lu Ye knew his pressure was immense.

Because, at this stage in the stellar space, acquiring Dao force was not easy. Every individual who Entered the Path needed Dao force, yet half of the collected Dao Bones were sent back for him, but he repeatedly failed here.

This state wouldn't do; continuing like this, the success rate remained low.

Lu Ye directly sat cross-legged in front of Chen Wulei, thought for a moment, then asked, "Brother Chen, can you guess what my current cultivation is?"

"2nd Order Dao Fusion?" Chen Wulei blinked.

Lu Ye smiled, "So Brother Chen already knows."

Chen Wulei said, "A few days ago, World Lord Gu came to see me once and told me some things."

"Since that's the case, Brother Chen should be aware of Banlan's matter."

"Naturally."

"Then it's easy to explain, actually, even without Banlan, the current stellar space danger isn't much to worry about. Although I'm only at 2nd Order Dao Fusion cultivation, I've killed more Peak Dao Fusion cultivators than I can count on my fingers."

"Peak Dao Fusion!" Chen Wulei was shocked.

"Peak Dao Fusion refers to cultivators who've reached the limit of Dao Fusion in terms of cultivation and have nurtured their Dao soldiers to the limit. Ordinary Peak Dao Fusion cultivators possess the power of two hundred forty-nine Daos!"

Though Chen Wulei had weathered many storms, he couldn't help opening his mouth wide at this moment.

Two hundred forty-nine Dao forces!

He could hardly imagine how strong such a cultivator would be. He was only at 9th Dao now...

And Lu Ye killed more than two handfuls of such powerful cultivators? Then how strong was Lu Ye himself?

If he remembered correctly, back in the Cover Armor stellar space, Lu Ye hadn't even Entered the Path, yet in just a few years, he'd become unreachable?

"So Brother Chen, the crisis in the stellar space isn't that serious. To put it bluntly, if I wished, I could single-handedly sweep away all enemies in the six battle zones, let alone, we now have the Banlan human race as helpers."

Chen Wulei was stunned for a moment, then quickly showed a mixed expression, gradually realizing Lu Ye's intent in saying these words to him.

This was to ensure he wouldn't feel too pressured.

The pressure really did vanish... but it was rather depressing.

He no longer understood what exactly he'd been cultivating all these years! Compared to Lu Ye, he felt like a waste.

However, the depression only lasted an instant. Gradually, Chen Wulei's eyes became resolute, "My own stellar space shattered. Back then, we were too weak to protect the place that nurtured us. I came here, just like before, the stellar space was invaded, but today compared to then, I have acquired certain strength! Even though this isn't my stellar space, I still want to protect it!"

Protecting the stellar space was an unfulfilled wish from back then; it was a redemption and a self-redemption, so Chen Wulei would never easily give up.

"Brother Lu, please lend me a hand."

He knew Lu Ye needed him; otherwise, he wouldn't have come over specifically to tell him these things.

Even though compared to Lu Ye he truly was a waste, he could still exert his influence in certain areas!

The pressure completely dissipated, replaced now by infinite fighting spirit; he felt he was currently omnipotent!

Lu Ye observed Chen Wulei's change in mindset, "I came here precisely for this matter!"

Speaking, he swept a hand, presenting ten jade tablets inscribed with Dao Runes to Chen Wulei, "Brother Chen, take a look. These are Dao Runes I've prepared for you; choose one as your foundation."

Chen Wulei raised his eyebrows to examine them, quickly nodding at Divine Sharp Edge, "The Dao Runes I chose before are similar to this, should be the same type, only mine was taught by Tree Elder, and yours is simpler in comparison."

Lu Ye thought to himself that it wasn't just simpler; the power that could be unleashed from these Dao Runes would be even stronger. Though Tree Elder was a supreme treasure, in the area of Dao Runes, he truly wasn't his equal.

"So shall we choose this?" Lu Ye asked.

With two previous failures, subsequent attempts should convert into successful experience.

Chen Wulei's interest was piqued, but he still asked, "Can you tell me the effects of the other Dao Runes?"

"Of course!"

As Lu Ye explained, the myriad uses of the Dao Runes gradually unfolded before Chen Wulei.

Gradually, Lu Ye noticed Chen Wulei's eyes didn't seem quite right.

He was actually staring at the As-Close-As-Siblings Dao Runes!

"Brother Chen, are you planning to use this Dao Rune as the foundation to advance to Dao Fusion?" Lu Ye inquired.

Chen Wulei seemed very excited, "I've heard of this spirit rune before, and there's even an array disc built around it over in the All Phenomena Ocean! Brother Lu, if I use this Dao Rune as the foundation to advance to Dao Fusion, wouldn't I become a human-shaped array disc, able to easily help others form arrays?"

"Hmm..." Lu Ye pondered, "That's true, but if Brother Chen chooses this Dao Rune, it won't help much in combat; it will only boost the concentration and damage of your Dao force."

In other words, if Chen Wulei chooses this Dao Rune, after advancing to Dao Fusion, he would still be able to wield the power of 20 Dao, displaying the strength of 22 Dao.

But compared to Lu Ye's Divine Sharp Edge, his Dao force would lack a bit of destructive power.

The difference brought by one level of Dao Rune might not be obvious, but as the cultivation realm increases later, the gap will slowly widen.

Lu Ye had not expected Chen Wulei to be interested in As-Close-As-Siblings, as this Dao Rune was created by Lu Ye mainly for completion's sake.

No one in the realm of Dao Fusion would choose such a Dao Rune as the foundation for their breakthrough.

"It's not necessary." Chen Wulei said eagerly, "Anyway, if I advance to Dao Fusion, dealing with ordinary Enter the Path cultivators will be easy. The stellar space will have more and more Dao Fusion cultivators in the future. Our foundation is shallow, and we might not be able to match others in a one-on-one fight, but if we can form arrays, it will be different."

"I've decided." Without waiting for Lu Ye to speak further, Chen Wulei made his decision.

"Brother Chen, have you thought it through?" Lu Ye looked serious.

"I have thought it through!" Chen Wulei smiled, "Besides, Brother Lu doesn't need to worry. The Tree Elder said that in 9th Order Dao Fusion, there is one Dao Rune per level. When I advance next time, I can choose other Dao Runes."

That is indeed the case!

With that thought, Lu Ye stopped persuading.

"Let's start getting familiar then." Lu Ye suggested, "Brother Chen, do not resist!"

Chen Wulei stood solemnly, even though he didn't know exactly what Lu Ye intended to do or how he would help, he guessed that Lu Ye had his own methods.

Lu Ye pointed a finger at the center of Chen Wulei's chest, rapidly constructing the Chains of Life under the drive of Dao force.

Chen Wulei's expression shook, and within moments, he felt an extremely strange sensation.

"This is the Chains of Life. From this moment on, Brother Chen and I are tied in life and death, in other words, if Brother Chen dies, I will certainly perish, and if I die, Brother Chen cannot survive alone."

Chen Wulei jumped up instantly, "Brother Lu, this must not be!"

He wasn't worried that Lu Ye would harm him; he was only worried about dragging Lu Ye down. If he got into trouble and caused Lu Ye to come to harm as a result, then the entire hope of the stellar space would be lost.

"Calm down, Brother Chen." Lu Ye raised his hand to soothe him, "The Dao Rune has been constructed, and resistance is futile. This Dao Rune can be dissolved later, so don't worry. The reason for using this Dao Rune is to facilitate the quick accumulation of your Dao force!"

As early as when he discovered some effects of the Chains of Life, Lu Ye had thought he could use this Dao Rune to aid cultivation once he returned to the stellar space.

Back then, the cultivation of Dark Butterfly was much higher than Lu Ye's, so when Dark Butterfly was refining Dao Bone, he always gained considerable benefits each time.

Now that Lu Ye's cultivation surpasses Chen Wulei's, as he refines the Dao Bone, Chen Wulei should receive benefits too.

As for how much he can get, that remains to be seen through trial.

After all, Lu Ye's efficiency in refining Dao Bone is unmatched; as long as this method can exceed Chen Wulei's own efficiency, it is valuable.

The storage ring Huang Cui'er previously gave Lu Ye contained the Dao Bones their group hunted in recent days.

With over a thousand people, the number of Dao Bones they hunted wasn't vast, but it was certainly not small either.

"This Dao Rune can help me accumulate Dao force?" Chen Wulei did not understand the intricacies.

Lu Ye smiled lightly, "Let's give it a try!"

With that, he took out a large pile of Dao Bones from the storage ring and activated the Talent Tree's power to swiftly refine them.

Then he saw Chen Wulei's expression change—from astonishment to curiosity, then shock, followed by numbness.

His eyes looked like they were about to pop out!

Lu Ye could roughly feel it too.

Generally speaking, with a complete Dao Bone, he could obtain 20 Dao of force; such efficiency in refining is unparalleled by any cultivator.

But now, the Dao force he obtained wasn't 20.

It missed about seven or eight.

This missing Dao force was clearly siphoned off by Chen Wulei.

The newly advanced Chains of Life Dao Runes proved much more effective than the ones Lu Ye had previously constructed with Dark Butterfly.

After refining just over a hundred Dao Bones, Chen Wulei quickly exclaimed, "That's enough, enough!"

His reserves of Dao force were nearly overflowing!

It's important to know that after his last failed advancement, his entire Dao force was almost depleted, and his remaining reserve was less than a hundred.

Now, with five Dao Bone's worth of Dao force fully charged, he was entirely ready to advance again.