Having made up his mind, Lu Wuming headed directly towards the group of cultivators. He had initially thought of being a bit more discreet, hoping that if these people were sensible, they could resolve the issue peacefully.
To put it more bluntly, if these cultivators wanted to live, they should all get out of the way and hand over ownership of the magic treasure to Lu Wuming.
After all, the hierarchy in the cultivation world was clearly defined.
As long as one's cultivation was insufficient, a counter-kill was virtually impossible. Even a swarm of ants combined could not defeat a human; the gap was precisely like that.
Therefore, as Lu Wuming approached them, he directly unleashed his spiritual energy.
Those who had been fighting fiercely felt his aura and immediately stopped their actions.
More than a dozen pairs of eyes turned towards Lu Wuming. Their faces were etched with indecision and hesitation. It was evident that they were afraid to confront Lu Wuming, yet unwilling to give up the magic treasure that was within their grasp.
After a moment of standoff, one person stepped forward. He cupped his fists towards Lu Wuming and said, "You are the senior from the Pill Sect, we have long admired your name. This magic treasure, my master and I discovered it first. So, by rights, it should be ours. You are, after all, a disciple of a great sect; coming to snatch these things from us is truly against the rules."
Lu Wuming raised an eyebrow.
Previously, Liu Buli had told him that since he had participated in the martial arts tournament, his name was no longer an unknown entity in the entire cultivation world.
There were even rumors circulating that if Lu Wuming had not chosen to surrender to Liu Buli in the tournament, then the ultimate winner of that match would undoubtedly have been Lu Wuming, and no one else.
Liu Buli had heard these rumors but had never said anything to correct them, which was precisely why the rumors had grown stronger and everyone increasingly believed them to be true.
However, precisely because of this, Lu Wuming did not find it strange that these people recognized him.
But to use his identity as a disciple of the Pill Sect to pressure him and expect him to abide by some rules was simply overthinking things.
After all, the one who sent him here was the Sect Master of the Pill Sect himself.
And even if Liu Buli had not spoken, as her husband, he should be able to choose what he wanted to do without interference from anyone else, right?
Thinking this, Liu Buli's image flashed in his mind, her head resting on his chest as she called him "husband."
That soft, clinging, and coquettish little fox-like appearance was enough to drive one mad with desire.
With this thought, Lu Wuming became even more determined to obtain this sword for his master. Perhaps with this item in hand, his master would be in a good mood, and he might receive other rewards. For instance, the next time they engaged in those activities, his master might be willing to endure it while calling him "husband" in that voice he liked so much?
His thoughts churned, and Lu Wuming found it almost impossible to control himself.
Looking up at the group of people around him again, he finally let out a contemptuous snort. Then, he tilted his chin and asked dismissively, "You say you discovered it first, but is your name written on this magic treasure? Even if your name were written on it, if your own strength is insufficient to protect your treasure, you deserve to have it snatched away. This is the rule of the cultivation world; have you all forgotten it within the secret realm?"
The strong are the rule.
Not just in the cultivation world, but the entire world is like this, with no exceptions.
The cultivator who had spoken first turned pale upon hearing this answer. If it had only been the other cultivators vying for the magic treasure, although they were more numerous and difficult to deal with, they were still a master and disciples, and with some effort, it was not impossible to win.
It was precisely for this reason that the various parties had been fighting fiercely for so long without a resolution.
But if the opponent was Lu Wuming, he was fully capable of killing them, master and disciples. At that point, let alone snatching the magic treasure, even surviving might become a problem.
Reaching this conclusion, the cultivator immediately took a step back and nervously glanced around.
A slightly older cultivator beside him frowned, his expression revealing hesitation and reluctance. But in the end, he gritted his teeth fiercely. He waved his hand and issued an order to the people around him, saying, "We..."
"Wait a moment, I think there's no need for you to retreat so quickly."
Before the middle-aged man could finish speaking, he was interrupted by another cultivator beside him.
The attire of that person was different from theirs, clearly indicating that he was from another group of cultivators who had been vying for the magic treasure with them before Lu Wuming arrived.
Hearing his obstruction, the middle-aged man couldn't help but frown. His expression became even colder, and he said, "What do you mean by this? If you hadn't insisted on fighting with us, we would have already obtained the magic treasure and left. Now, the trouble was caused by you, and we still haven't gotten anything. We simply want to preserve the lives of myself and my disciples, it's that simple. Are you still going to interfere?"
Hearing his words, the other cultivator burst into laughter and said, "That's not what I mean. I just want to say that such a good magic treasure, to just hand it over to someone else, you might be willing, but we are somewhat unwilling."
The middle-aged man sneered and said, "Then go fight him. We all saw how that fellow performed in the martial arts tournament. We admit defeat because we are not as skilled. If you still believe there is hope for a fight, then go ahead yourselves."
As his voice fell, the middle-aged man waved to his disciples, indicating his intention to lead them away.
But before he could take a step, the other cultivator continued, "Wait a moment, I didn't say only we are going to fight them. You can completely cooperate with us and deal with him together. Two fists are no match for four hands. With so many of us, even if our cultivation is slightly inferior to his, so what? He is only one person. As long as we kill him, and then we continue to fight over the ownership of the magic treasure, isn't that also a good decision?"
The middle-aged man paused, then turned to look in Lu Wuming's direction.
For a moment, he truly thought it was a good idea.