Star Odyssey

Chapter 3649: On Stage And Off Stage

The Spirit Nidus remained quiet, and Lu Yin heaved a sigh of relief. Touching the wall of karma had not caused a large commotion, which was perfect. After briefly studying the wall, he realized that, as long as he remained in contact with the wall, the scenery would not change. In that case, where should he start?

He planned to start breaking down the wall.

He felt that the wall of karma was quite odd. It was not particularly tall, though it also was not short. Any cultivator, with a bit of power, would be able to easily leap over it. What was the wall keeping out, or perhaps, keeping in?

It did not matter. All that Lu Yin needed to know was that it was made of karma. Since it was karma, then presumably, it could be used to strengthen his Karmic Dao.

Crack.

A piece of karma was pried free from a corner, and Lu Yin held it in a hand. He blinked and simply stared at it.

This piece of karma that he had pried free of the wall could be considered a karmic brick. He really had managed to pry off a piece of the wall of karma.

Despite accomplishing his objective, success felt a bit unreal to Lu Yin.

After all, he was holding a piece of karma.

It was truly unbelievable that a wall could be made from karma.

Lu Yin took a deep breath and tossed the karmic brick into his inner universe. It did not take long for the brick to crack, and then streaks of karma spiraled out and vanished.

Lu Yin’s breathing grew ragged. He could sense that his Karmic Dao had grown a tiny bit stronger. It was only a slight amount and was difficult to even detect. It was nowhere near the amount of karma that he could gain from even a single cultivator. The karmic brick resembled the total amount of karma that an ordinary human would accumulate over a lifetime of 100 years. It was miniscule, yet it was still able to strengthen his Karmic Dao.

For Lu Yin to gain karma from other people, he needed to imprison them in the hellish depths of his Champions’ Stage Purgatory, subjecting them to the torture of reliving cycles of karma. That was the only way to gradually absorb their karma, which would then strengthen Lu Yin’s own Karmic Dao. However, doing that was literal torture for people, and it was so terrible that even a powerhouse like Feng Chengzhu had broken down.

Ordinary humans suffered ordinary lives, while cultivators suffered lives that were unique to them.

Lu Yin could not bring himself to force innocent people into his Champions’ Stage Purgatory simply to strengthen his Karmic Dao, and that had led to his slow rate of improvement. It was only during the battle at the Umbral Deep, where he had captured several top-tier powerhouses and imprisoned them in order to resist the karmic backlash, that his Karmic Dao had truly been strengthened. It was a relief to learn that the karmic brick was also able to strengthen his Karmic Dao, no matter how small the increase was. After all, the wall was massive, and there were plenty of bricks.

Encouraged, Lu Yin continued to pry out more bricks from the wall.

The more karma he accumulated, the stronger his ability became. He clearly understood just how formidable the power of karma was. It was impressive enough that even the High Seraph was highly wary of the power, and Master Qing Cao had acknowledged it as a power that could lead one to Immortality.

It was possible that he might one day tear down the entire wall. Perhaps his own karma would improve enough to trigger a transformation, allowing it to evolve into something greater.

Since overcoming Dukkha was a path forward, then there had to be a way to break into the Immortal realm without resetting a megaverse. The Origin Progenitor once touched upon the threshold of that level, and Lu Yin felt that it might be possible for him to eventually do the same by following the path of karma.

In the blink of an eye, two months passed. During that time, Lu Yin had continued to pry karmic bricks out of the wall. However, his progress had not been quick, due to the fact that the spirit seed liquid wore away as it was used.

Fortunately, there were still tens of trillions of spirit seeds in Lu Yin’s inner universe. They were his spoils from the battle at the source of the Fu River, and they were more than enough to last a long time.

He had enough spirit seed liquid to continue, but he might not have much time before the expedition to the Consciousness Megaverse moved out.

A year had already passed since the Day of Offering, which was when the High Seraph had announced the forthcoming invasion of the Consciousness Megaverse. The only reason why the expedition had not left yet was because Lu Yin had delayed things by having the Ark Domain perform “maintenance” on the battleships, as well as revealing the presence of conscients hiding in parallel universes of the Spirit Nidus. Without Lu Yin’s intervention, the invasion force would already have departed.

The High Seraph was determined to destroy the Willbound Expanse.

When the expedition left, Boundless would be forced to join it. However, Lu Yin knew that the Willbound Expanse was a trap for the High Seraph. Lu Yin did not want Boundless to be dragged into the disaster as well.

He had just found a way to strengthen his Karmic Dao, and while it was difficult, or perhaps more tedious than difficult, he finally had hope of making progress. How could he walk away at this time?

He was sure that there were no karmic bricks in the Consciousness Megaverse for him to confiscate.

He needed to find a way to buy more time.

While Lu Yin had been physically busy for two months, his mind had been free, and he had used that time to think. He had even managed to come up with a plan. Whether or not it worked would depend entirely on if the other party agreed to cooperate. If everything went well, Lu Yin might not only get a clear view of the current situation, but would also create a turning point for the Tianyuan Megaverse.

Lu Yin took a seat in a mountain range in the Daquan Domain. He then pulled out his spirit cloudstone and called Meng Sang.

It did not take long for the call to connect.

“I want to speak with Yong Heng.”

Meng Sang remained silent for a moment. “Three days from now.”

Lu Yin’s eyes flickered. “Alright.”

After three days passed, his spirit cloudstone trembled. An unknown voice spoke, and yet Lu Yin still found it familiar. “I knew that you would seek me out.”

Lu Yin stared at his spirit cloudstone. “With how your voice has changed, more must have also changed.”

“Cultivating with a spirit seed is truly extraordinary. I have indeed changed.”

Lu Yin said, “What if I told you that spirit seeds are nothing more than sacrifices?”

“Should I be surprised?” Yong Heng calmly asked.

Lu Yin frowned. “You already knew?”

Yong Heng chuckled. “You are still underestimating me. Given that I agreed to work with the Spirit Nidus, naturally, I had to first see things clearly. As for the things that they are unable to see themselves, those are even more important for me to understand.”

“If you already knew, why did you still dare to cultivate with a spirit seed?” Lu Yin countered.

Yong Heng replied, “It might have been a spirit seed, but it was also a mirebound artifact.”

Lu Yin understood. “So... Xing Fan can’t take your spirit seed away.”

“Oh? You already know of Xing Fan?”

“You learned of him from Feng Bo?”

“Feng Bo was from the Nine Odysseys Megaverse. Didn’t you share what you knew about him with Jiu Xian? If not, why would she have been shadowing Meng Sang so closely?”

Lu Yin did not deny it. “It’s a pity that Feng Bo died. If not, we would be able to enjoy quite a show. Right before he died, he wanted to say something. I regret not letting him finish speaking.”

On a distant planet, Yong Heng turned around to look behind. Feng Bo stood there, and he had also heard Lu Yin’s comment. The man’s expression changed. Before Yong Heng, Feng Bo could only drop his head.

Yong Heng merely glanced at the man before continuing the conversation. “Aside from that, what else have you learned? Also, why did you reach out to me?”

“I don’t know how much you know about the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, but your knowledge is only one thing. How you view them is something else entirely.”

“My view is clear: I am their enemy,” Yong Heng bluntly replied.

Lu Yin nodded. “You seem to be enemies with everyone.”

Yong Heng gave a small smile. “And yet right now, you and I have the same goals. Don’t forget that I once told you that the Spirit Nidus will be our third battlefield. I even helped you during the Everstone Discourse.”

“In that case, it’s time to toss the bystanders off the stage.”

“What are you planning?”

“There are people who enjoy hiding in the shadows, believing that they’ve already won. This makes things difficult as they are sitting backstage while we put on a show. Right now, I want to drag all of them onto the stage. If we’re performing, then they need to join us.”

“That won’t be easy. The relative positions of the Nine Odysseys Megaverse and the Spirit Nidus make it impossible for those people to step onstage.”

“But they’re already there.”

“Emperor Wu’s death? Wait, how did you learn that there is something wrong with the spirit seeds? Is that the real reason why you reached out to me? Did you not feel the same thing as when you first saw the Six Scourges?”

Lu Yin had to admit that was true. When he had first learned about what had happened to the River Domain, he had felt the same despair as when he had first seen the Six Scourges. He had felt completely helpless because his enemy was simply too powerful.

Long ago, Lu Yin had stood against Aeternus like an ant trying to shake a tree. At this moment, the situation was no different as he faced the Nine Odysseys Megaverse.

No matter how far Lu Yin’s cultivation might have progressed, and even if he was able to fight against the High Seraph, there were still others who stood above that man: the Immortals. Worse still, there was more than one.

However, Lu Yin had already overcome such despair before. No matter how hopeless the situation might seem, he still had the courage to press forward.

Lu Yin slowly said, “Emperor Wu died due to a struggle between two of the Nine Odysseys Megaverse’s Lesser Sancti...”

Yong Heng listened without interrupting. There were many details that even he was ignorant of. All of his information regarding the Nine Odysseys Megaverse had come from Feng Bo. Yong Heng did not even have a handle on the current situation in the Spirit Nidus, and for that reason, he was willing to work with Lu Yin.

There were people who had pushed them into the limelight, and yet what remained hidden behind the scenes was still unknown.

Just like Lu Yin, Yong Heng could not tolerate being used in such a manner.

Others were confidently playing their own game, believing themselves to be in control of everything without even considering those like Lu Yin and Yong Heng. Well, the one ultimately holding the reins in the end remained to be seen.

Feng Bo stared at Yong Heng as he spoke to Lu Yin, finding the entire conversation unbelievable.

These two had once been arch-enemies, and yet they were suddenly working together. If word of this got back to the Tianyuan Megaverse, who would believe it? Feng Bo could not even begin to guess what sort of changes this collaboration might bring to the Spirit Nidus.

Feng Bo was all too aware of the Nine Odysseys Megaverse’s might, but he was also aware of what these two were capable of.

He could not suppress the trace of anticipation he felt for the inevitable clash that lay in the future.

It was not long before Lu Yin left the Daquan Domain and made his way to the Roaming South Realm.

The valley there had already been restored, and Jiu Xian was living there once more.

Lu Yin arrived and brazenly entered the valley. There, he saw Qing Yun and Qing Xiao.

The siblings had once accompanied him as he had roamed about the Spirit Nidus. When Jiu Xian returned, the two had been told that they could leave.

When Meng Sang had visited Boundless to negotiate terms for Yong Heng, Qing Yun and Qing Xiao had still been present, but they had since returned to the valley.

They were both startled to see Lu Yin suddenly appear. “Didn’t you tell us that we were free to go? Are you already here to capture us again?”

Lu Yin just smiled at the two. He had almost forgotten about Qing Yun. She possessed an extremely rare physique that was practically reversed karma. He had studied it for a time, but he had failed to understand anything. That was why he had allowed them to go. Upon seeing them again, perhaps this was destiny...

“Hand,” Lu Yin stated as he took a seat in a garden in the valley. He slowly rocked in a reclining chair. The pot of tea beside him gave off a gentle fragrance.

Qing Yun reflexively held out her hand for Lu Yin, having grown used to this position long ago.

Qing Xiao was holding a tray of refreshments, and he looked at Lu Yin oddly. What was this guy trying to do?

The Roaming South Realm was another one of the seven major powers. The wall of karma was present in this place as well, and that meant that Lu Yin could pry out karmic bricks as long as Jiu Xian was not present.

After waiting for a dozen days or so, Jiu Xian returned. She had headed back after receiving a message from Qing Xiao. The moment Jiu Xian arrived, she saw Lu Yin lounging in a recliner, holding Qing Yun’s hand with one hand while enjoying snacks with his other. He looked completely at ease.

“What are you doing here in my Roaming South Realm?”

Lu Yin turned to look at the woman and waved. “We meet again, Jiu Xian.”

Jiu Xian frowned. She glanced at Qing Yun and Qing Xiao, indicating that they should leave.

However, Lu Yin kept a hold on Qing Yun’s hand. “That’s not necessary. There’s nothing unpleasant between us.”

Qing Yun pursed her lips and gave Jiu Xian a look of helplessness.

Jiu Xian was staring at Lu Yin. “I’ve already told you everything that I have to say. I thought that we would no longer have anything to do with each other.”

Lu Yin continued to enjoy his snacks. “Have you found Feng Bo yet?”

“I will.”

“You even lost Meng Sang, which shouldn’t have happened, given your strength.”

Jiu Xian pulled out a gourd of wine, gave it a shake, and took a swig. “That’s my business. You should mind your own.”

“What’s your take on Emperor Wu’s death?” Lu Yin asked.

“I’m standing back and watching.”

“Then I’ll watch while sitting.”

“You might be next.”

“I appreciate the kind words, but I’m not going anywhere.”

Jiu Xian was caught off guard and looked at Lu Yin. “What do you mean by that?”