Chapter 3864: Rift Of Suffering

Just as the mountain was about to crash into the ground, Lu Yin appeared beneath it and easily held it up.

It was only a mountain, and while it might be durable enough to withstand a Morrow Behemoth’s strength, its weight was not enough to even garner Lu Yin’s notice.

Right as Lu Yin caught the mountain, another person also appeared beneath the mountain, and they similarly reached up to catch it.

The man was bald, had plain gray robes on his body, and was wearing worn-out cloth shoes on his feet. He pressed just one hand against the mountain, but Lu Yin was already holding it.

Lu Yin observed the man, who looked back at him and offered a very strange salute.

He held his hands flat and pressed together, but in reverse as he slowly bowed. “I am Ku Cheng. Thank you for saving them.”

Lu Yin was puzzled. “Saving who?”

Ku Cheng smiled. “The people on this mountain, of course.”

“Do you have some connection to these people?”

“No.”

Lu Yin gave Ku Cheng a strange look. Why was the man thanking Lu Yin if he had no connection to the people on the mountain? The man had rushed over from the Mother Tree, as he had not even been on the mountain himself. Lu Yin certainly had not saved Ku Cheng.

The man looked up at the mountain. “The branch has broken, but these people have not yet reached their destination. Allow me to help them along.”

With that, he grabbed the skyswings and soared up into the Mother Tree’s canopy.

Lu Yin’s eyes narrowed. Not just anyone could enter the canopy.

There were a great number of experts in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, and any peak powerhouse was technically strong enough to soar into the Mother Tree’s canopy. However, possessing the necessary strength was one thing, and having permission was an entirely different matter. The Sea of Karma was in the Mother Tree’s branches, as were other locations where the Greater and Lesser Sancti cultivated. Even Dukkhans were required to report their actions before climbing up the Mother Tree.

Despite that, Ku Cheng was allowed to climb right into the branches. Clearly, the man had a powerful backing.

On top of that, the man gave Lu Yin a very odd impression. There was an indescribable sort of heaviness to him. Lu Yin suspected that the heaviness was related to Ku Cheng’s cultivation art.

The man was a Dukkhan.

Ku Cheng... Ku Cheng... could he be someone from the Rift of Suffering?

Dream Dominion stood at the top of the East Domain, Skyveil City in the West Domain, the Scion Spire in the South Domain, the Rift of Suffering in the North Domain, and Deathmound at the center.

The Rift of Suffering was the most powerful faction in the North Domain; there was no question about that. The Skyward Gate’s Luo family, Ruler Garden, Loneswan Island, and many others were also in the north, but none of them could even begin to compare to the Rift of Suffering.

Everyone who was part of the Rift of Suffering had the same surname: Ku.

If Ku Cheng was a member of the Rift of Suffering, it would explain why he was qualified to ascend into the Mother Tree’s canopy.

However, the man did not actually enter the canopy; he simply hooked the skyswings to a lower branch that hung beneath the canopy. While the skyswings were attached to a much lower branch than before, it was still high enough for the mountain to swing into the West Domain.

Ku Cheng stood in front of the mountain, the backs of his hands pressed together. When he slowly spread them apart, an absolute darkness appeared that grew larger and larger.

Light from the nearby area was devoured by the darkness, and space itself seemed to collapse inwards upon Ku Cheng.

Lu Yin was astonished. Is this... gravity? No...

Ku Cheng looked at Lu Yin. “Do you wish to continue to the West Domain, sir? You may climb on now, and I will see you off.”

Lu Yin shook his head. “No.”

He had indeed been on his way to the West Domain, but since he had encountered someone from the Rift of Suffering, especially one with such a strange power, Lu Yin was intrigued.

The Seven Fairies’ tasks could wait. None of them were urgent. On the other hand, it seemed rare to meet anyone from the Rift of Suffering.

It was said that the Rift of Suffering only had about 10,000 disciples.

That was almost nothing compared to the entire North Domain.

To put such numbers in perspective, Everchange Valley, despite how difficult it was for people to cultivate the Heaven and Earth Aura, still had over 100,000 disciples. It was simply that most of their disciples never reached a level of mastery that allowed them to leave the sect.

Each direction of the Four Commands Sword Sect had tens of thousands of disciples, meaning that the sect’s total numbers were several hundred thousand disciples.

In the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, it was normal for even an average clan to have tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, of members.

Even the mountain hanging from the skyswings carried more than 10,000 people per trip, and yet they were sparsely scattered across the mountain’s surface.

Despite all of that, the Rift of Suffering, which was undoubtedly the most powerful faction in the North Domain, only had a bit more than 10,000 disciples. Their numbers were far too few.

Such numbers were not enough to make even a ripple in the vast Nine Odysseys Megaverse.

As the profound darkness spread out from between Ku Cheng’s hands to envelop his entire body, he brought his hands together again and again. Each time he spread his hands apart, another burst of darkness emerged. This repeated over and over, and by the eighth repetition, Ku Cheng’s entire body was completely enveloped by the deep blackness.

The space near the man twisted until it collapsed entirely.

Lu Yin continued to watch. It was like seeing a black hole devouring everything that approached it.

Ku Cheng’s eyes suddenly snapped open, and all of the darkness condensed. His hands slammed against the mountain. With a boom, the mountain shot away, as if it had just been thrown by a Morrow Behemoth.

Lu Yin’s eyebrows rose. The man had used about the same amount of force as the Morrow Behemoth. No, it was exactly the same amount of force. With too little force, the mountain would not be able to reach the West Domain, but too much would cause some of the mountain’s passengers to overshoot their destinations. Even a tiny discrepancy could result in a journey of months or even years for the passengers.

Ku Cheng clearly understood exactly the amount of force needed and had perfectly reproduced it. Was he simply being kind to the people on the mountain, or was he deliberately showing off for Lu Yin?

As the mountain flew away, the skyswings also disappeared from sight.

Only Ku Cheng and Lu Yin remained.

Ku Cheng let out a breath as the condensed darkness slowly faded around him. He turned to give Lu Yin a smile. “I must have made a fool of myself.”

Lu Yin praised the man, “Strength that rivals a Morrow Behemoth’s? Is that related to the Rift of Suffering’s cultivation method?”

Ku Cheng was not surprised that Lu Yin recognized him as someone from the Rift of Suffering. Their cultivation method was unique, and it stood out from the reset of the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, which made it easily identifiable.

“I am Ku Cheng of the Rift of Suffering.”

“I am Lu Yin, of the Tianyuan.”

Ku Cheng was surprised. “The Tianyuan Megaverse? Sir, are you from the Tianyuan Megaverse?”

Lu Yin looked at Ku Cheng, but he saw no disdain for the three megaverses in the man’s eyes. All that could be seen was surprise and curiosity.

It was not a surprise to Lu Yin that Ku Cheng did not recognize him. While Lu Yin’s declaration during his Origin realm breakthrough had rung across the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, it had not reached every single part of the megaverse, only parts of it.

There was no question that Lu Yin had constantly shaken the Nine Odysseys Megaverse since his arrival, but it was still impossible for everyone to know who he was.

Aside from that, given Ku Cheng’s appearance, the man seemed to have been in seclusion for quite some time. He had possibly been entirely unaware of recent events.

“That’s right. I’m from the Tianyuan Megaverse,” Lu Yin said with a nod.

Ku Cheng exclaimed, “Of the three megaverses, while the Spirit Nidus and the Consciousness Megaverse have sent people to the Nine Odysseys Megaverse before, there has never been anyone from the Tianyuan Megaverse. May I ask how you came here?”

He then quickly added, “I don’t mean to pry into your secrets. If it’s inconvenient to say, there’s no need to answer. I’m simply too curious, as I’ve never met anyone from the Tianyuan Megaverse before.”

Lu Yin smiled. “It’s no secret. I came here through the Spirit Nidus...”

Many details regarding Lu Yin had already become public knowledge across the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, and he had no intention of hiding things. He had made a declaration to the entire megaverse. The Rift of Suffering was the most powerful faction in the North Domain, so Lu Yin was eager to see what their opinion on such things was.

Lu Yin shared how the Spirit Nidus had invaded the Tianyuan, as well as how he had led Boundless deep into the Spirit Nidus. Many details were glossed over, and he concluded with how he had been thrown into the Nine Odysseys Megaverse by the Morrow Behemoth in the Spirit Nidus.

Ku Cheng invited Lu Yin to visit the Rift of Suffering as his guest after listening to Lu Yin’s story with growing admiration.

“Sir, you’ve risked your life for your homeland, surviving countless dangers in the Spirit Nidus. You’ve now come to the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, where there are surely greater dangers than what I can even imagine. You have my respect.”

Lu Yin waved his hand dismissively. “I’m used to such things.”

Ku Cheng sighed in admiration. “For you to say that you’re used to this just indicates how much you’ve already endured. If I ever get the chance, I would love to visit the Tianyuan Megaverse.”

“I’m becoming increasingly curious about your Rift of Suffering now.”

“Haha, everyone’s curious about the Rift of Suffering, but I’m afraid that you’ll end up disappointed, Mr. Lu. The Rift of Suffering... is right there,” Ku Cheng said as he pointed ahead.

Lu Yin looked at a barren stretch of land. Aside from a few stone huts scattered about, there was nothing to be seen. There was not even a trace of civilization.

Even a distant mortal city was more prosperous than the place that Ku Cheng was indicating.

Lu Yin was stunned. “This is...?”

Ku Cheng replied, “This is the Rift of Suffering... as the world sees it.”

“As the world sees it?”

“Due to its status as the most powerful sect in the North Domain, it’s only natural that people assume that the Rift of Suffering has a lofty, ethereal location. That’s what people want to believe, but the truth is that there’s nothing special about this place. The Rift of Suffering lies within the heart. Wherever you walk, wherever your heart reaches, therein lies the Rift of Suffering.”

Lu Yin was rendered speechless. They’re just a sect. What’s the point in being so cryptic and mystical?

He had witnessed all kinds of different lifestyles, yet nothing was quite like what he was currently seeing.

No matter how much of an ascetic a person might be, they at least needed a place to live.

There were some people who were dressed similarly to Ku Cheng, yet they were sleeping right on the side of the road. Seriously?

The Rift of Suffering did not just have male disciples, but also females. However, Lu Yin was momentarily stunned by the sight of the female disciples. They clearly did not care about their appearances at all.

“I admire the spiritual state nurtured by the Rift of Suffering,” Lu Yin remarked.

Emotion entered Ku Cheng’s voice. “There are some who are born with incredible talent, who are destined to rise above the ordinary, and who are expected to reach an exalted realm of cultivation. However, we in the Rift of Suffering are different. We pursue only one thing: suffering. Only by climbing out of that rift can we achieve anything. When the heart aligns with the universe, when one’s heart becomes invincible, then one is invincible in all things.

“The struggles of the Rift of Suffering is not something that just anyone can comprehend.”

“I’ve heard that many people want to join your Rift of Suffering, but only a few succeed, right?” Lu Yin asked.

“That’s precisely what I am referring to. Not everyone can understand the Rift of Suffering.”

“I would like to see it for myself,” Lu Yin commented.

Ku Cheng glanced over at Lu Yin, yet there was no resistance in his gaze. “Given your level of strength, Mr. Lu, there’s no need for you to personally witness the Rift of Suffering.”

“Still, I believe that the Rift of Suffering deserves admiration,” Lu Yin replied. He was probing. People could conceal their personalities, as well as their intentions, but never their obsessions. For Ku Cheng, the Rift of Suffering was an obsession. His entire life was dedicated to pursuing the concept of suffering. If the man held contempt for the three megaverses like Lan Ye, then Ku Cheng would have reacted when Lu Yin had expressed his desire to observe the Rift of Suffering’s path.

Ku Cheng smiled. “The Rift of Suffering is not restricted to any sect or family. Anyone can see it. If you wish to better understand the Rift of Suffering, then you might also be able to perfect your own heart, Mr. Lu.”

Perfect his heart? That was precisely what Lu Yin sought to do. For twelve years after obtaining the power of Word Manifestation, he had taken a journey to refine his state of mind, which had allowed him to enter the Origin realm without being driven by desire. However, he had only achieved the mental state necessary for that singular breakthrough. Overcoming Dukkha was the ultimate test for a cultivator’s heart. Many powerful cultivators had become lost in their own obsessions and were unable to even see what their obsessions truly were.

“Can the Rift of Suffering help me perfect my heart?”

“Everyone has an abyss deep within them. Only by climbing out of that abyss can one become complete,” a voice said from the distance.

Lu Yin looked over. A true powerhouse had arrived.

The newcomer was dressed similarly to Ku Cheng, with absolutely nothing adorning his clothes. A glance made it clear that he belonged to the Rift of Suffering.

Turning to face the man, Ku Cheng slowly bowed. “Greetings, Martial Uncle.”

He then introduced the man to Lu Yin, “This is my martial uncle, Ku Ji.”

Ku Cheng then also introduced Lu Yin, but Ku Ji raised a hand to stop him and turned to smile at Lu Yin. “You are Mr. Lu Yin, correct?”

Lu Yin nodded.

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