Chapter 4055: Heartlamp

Lu Yin, the Nest civilization, the Immortal beast, Obscura, which had once been a forbidden topic, and even the Death Megaverse—simply too much had happened. Not even an Immortal like Ku Deng could sort it all out in short order.

Like many in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, he had failed to truly grasp the crisis that their megaverse faced: the Death Megaverse, Obscura, the Nest civilization’s future attacks, the Immortal beast, and Master Qing Cao’s secret schemes.

On top of all of that, there was the incomprehensible Lu Yin who had recently appeared. Just how did it all fit together?

“I never thought that, after just a few years away, so much would change. Aside from all of this, there have surely been great changes within the Nine Odysseys Megaverse as well,” Ku Deng said with a sigh.

Greater Sancte Awe Gate nodded. “You’ll learn about those matters for yourself after you return.”

Ku Deng’s face grew solemn. “Was it Mr. Lu who guided me here?”

She looked over at the man. “That’s right.”

Ku Deng nodded and stared out into space. “To be able to borrow Greater Sancte Green Lotus’s power and use it across the Aevum Inch to aid the Nine Odysseys Megaverse... Mr. Lu is our benefactor.”

Greater Sancte Awe Gate replied, “There are no benefactors or debts. Everything is for the sake of human civilization.”

“I made a mistake. I never considered that Luo Chan could teleport, which allowed them to escape destruction. Your battle was wasted, and you fought for nothing. Mr. Lu’s efforts were also squandered. What a pity.”

“That’s not your fault. You weren’t here. The only pity is that we cannot find the Nest civilization.”

“We can.”

Greater Sancte Awe Gate stared at Ku Deng in surprise. “What did you say?”

Ku Deng smiled as his eyebrows rose. “I can find that droplet creature. I see the cosmos with the light of the heartlamp. Every creature has their own heartlamp, and so as long as they are within a certain range, I can see that creature’s light.”

Greater Sancte Awe Gate quickly asked, “How great a range?”

Ku Deng considered the matter. “At the moment, I can’t sense it. It’s either gone out of range or been erased. However, it most likely hasn’t been erased. It’s too fast for that to have happened. I’ll need to test it to understand my range.”

“That’s fine. We’ll bring you someone from Whither Peak to test.”

“That will work.”

“Let’s return.”

“If those Nests can spawn bugs so quickly, there must be countless of them still.”

“Not now. Mr. Lu used the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm to deliver a brutal strike. All but the three that fled were killed.”

Ku Deng turned to face a different direction and slowly bowed to the distance. “You have my thanks, Mr. Lu.”

Greater Sancte Awe Gate was speechless. “You’re an Immortal.”

Ku Deng replied earnestly, “Realm means nothing. He has done a great favor for the Nine Odysseys Megaverse.”

The woman just shook her head. “You’re as courteous as ever.”

“In cultivating the Heartrift, reaching the greatest depths is not accomplished outward, but inward. Follow the heart to follow the cosmos. Where the heart reaches, heaven and man become one. If the heart is invincible, nothing can stand against it. Everything begins and ends with the heart.,” Ku Deng said before he started walking towards the Nine Odysseys Megaverse.

...

In the Tianyuan, Lu Yin rested for a full month before he fully recovered.

After that, he immediately peered through the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm to check on the Nine Odysseys Megaverse. Upon finding that things there were calm, he ended his observation session.

“How long have you been here, Senior?” Lu Yin suddenly asked as he looked into a corner.

Master Qing Cao was standing there, like a withered tree, unnoticed for some time.

“It seems that you were truly exhausted, if you were not even aware of my arrival.”

Lu Yin sighed. “Very tired.”

“How did the battle go?”

“The Nest civilization was defeated.”

Master Qing Cao stared at him. “How did you manage that?”

Lu Yin slowly smiled. “Master Ku Deng broke through to the Immortal realm.”

Qing Cao gave the younger man a blank stare as complex emotions flitted through his eyes. “So he succeeded. What a coincidence.”

Lu Yin stared back at the man with equally complex emotions; there was regret, but also something beyond words that was simply ineffable.

Did Qing Cao truly wish to see the Nine Odysseys Megaverse’s destruction? If that was the case, it was possible that the megaverse’s destruction would complete his agreement with Obscura. But in that case, how was the man supposed to deal with the Nest civilization? Or any other civilization that was unconnected to Obscura?

“Do you truly believe that Obscura is humanity’s greatest enemy in the past, present, and future?

“You were willing to strike a bargain with Obscura and make some sacrifices to maintain a good relationship with them, but being on friendly terms is not the same as being protected. Humanity cannot rely on them. If we suffer too many deaths, how will we face other civilizations?

“Obscura’s minimum requirements for you must be the lowest, given their understanding of the cosmos. Is paying such a price truly worth such meager goodwill?” Lu Yin asked.

Lu Yin had never voiced such questions before, but he felt that he could, given that Ku Deng had just broken through. That was because, including Qing Cao, humanity currently had five Immortals. The transparent moth had once mentioned that that number was sufficient for a civilization to survive in the cosmos.

So what if they were targeted by Obscura? Even if they could defeat humanity, they would bleed dearly to do so.

Against any other civilization, five Immortals was enough.

Even if Lu Yin did not understand just how strong a fishing civilization truly was, he still believed that to be true.

Five Immortals.

If the Nest civilization’s Immortal Lord learned that the Nine Odysseys Megaverse was home to five Immortals, would they dare to attack again?

An additional Immortal was enough to change everything.

Qing Cao looked at Lu Yin with a growing smile. “You are truly worthy of being someone who rules a megaverse. Your vision and bearing are enough to win many over. However, your words depend on you being able to see clearly, which you still do not.”

“What is it that you want me to see? Just tell me,” Lu Yin shot back.

Qing Cao shook his head. “My actions may appear to be despicable to human civilization. They may consider me a traitor or the cause of our decline, and yet I remain certain that my path is the right one.”

With that, he stepped away, vanishing.

Lu Yin watched the man go, his brow furrowed tight.

As Master Qing Cao had said, Lu Yin was very displeased with his choices.

If human civilization truly united, why would they need to worry about surviving in the cosmos?

Why did Master Qing Cao insist on going against their unity and instead cooperate with Obscura?

No one at such a level was a fool; it was simply that they were unable to see things clearly.

Master Qing Cao had to have his reasons, regardless of whether they were right or wrong.

Suddenly, Lu Yin thought of something: why had Greater Sancte Mi Jin spared Qing Cao? Had he truly shown mercy in order to preserve one more Immortal for humanity?

Such mercy touched on absurdity, but had the Greater Sancte been a fool? Of course not.

That meant that there had to be another reason.

What could it be?

Even after Greater Sancte Mi Jin’s death, Green Lotus and the other Greater Sancti had left Qing Cao untouched. There had to be a reason for that.

Lu Yin thought of the Gate of Laws again, as well as the crisis that Obscura posed for humanity. However, that gate could also potentially offer a path for humanity’s survival. Was it possible that Qing Cao’s very existence was such a path?

If that was true, then did Green Lotus and the rest not completely deny the possibility that Qing Cao might be right?

Lu Yin stood where he was, falling deep into thought.

Footsteps approached him from behind.

When he turned, he saw a familiar face, but seeing it caused his mind to tremble and his thoughts to race. He was struck by an unspeakable pain. Long Xi had arrived.

“Why are you here?”

She calmly looked at Lu Yin. The sunlight falling on her face caused her ethereal beauty to grow even more refined. Blue hair flowed to her waist. Even after so many years, she still carried that same grace. She was the same as when Lu Yin had first seen her.

Time had flown by, to the point where it almost felt like an illusion to him.

The Long Xi in front of him overlapped with the girl that he had first met, as well as the moment when she had given him her precious blood in order to save him. That same night, the sign related to the Python Ancestor had made everyone believe that Long Xi had been wed to Lu Yin. From that moment on, she had no longer been able to marry anyone else. Whether Lu Xiaoxuan lived or not, from that night on, she had become Lu Yin’s wife.

In the dreamlike karmic cycles, he had lived through that sequence a second time, and their connection had run even deeper than the first time. They had even had a lovely child, Little Xiaoxuan, who had smiled at Lu Yin and awaited his return.

That child’s innocent smile was unbearable to Lu Yin. He had lost his child, who had never even been real, and yet the loss was all too real.

The suffocating pain was impossible to endure.

Lu Yin did not want to face this woman. Throughout their entire relationship, he had always wronged her. She had silently given him so much, going so far as to even defy her clan. He was afraid to face her, their lost child, their lost past, and the lost karmic possibility.

If Ming Yan was the wife that Lu Yin had chosen, then Long Xi had already become his wife, both in reality and in the karmic cycle.

He owed her a debt that he could never repay.

“What’s wrong?” Long Xi asked, worried.

Lu Yin slowly sat down. When he spoke, his voice was a bit hoarse. “It’s nothing. Why are you here?”

“Master asked me to brew tea for you. Zhao Ran isn’t here.”

Lu Yin nodded. Before Boundless left for the Spirit Nidus, Long Xi had intended to take Zhao Ran’s place of serving tea for Lu Yin.

“Do you... not want me to stay?” she asked gently.

He looked up at her. “No... I do.”

He wanted her to stay. He did not know why, but he felt warmth from her presence.

At the same time, he did not want her near. Seeing her always reminded him of Little Xiaoxuan.

The karmic cycles were too cruel. It was the same reason why being cast into the Champions’ Stage Purgatory was so torturous.

“Stay.”

Long Xi met his gaze. “Why do you look at me so strangely?”

He averted his eyes and took a sip of his tea. “Do I?”

“It’s like you’re seeing the most familiar stranger. It reminds me of how others looked at you when it first came out that you were once Brother Xiaoxuan. Have I forgotten something?”

He set his cup back down. “Of course not. I’m just tired.”

“Then get some more rest.”

“Mhmm.”

Long Xi turned to go, but when she reached the door, she whispered, “It’s really good to have you back.”

With that, she left.

Lu Yin stared at his cup. It was not an herbal tea, but rather a brew that was fresh and pleasant. Even so, it was far too bitter.

“Reporting to Lord Lu: there are visitors from the Nine Odysseys Megaverse who are requesting an audience,” the Second Nightking called out.

“Show them in.”

Soon, two men arrived. One was an old acquaintance, Gu Duanke, while the other was a stranger, despite also being a peak Dukkhan. The man had achieved his cultivation by accepting a Seed Transfusion.

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