Chapter 4234: Mistake

The woman also looked up at the arched bridge. On it, the dozen or so people who had surrounded her earlier had returned. To be exact, they had not gone far when leaving. Only a few sentences had been exchanged between the two people beneath the bridge. In front of the group, a short, middle-aged man had appeared. He slowly walked onto the bridge, his eyes locked onto the small raft.

“You still don’t plan to make a move? You may not be this person’s match, but he also isn’t able to easily defeat you. For the sake of a single insect, it’s not worth it for him to take action... provided that you reveal your true strength.”

The woman quietly replied, “I don’t want to fight. I just want to escape.”

“Why?”

“I’m tired.”

“Tired?”

“I’ve taken action too many times over these last years, yet not once has that solved any problems. Instead, escaping has helped. Escaping can actually solve things.”

“I’ve never heard of avoidance solving problems.”

“The environment is different. When people go against others, avoidance can resolve problems. When people fight against their circumstances, avoidance can never solve anything.”

“That makes a bit of sense.”

By now, the short, middle-aged man had left again. Taking his dozen-plus subordinates, he had approached the bridge from one end and left from the other, never even stopping his stroll across it.

The woman looked back at the person on the raft. “Who are you?”

Still lounging on the bamboo raft, Lu Yin slowly smiled at the woman. “It’s been a long time, Shui Su.”

The woman stared at the suddenly clearly visible Lu Yin in a daze, stunned by the sight of him. Lu Yin... It’s actually Lu Yin. The real Lu Yin.

Lu Yin was one of the strongest beings in the entire human civilization, standing at the absolute pinnacle of humanity. Despite not being an Immortal, he enjoyed the status of one. There were many rumors that even claimed that Lu Yin’s status placed him near the top of humanity’s Immortals.

Unlike ordinary Immortals, Lu Yin was inclined toward dominion. He was, for all intents and purposes, the master of humanity’s three megaverses.

The Seven-Treasure Anuras, which had once been feared by their human civilization, had been taken to the Consciousness Megaverse by Lu Yin. He had granted humanity the innate gift of teleportation, providing them with an absolute means. He was the ladder which their human civilization would use to climb towards becoming a fishing civilization. Lu Yin was regarded as a supreme existence who was protected by all of humanity, and who protected humanity in return.

Shui Su had never imagined that she would encounter the man in Wuyang City once again beneath an arched bridge.

Should such a person not be in some high above place, overlooking the entire universe?

Was he not capable of seeing through everything in a megaverse and even the Aevum Inch with but a glance?

Why would he come to such a place?

Lu Yin made an inviting gesture. “Care to eat?”

Shui Su was someone who had once used Lu Yin to shake off some pursuing enemies. After that, she had followed him to Everchange Valley, and even later, to the Worldscript Assembly on the Ridgeplain.

She was a beautiful woman, but for various reasons, she had become skilled at disguising herself. To Lu Yin’s eyes, the woman was like a wild cat that loved to steal and take advantage of others. She was slippery, wary, beautiful, and dangerous.

Meeting her again, Lu Yin found that Shui Su was still using disguises. However, unlike before, the sharp edge that she had once carried was gone, worn down to the dusk-like weariness of someone trudging through life. This should not have appeared in such a person. While her cultivation was not particularly strong, she was quite good for her age and could also be considered young.

They had once been acquaintances, but because of a change in status, they had become worlds apart.

Shui Su had thought that she would never meet Lu Yin again. The only way she should be able to see him was by looking up, peering upwards as he addressed the entire human civilization. She was also a member of human civilization.

Shui Su slowly bowed to Lu Yin. “Greetings, Lord Lu.”

Lu Yin smiled. “Come. Have something to eat.”

Seeing the few small dishes arranged on the table, Shui Su took a deep breath. She stepped on the flowing stream, boarded the little raft, and stiffly sat down across from Lu Yin.

The raft continued to drift downstream, passing beneath the arched bridge and continuing on into the distance.

Some distance from the bridge, the short, middle-aged man had a grave expression on his face. Only after the raft was no longer visible did he speak. “Geng Zi.”

The leader of the group of people quickly bowed. “Present.”

“You did well. You will be rewarded.”

“Thank you, Lord Feng.” Geng Zi hesitated. “Lord Feng, that person...?”

Lord Feng narrowed his eyes. “I couldn’t see them clearly.”

“Even you couldn’t see them clearly, Lord Feng? They must be truly formidable. There shouldn’t be anyone in Wuyang City whom even you can’t see clearly.”

“They were merely passing through, drifting down the river. They’re being quite leisurely.”

“That’s enviable. I wonder what cultivation level they have.”

“That depends on whether they truly don’t care about anyone and everything that they may have encountered while drifting downstream. Don’t forget, this river’s course was altered long ago. The newly risen Fifteen-Family Alliance shifted it to set up a spirit treasure formation. Following this river downstream will cause one to pass through not only that formation, but also the Fifteen-Family Alliance’s territory.”

“Is the Fifteen-Family Alliance really that powerful?”

“Hmmm... Individually, some families are strong, but not all of them. While the weakest is only a bit stronger than me and therefore still wary of me, the Fifteen-Family Alliance as a whole is different. Long ago, in response to the Nest civilization’s invasion, people from the Tianyuan were relocated here, and their arrival caused many families to lose their land, as they were forced to relocate. That caused the Fifteen-Family Alliance to form, both for self-protection and to survive the civilizational war.

“After those wars, the Fifteen-Family Alliance continued to stand strong. Several of the member families completely outmatch others. For example, one of the families once wiped out the Linlushan family. Another is even comparable to the former Waterside family, having been second only to them in power in the region. In fact, that is the same family that leads the Fifteen-Family Alliance, essentially uniting it as one.”

Geng Zi’s expression grew solemn. “The Dong family.”

“Correct, the Dong family. They forged the Fifteen-Family Alliance, having once been second only to the Waterside family. When the Waterside family was destroyed for slandering Lord Lu, the Dong family became the strongest in the East Domain. Now, the Fifteen-Family Alliance has risen to become a major force in this region, and they are not to be trifled with. If that person actually dares to pass straight through the Fifteen-Family Alliance’s territory, he has true strength.”

“Lord Feng, then what should we do?”

“Follow and watch.”

“Yes.”

The river did not flow fast, but in Shui Su’s eyes, the water was practically motionless. She could not taste any of the food she ate. Before Lu Yin, she had no idea what to even say.

Lu Yin poured tea for the woman, and she scrambled to do it herself.

“Don’t be nervous. We’re old friends. I’m bored anyway, so why don’t we catch up? It looks like you’ve had a hard time,” Lu Yin spoke casually. He understood that his status and strength implicitly pressured others, but the only thing that he could do was try to keep his words as relaxed as possible.

Shui Su’s expression fell. “Thank you for your concern, Lord Lu.”

Lu Yin looked at her. “If you spend your life disguising yourself, that disguise eventually becomes your true appearance.”

Shui Su trembled, and she quickly removed her disguise. “My apologies, Lord Lu. I momentarily forgot.”

Lu Yin chuckled. “Disguised or not, you look the same to me. It doesn’t matter.”

Shui Su grabbed her teacup and finished it in one gulp.

Just as Lu Yin moved to pour her another cup, she hurried to snatch up the teapot first, and she poured a cup for Lu Yin before refilling her own cup.

Lu Yin watched in silence. “Tell me, why are you so tired? You could have easily dealt with those people, and even that Lord Feng wouldn’t have been able to defeat you too easily. Why even bother with the insect corpse? It shouldn’t hold much value to you.”

Shui Su softly replied, “This insect corpse isn’t for me, but for Lin Jie.”

Lu Yin was puzzled.

“He is the patriarch of the Linlushan family, and he has become my adoptive father,” Shui Su explained.

Lu Yin was surprised. “The Linlushan family’s patriarch?”

He had a vague memory of the man. When Lu Yin had first visited the Ridgeplain, he had deliberately caused trouble for the Autumnspring Slip. At that time, Lin Jie had stepped forward to stop Lu Yin. Later, when it became clear that Lu Yin was not someone to risk offending, Lin Jie had essentially disappeared. “How did someone like that get involved with you?”

Shui Su’s voice grew bitter as she recounted her tale.

She was originally an independent cultivator and thus had become skilled at making use of anything available to her, including people, circumstances, and items. That was how she had met Lu Yin and followed him for some time. After the battle at Ridgeplain that had destroyed the Autumnspring Slip, Shui Su had parted ways with Lu Yin, returning to her life as an independent cultivator. However, one time when she passed by the Linlushan family’s territory, their patriarch had recognized her and warmly invited her to stay as a guest. After that, she had become unable to leave. She had not been imprisoned. Rather, her hosts had simply been too enthusiastic. Shui Su was not someone who would accomplish things with force, and it had become impossible for her to simply slip away in secret. With no other choice, she had remained with the Linlushan family.

When that family was defeated by three other families uniting together, Shui Su had fled the family’s ancestral home with them. At that time, she had no longer been able to leave, as doing so would have caused her to be hunted down by the other three families.

After escaping from the Linlushan family’s mountain, the family had relaxed, believing themselves to be safe. Surprisingly, Tianyuan cultivators had suddenly appeared, and many regions of the East Domain had been ceded to the immigrants. That had included the Linlushan family’s place of refuge, which had forced them to continue wandering. During this time, their patriarch had saved Shui Su on several occasions, leading her to acknowledge him as her adoptive father and joining the Linlushan family.

Lin Jie was the patriarch of the Linlushan family, and he had treated Shui Su very well. Not only had he taught her battle techniques and cultivation arts, but he had also poured out everything that the Linlushan family possessed without reservation. He had also protected her and helped her escape when they had encountered dangerous situations. Shui Su had once been separated from the Linlushan family, with Lin Jie risking his life to send her away. Later, after endless hardships, she had found the Linlushan family once more. From that moment on, she had stayed with them, joining the family wholeheartedly.

Unfortunately, the Linlushan family’s luck had been truly terrible. They wandered all around, enduring hardships the entire time. Coincidentally, they encountered an ancient trove, which had led them to believe that their luck had turned, only for them to end up being targeted by a more powerful family. Not only had the treasure been stolen, but the Linlushan family had also been nearly exterminated.

Ultimately, after multiple twists and turns spanning many years, Shui Su was the sole survivor, and she had taken away Lin Jie and his daughter. They had been hiding in a mountain valley rather close to Wuyang City, living in a village among ordinary humans.

The reason why Shui Su had stolen the insect corpse was because the injuries that Lin Jie had suffered over the years needed treatment, but the Linlushan family no longer possessed any resources. She had no choice but to resort to thievery.

Lord Feng was regarded as the local tyrant of Wuyang City. While the value of the insect corpses had drawn many cultivators over, most were independent cultivators with no backing or families. The insect corpses were not valuable enough to draw actual factions.

They were only enough to draw out independent cultivators, who fought over the scraps. The insect corpses that Lord Feng had buried were the oldest in the city.

Hearing Shui Su’s story, even Lu Yin could not suppress a sigh at the difficult times that she and the Linlushan family had suffered through and how rotten their luck had been.

Shui Su’s voice was bitter. “The cultivation world has never been easy, especially now, at a time of civilizational war and the merging of megaverses. Lord Lu, you stand high above, and many of these things never reach your sight. But at the lower levels of the cultivation world, people fight for their individual interests, using whatever means they can. Independent cultivators can only survive by banding together. The most miserable are small families like the Linlushan family. They aren’t independent cultivators, yet they only possess the strength of independent cultivators, making them even easier prey for the great families.

“Over the years, there have been no fewer than twenty families who preemptively attacked us. There were many times when they were able to attack without even making up any excuses.”

“Such as if you fought back?” Lu Yin asked.

Shui Su nodded. “Fighting back is a crime. Fighting back gives them a reason to kill you.”

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