Chapter 2172: Starting The Stellular Tribulation

The information that Lu Yin heard from the Bei family’s ancestor gave him another option. While Lu Yin had no idea why Virtue Archives had made such changes, it did not really matter. As long as they were cooperating with the four ruling powers, Virtue Archives could be used as a gate through which to enter the four ruling powers, which was an intriguing opportunity.

The four ruling powers were unquestionably in control of the Perennial World. While Lu Yin’s identity as Young Master Yu would likely give him the means to enter Shenwu's Sky, it was unlikely that he would be able to get close to any of the other three families. He hoped to learn more about how the Lu family had been banished, and it seemed that Virtue Archives might be the best way to do so.

Of course, it was nothing more than a possibility.

"Ancestor, you promised me that I could go to Virtue Archives!" Bei Xiaoyu begged.

The old man replied, "I'll keep asking. I’ll check again."

Two more days passed, and suddenly, Lu Yin’s expression changed. He immediately disappeared from his location next to the pond. Bei Xiaoyu soon arrived, but she found that the place was abandoned. "Where did Senior go?"

The Middle Ocean’s surface was calm. Stars and planets were hanging in the sky overhead, and islands dotted the horizon. It was impossible to see the end of the ocean in any direction.

The Middle Ocean surrounded the entire Middle Realm, which meant that the Middle Ocean was actually larger than the Middle Realm.

Lu Yin arrived on an island, and Kui Luo soon showed up beside him. They both looked northwards. That was where Qing Ping had finished his preparations to face his stellular tribulation.

"Old man, get ready. Senior Brother’s tribulation is going to be a big one," Lu Yin warned. As he spoke, he pulled out the mirror. "Senior, come out to see the show."

Kui Luo sneered. "How big could it get? I'm an old man who’s seen a Progenitor’s tribulation before. Do you think that he could start something bigger than that?"

This question caused Lu Yin's expression to change. After all, it might indeed be impossible for his senior brother to survive that stellular tribulation. Lu Yin still clearly remembered the punishment that had appeared at the end of his first stellular tribulation, and if not for the corpse that had somehow managed to block the attack, Lu Yin definitely would have died.

At this thought, Lu Yin pulled out his needle-like weapon and handed it over to Kui Luo. "I’ll let you borrow this, just in case."

Kui Luo rolled his eyes. "Don’t bother."

Lu Yin put the weapon back away. "I hope that we won’t need to use it."

Progenitor Smoke finally showed herself. "What's all the fuss?"

A smile appeared on Lu Yin's face. "Senior, my senior disciple brother is about to face his stellular tribulation, so let’s watch it."

Progenitor Smoke looked northwards as well. "He's facing a Semi-Progenitor’s tribulation? He’s very powerful, and the tribulation is going to raise quite the commotion. You asked me to come out here to protect him, didn’t you?"

Lu Yin readily admitted this to be true. "My senior brother is a Realmbreaker who’s already able to fight against Semi-Progenitors, and there’s almost no doubt that his tribulation will draw in powerful enemies. With you here, Senior, I’ll feel more comfortable about his safety. Forget Semi-Progenitors—I won’t even be afraid if Wang Fan, Bai Wangyuan, or the others come!"

"Wang Fan? Bai Wangyuan? Where are we? Are they going to show up?" Lu Yin’s comment surprised Progenitor Smoke, and she started to glance around. She was instantly drawn to the sight of the Mother Tree in the distance, which was a happy surprise. "Is that the Mother Tree?"

"That's right, the Mother Tree. We’re in the Perennial World that this junior told you about."

Progenitor Smoke looked up, staring towards the Higher Realm, and possibly even beyond that. "Wang Fan and those guys are really here. I haven't seen any of them in a long time, but I’m really looking forward to it."

Lu Yin suddenly thought of a potentially serious problem: Progenitor Smoke and Wang Fan were from the same generation, so were they friends? Based on previous conversations, it had sounded like Progenitor Smoke had been close to Progenitor Chen, Progenitor Ku, and the Rune Progenitor, and she also showed a great deal of respect for Progenitor Lu Tianyi, but what if she also had a good relationship with Wang Fan and Bai Wangyuan? Would she ask them to help her and break her free from the fog that trapped her?

This possibility gave Lu Yin a massive headache. While Progenitor Smoke had always demonstrated a positive opinion of his Lu family, as well as a good relationship with Progenitor Chen and the Rune Progenitor, those details had caused Lu Yin to forget about the other important matters. What was Progenitor Smoke’s relationship with Wang Fan and Bai Wangyuan? She had never mentioned anything about it at all.

"Senior, how is your relationship with Wang Fan and the others here?" Lu Yin carefully asked.

Progenitor Smoke sneered. "We don’t get along with each other."

Lu Yin quietly let out a sigh of relief.

Progenitor Smoke glanced over. "What? Are you afraid that I'll run away from you ?"

"Of course not. Besides, you are free to do as you wish, Senior. Who could stop you?" Lu Yin quickly said.

Only after hearing a bit of flattery did Progenitor Smoke feel better. "That sounds better. I’ll tell you right now—no one can trap me aside from myself!"

Lu Yin was speechless, but her words rang true. After all, Progenitor Smoke was indeed trapped by her own power.

As they spoke, darkness had shrouded the nearby area, and the sky had completely changed. A heavy pressure descended from above, and it slowly mounted as lightning flickered and thunder roared.

Many people in Cowry City and several other cities along the coast all looked north. What was happening? Why had the sky changed?

The Bei family’s ancestor stood next to the sea, watching the phenomenon with a solemn expression. This pressure, could it be from someone’s stellular tribulation? The old man could not determine what level this tribulation would reach.

People not only looked out from along the coastline, but also from a few of the larger islands in the center of the Middle Ocean, as they were able to see the change in the sky as well. Some of the observers were Envoys, while others were only Enlighters.

More and more people stepped out to look towards Qing Ping's growing stellular tribulation, and many started to make their way closer. Passing tribulations was always difficult, and simply watching a stellular tribulation could be a valuable experience. It was also possible to draw in people with darker intentions, so long as the one facing the tribulation was not too powerful.

More and more cultivators moved closer from every direction.

Lu Yin noticed their movements, but he did not care about these people. All of them would soon be fleeing. A Semi-Progenitor’s stellular tribulation would always be massive, and these people who wanted to watch it would quickly realize that their positions were actually within the scope of the tribulation.

A vortex started to form, and Qing Ping looked up with a calm expression. He had been waiting for this day for a long time.

Truthfully, Qing Ping’s cultivation had been strong enough for him to attempt this breakthrough long ago, but the man had continued to strengthen his foundations. Qing Ping had not lied to Kui Luo about Mister Mu’s requirements for his disciples. They truly needed to be capable of facing Semi-Progenitors as Envoys and Progenitors as Semi-Progenitors. It sounded absurd, but it was what Mister Mu had told Qing Ping was necessary.

If he had not reached the level of strength where he could fight against Semi-Progenitors as an Envoy, Qing Ping would have never attempted to break through to the next level.

More and more people started to gather in the area, and three or four of them were even Envoys. The Bei family’s ancestor arrived, but he did not recognize Qing Ping. Lu Yin had only allowed Kui Luo and Qing Ping out of Zenith Mountain when no one else had been present.

"Friend, how many stellular tribulations have you faced already?" someone called out in a loud voice. Everyone else was also curious to hear the answer.

Qing Ping ignored the question and simply closed his eyes.

The person who asked the question snorted contemptuously. "It looks like our friend doesn’t care for us. I wish you a smooth journey!"

"He might not be looking down on us, but is rather simply concentrating on preparing for his stellular tribulation. He might not be able to worry about anything else right now," someone else commented.

The person who had called out to Qing Ping first just sneered. "That’s possible, but there’s still plenty of time to respond. The more serious a person is about their stellular tribulation, the less confident they are in succeeding."

It was a small comment, but the man’s suggestion was very clear.

However, no one dared to argue. The person who had spoken was named Liu Bo, and he was the strongest powerhouse in the region. He ruled over an island city that was much larger than Cowry City.

"The tribulation is still growing. By its size, this might not be his second stellular tribulation but rather his third," another person observed.

Liu Bo frowned. If this man passed his tribulation, then it meant that he would become a three-tribulation powerhouse, which was the same level as Liu Bo himself, which was less than ideal. Liu Bo had grown accustomed to acting brazenly in the neighboring regions, so how could he allow anyone to surpass him and take that away? However, the man facing this tribulation seemed to be a traveler from elsewhere.

"Brother Liu, after his tribulation, you won’t be the only three-tribulation Envoy in the area," someone said with a laugh.

Ancestor Bei also laughed, but he laughed because he was thinking of the young man whom he had met in the pond behind his home. While the old man still had no idea how strong Lu Yin was, he clearly surpassed Liu Bo by far. After all, Ancestor Bei could see Liu Bo’s cultivation and strength, but he could sense nothing from the young man who had recently appeared.

Liu Bo looked quite unhappy with how things were developing. "He first needs to succeed."

As everyone was chatting, the tribulation expanded again and again, and it soon enveloped Liu Bo, Ancestor Bei, and all the other onlookers. Everyone who was beneath the Envoy realm had already pulled back and did not dare to get close to this tribulation.

Liu Bo stared at the ever-expanding tribulation, and the Envoy’s expression grew more and more displeased. This was most likely not his third tribulation, but rather his fourth.

The others had already guessed at this possibility as well, but no one dared to say anything more, as they were worried about offending Qing Ping and possibly facing retaliation.

On top of that, no one would ever dare to directly interfere in someone else’s stellular tribulation.

As soon as they were covered by the stellular tribulation, Liu Bo and the other Envoys retreated quickly, only to discover that the tribulation continued to expand without slowing down.

Liu Bo grew pale. This tribulation had already surpassed the level of a fourth stellular tribulation, so could this man possibly be facing his fifth one? Still, why was no one able to sense any hint of their strength?

Suddenly, another person arrived from the distance, tearing through the void in their rush. The man was solemn as he observed Qing Ping. "I am Yue Fan, the gatemaster of Humility's Gate in the Ultramarine District, might I ask for your name, Senior?"

Qing Ping still ignored everyone.

Ancestor Bei spoke up, "Gatemaster Yue, this senior should be a traveler. None of us have ever seen him before."

When Liu Bo noticed Yue Fan’s presence, he also spoke up. "This man is facing his fifth stellular tribulation. He's clearly very powerful."

Yue Fan was one of Humility's Gate’s nine gatemasters in the Middle Realm, and he was a powerhouse himself. He was much stronger than the gatemaster of the Blue Moon district, Liu Zhan, or even the previous gatemaster of the Huaiyuan Gate, Guan Tong. After all, the Ultramarine District was close to the Middle Ocean, which made it an ideal place for people to hide, and there were many Redbacks hidden in the region.

Yue Fan himself was a four-tribulation Envoy. "I can't determine his cultivation at all."

This was shocking news to Liu Bo and the other Envoys present. If not even Yue Fan could sense this man’s strength, then did that mean that he was already a five or six-tribulation powerhouse? That should be impossible!

While the Perennial World had many powerhouses, how many of them lived in the Middle Realm? It had been a long, long time since any five-tribulation expert had appeared in the Ultramarine District.

During this entire time, the tribulation continued to grow.

Lu Yin noticed Yue Fan. The Ultramarine District’s gatemaster? Right, I met him once on Qing Chen’s mountain.

At that time, Lu Yin had been masquerading as Long Qi, and he had been trying to keep a low profile, so he had not interacted with Gatemaster Yue Fan. From Lu Yin’s memory, Yue Fan should be the most powerful of the Middle Realm’s nine gatemasters, which meant that the man’s strength surpassed both Guan Tong and Liu Zhan.

Since Yue Fan was from Humility's Gate, then did that make him a comrade? Progenitor Mu Xie was the Commander of Humility’s Gate, and he was also Lu Yin’s senior Brother. Supervisor Qing Chen had also shown Lu Yin a great deal of kindness. Even when Lu Yin’s identity had been exposed on Dragon Mountain, the Fourteenth Gate of Humility’s Gate had still helped him by holding back a portion of the four ruling powers. Furthermore, Supervisor Qing Chen’s eldest disciple, Cai Shu, was a member of the Hidden Earth Society. No matter how Lu Yin looked at the matter, Humility’s Gate was an ally of theirs.

Liu Bo and the other Envoys continuously pulled back, and they were about to reach the island where Lu Yin and the other two were watching from. Shock and fear could be seen on Liu Bo’s face, and he felt extremely relieved that he had not overstepped and said anything truly offensive. After all, it had already become clear that this was not his fifth stellular tribulation, but rather his seventh one. A seven-tribulation powerhouse would be treated courteously even by the four ruling powers, and they would be allowed to enter the Higher Realm. Any one of the four ruling powers would be happy to give such an expert a high position within their organization.

How could such a powerhouse be facing their tribulation in the Middle Ocean?

Yue Fan was also staring at Qing Ping, but for a different reason. The inexplicable appearance of such a powerhouse was a matter that had to be reported to the supervisor.

However, the onlookers’ shock did not die out. The tribulation had reached the size of a seventh stellular tribulation, but that was only for normal Envoys. Someone like Qing Ping would never have an average tribulation.