Chapter 2484: Apprehension

Lu Yin replied, "How can I do that? I only have the one, so if I give it to you, what will I do?"

"Without the coordinate seal, how can we return?" the two Progenitors demanded.

"I won't close the rift, so you can just come back."

Arch-Elder Zen felt rather ashamed after hearing Lu Yin’s comment. If Bai Wangyuan and the others dared to enter the rift to the parallel universe, the man was absolutely certain that Lu Yin would not hesitate for a moment to close the rift and leave the Progenitors stranded in the parallel universe.

The expression on Lu Yin's face appeared somber and sincere, but Bai Wangyuan and the others could only see pure shamelessness.

Wang Fan arrived and asked, "Where's Specter Progenitor?"

"He went in," Bai Wangyuan replied.

Wang Fan felt confused by the answer, but after turning to look at Lu Yin, the man noticed the spatial rift. "Is that a parallel universe?"

"Specter Progenitor went in there, but Lu Xiaoxuan is the one who holds the coordinate seal. He wants us to enter and look for Specter Progenitor," Xia Qin explained.

Wang Fan stared at Lu Yin. "You want us to go in there?"

Lu Yin pursed his lips. "Whether you go in or not is entirely up to you. All I’m saying is that Specter Progenitor is inside."

"Lu Xiaoxuan, this matter has nothing to do with you. Specter Progenitor has leaked the Celestial Frost Sect and Shenwu's Sky’s battle techniques, and we must settle things with him," Bai Wangyuan retorted.

"It doesn’t have anything to do with me, which is why I won't get involved. You’re welcome to do however you please," Lu Yin replied.

"Then give us the coordinate seal so that we can go in and find Specter Progenitor," Xia Qin said.

Lu Yin decisively answered, "That place holds a great deal of death energy, which is the energy that I use to cultivate. How could I possibly allow you to leave your marks on the coordinate seal? What if you decide to ambush me while I’m in the middle of cultivating? I'll be a goner."

Xia Qin and Wang Fan both turned to look at Bai Wangyuan.

Bai Wangyuan nodded. "There is indeed death energy deep underground beneath the ruins of Aeternus Nation."

"Since there's death energy, doesn’t that mean that we’ll be at a disadvantage if we go in there to search for Specter Progenitor?" Xia Qin’s brows rose.

Bai Wangyuan and Wang Fan glanced at each other. A disadvantage? What disadvantage? Even with access to greater amounts of death energy, how much stronger could Specter Progenitor become? The masters of the Nine Mountains and Eight Seas were different from ordinary Progenitors. Even if Specter Progenitor cultivated with the God of Death’s death energy, he was not the God of Death’s heir, and death energy’s unique characteristics were far from enough to compensate for the difference in strength between the man and one of the Nine Mountains and Eight Seas.

Death energy had been developed by the God of Death, while the Nine Mountains and Eight Seas had been created by the Origin Progenitor.

Lu Yin sat on the jiao’s head. He told Arch-Elder Zen to go back.

"They aren’t here for me, and they won't do anything to me," he explained before pointing to the nearby Champions' Stage. "Besides, I can protect myself."

As long as Lu Yin was in the Fifth Mainland, he had access to many powers that were at the Progenitor level, including Progenitor Chen’s power. If the four ruling powers wanted to harm Lu Yin, they certainly would not find it an easy task, and Arch-Elder Zen could return at any time to help, if needed.

The old man nodded. "Then take care of yourself."

He needed to keep an eye on Shenwu Continent to ensure that no accidents occurred, so he quickly left.

Lu Yin turned back to face Bai Wangyuan, Wang Fan, and Xia Qin. Despite being alone, he looked completely confident.

However, as Lu Yin had mentioned to Arch-Elder Zen, Bai Wangyuan and the others were not targeting Lu Yin, and they also had no intention of breaking the truce. They would not attack him at this time, even if he did get involved in the matter regarding Specter Progenitor. Regardless, in the worst case scenario, he could simply give them the coordinate seal.

Space was quiet. The only sounds that could be heard were from the stars and planets.

No vessels dared to approach the area, as the pressure of the various Progenitors kept all at bay.

Lu Yin held his chin with a hand while lounging atop the jiao’s head and watching Bai Wangyuan and the others discuss their next move.

Before long, Bai Wangyuan said, "Ask Specter Progenitor to come out. We won't attack him, and tell him that we believe that he is not the one responsible for leaking our battle techniques. However, we absolutely must get to the truth of what has happened."

Lu Yin pointed to the rift that led to Aeternus Nation. "Go tell him yourself."

"Lu Xiaoxuan, this matter has nothing to do with you, but you offered a parallel universe for Specter Progenitor to hide in. There's no excuse for your actions, and even if Mu Xie were to come here, he has no reason to help you. Our universe is not yours to do with as you please. Since you've already gotten involved, there are certain things that you must do now," Bai Wangyuan stated in a low voice.

Lu Yin asked, "Are you trying to reason with me?"

"You could say that."

Lu Yin took a moment to think things over. "Alright, I'll go and talk to him for you."

He vanished through the rift into the tiny parallel universe that held Aeternus Nation, stunning Bai Wangyuan and the others. Was it really going to be so easy?

In Aeternus Nation, Lu Yin appeared in front of Specter Progenitor, but he only stayed there for a moment before turning around and leaving the universe again. Specter Progenitor was left completely confused.

"He's not coming out," Lu Yin reported.

Xia Qin frowned. "If he's refusing to come out, then he must be guilty."

"Those were my thoughts as well. Maybe you guys should go on in and fight it out?" Lu Yin suggested.

Xia Qin thought that Lu Yin was completely despicable. The last time they had met, they had held similar positions due to her own past grievances that included both the Xia family and Xia Shang, so Xia Qin had agreed to a deal with Lu Yin. At that time, she had already felt that Arch-Elder Zen’s description of Lu Yin had been perfectly accurate: ruthless and scheming. However, this time, they were on opposite sides, and for this reason, not only did Xia Qin feel that Lu Yin was completely shameless and incredibly gifted at spouting nonsense to muddy the waters, but she also felt like he was one step ahead of them, which was incredibly frustrating.

Wang Fan spoke up next. "Lu Xiaoxuan, please ask Specter Progenitor to come out. We won't harm him."

"He's not coming out," Lu Yin replied.

"Try asking him again," Wang Fan pressed.

Lu Yin sighed. "I shouldn't have bothered showing up here. Your issues have nothing to do with me."

He reentered the parallel universe, and Specter Progenitor stared as Lu Yin simply left once again after making a brief appearance. The man was completely confused by Lu Yin’s actions.

"He's not coming out."

Wang Fan’s eyes narrowed. "What if we swear not to lay a finger on him?"

Bai Wangyuan and Xia Qin both turned to look at Wang Fan in shock, and even Lu Yin was surprised. "You really care about Specter Progenitor, don’t you? You're even willing to swear an oath not to harm him. Whether he leaked your battle techniques or not, he clearly must have at least stolen some. Are you really willing to forgive him for that?”

“Wait a minute, he only leaked battle techniques from the Celestial Frost Sect and Shenwu's Sky, but neither of those matters have anything to do with your Wang family, so why are you so eager to protect him?"

Wang Fan replied, "Techniques from both the Celestial Frost Sect and Shenwu's Sky have already been leaked, but the moment any other technique is leaked, it’s guaranteed to be from our Wang family. Since he clearly stole from the Celestial Frost Sect and Shenwu's Sky, how could he have not stolen from our Wang family?"

Lu Yin praised, "Senior Progenitor Wang Fan, you are truly wise. Alright, I'll go ask again."

Just as Lu Yin was about to turn around, he remembered something. "Since you’re so certain that Specter Progenitor stole from your Wang family, are you really sure that you don't want to lay a finger on him?"

Xia Qin immediately added, "Senior Wang Fan, Shenwu's Sky’s battle techniques have already been leaked, and Specter Progenitor will have to take responsibility for that. If we don't investigate what happened and his culpability, we might as well publicly announce that we’ll allow anyone to steal our techniques in the future."

Despite maintaining his silence, Bai Wangyuan felt the same way.

While both he and Xia Qin hoped that Specter Progenitor would emerge from the parallel universe so that they could determine the truth of what had happened, it was absolutely impossible for the two of them to swear to not lay a finger on the man.

Wang Fan said, "What I am saying is that we won't lay a hand on him for the time being. We'll wait until the truth is determined."

Lu Yin said, "That's true. If Specter Abyss really did steal your techniques as well, it won’t be too late to take action after the truth is revealed."

Just then, Wang Fan's wireless jincan trembled, and he answered the message.

"Ancestor, we found a disciple of Specter Abyss hiding in the Wang family's continent," came a report.

The wireless jincan's movements allowed Wang Fan, Bai Wangyuan, Xia Qin, and Lu Yin to all observe the incoming message.

Wang Fan's expression fell. "Are you sure that they are from Specter Abyss?"

"Absolutely. They used death energy, as well as Sit and Forget."

Bai Wangyuan sneered. "So your Wang family isn’t able to escape from this either."

Wang Fan's expression grew incredibly ugly. "Where is he now?"

"He escaped."

Wang Fan became utterly furious. "How can the Wang family allow people to come and go as they please?"

The person submitting the report started to panic. "It wasn’t just one person! There were also people from within the family cooperating with them, in addition to people from outside our continent helping as well!”

In a fit of anger, Wang Fan completely crushed the wireless jincan while glaring at the rift that led to the parallel universe.

Lu Yin chuckled. "Senior Progenitor Wang Fan deserves his position as one of the Nine Mountains and Eight Seas. Your prediction was absolutely accurate—the next battle technique to be leaked indeed belongs to your Wang family."

Wang Fan turned to stare at Lu Yin. "Ask Specter Progenitor to come out."

Lu Yin shrugged. "He won't come out, so you can just go in and speak to him in there."

"I that remember your Forsaken Land has some Specter Clan," Wang Fan suddenly commented while staring at Lu Yin.

Bai Wangyuan and Xia Qin also looked over.

Lu Yin remained calm. "That’s right. Do you suspect that your intruder was someone from the Fifth Mainland’s Specter Clan?"

"Whether they were or not, we’ll find out soon enough."

Lu Yin said, "Fair enough. Long ago, the Specter Clan joined with Aeternus in order to receive protection. Later, Aeternus was sealed outside in the Starfall Sea, and the Specter Clan betrayed me by turning to Jue Yi. I’ve since captured all of them and have records of each person's cultivation level and whereabouts. You can check all of them. I don't mind."

Bai Wangyuan did not believe that the Specter Clan was capable of stealing from their sects. "This should have been the work of Specter Abyss. Stealing our battle techniques isn't something that could have been planned overnight. How long have our two regions of this universe been connected?"

Wang Fan fell into deep thought. No one could guess what was running through his mind.

"The facts are quite clear: only Specter Abyss cultivates both death energy and has the ability to steal our battle techniques. Lu Yin, what do we need to do for you to give us Specter Progenitor?" Xia Qin spoke up.

Lu Yin was hesitant. "It's not that I don't want to hand him over, but-"

Bai Wangyuan interrupted, "What are your conditions for giving us the coordinate seal? Just be blunt."

They had already abandoned the prospect of negotiating with Specter Progenitor.

Wang Fan looked over at Lu Yin.

Lu Yin pretended to be feeling conflicted. "In that case…"

He was just about to say he would enter Aeternus Nation together with Bai Wangyuan, but that he would not share the coordinate seal. Of course, he had already decided to offer these conditions long ago, but before he could say anything, a bit of news was reported that was so shocking that the matter of Specter Progenitor was set aside for the moment.

Bai Xian'er was about to break through.

Bai Wangyuan stared at his wireless jincan. He was initially a bit surprised, but he quickly grew ecstatic. He quickly sent back a message, "Is Xian'er really about to break through to the Semi-Progenitor realm?"

"Yes." Bai Sheng was the one delivering the report.

Lu Yin's eyes narrowed. So was it true that Bai Xian'er actually was not a Semi-Progenitor yet? Lu Yin had never been able to determine the woman’s strength or cultivation. When the Fifth Mainland’s Upper Three Gates had been forced open decades before, Bai Xian'er had used a mere finger to crush one of the Sixth Mainland’s Semi-Progenitors. Such impressive power should have meant that she had been a Semi-Progenitor, but after that, Lu Yin had heard many people claim that the woman had not yet become a Semi-Progenitor. However, others were confident that she had already broken through. There were truly all kinds of different rumors circulating regarding Bai Xian’er’s cultivation, and Lu Yin had never been able to determine the true from the false.

He had even asked his senior brother, Mu Xie, who had said that Bai Xian’er had not yet become a Semi-Progenitor, as Mu Xie was unable to sense any hint of an inner world from the woman.

Finally, she was about to have her breakthrough.

With the sole exception of the Celestial Frost Sect, Bai Xian'er's breakthrough was bad news for everyone, including even the Xia and Wang families.

Wang Fan's expression instantly changed.

Lu Yin's expression was similarly grim. Even before becoming a Semi-Progenitor, Bai Xian'er had been strong enough to leave Lu Yin nervous. A successful breakthrough would place her only a single step away from becoming a Progenitor. Given her foundation, the woman should have been capable of breaking through and becoming a Semi-Progenitor long ago. Lu Yin could not even imagine how deep her foundation must have become over the years.