Chapter 2587: Lamentation Of Sages

No one knew just how long the Arboreal Realm had existed for. It had once fought side by side with the Origin Universe’s Third Mainland in a great battle against Aeternus, along with numerous other parallel universes. The Arboreal Realm had been one of the few universes capable of matching the Third Mainland’s strength, and they had allied together in the battle at River Jiu. If one tried to trace the Arboreal Realm’s history back to its origin, it was possible that the Arboreal Realm might prove to be even older than the Voidforce Universe.

Throughout its long history, who knew how many unique trees had been born? Just as the Origin Universe’s history had been broken and interrupted, the same was true of the Arboreal Realm.

Mu Sanye wanted to return to the Arboreal Realm in order to gather some information, as he felt that he might have thought of something.

...

One day later, a resounding voice echoed throughout the entire Sixverse Academy, “Everyone is to gather in outer space within ten breaths’ time.”

Lu Yin immediately moved out and entered outer space. Other figures immediately started to appear around him.

You Teng, Shi Jiao, and all the other universe representatives were present, and each of them portrayed a respectful attitude.

Within ten breaths of time, the tens of thousands of students from the Sixverse Academy had assembled in outer space.

Lu Yin had not expected to see so many people. Apparently, a new class had recently joined the Sixverse Academy.

He also saw Wen Sansi, Zhuo Daynight, and the others from the Fifth Mainland.

Shi Jiao stepped forward, sweeping the crowd with her Semi-Progenitor-level power. The pressure radiating from her was so intense that the void started to warp. “Starting from now, no one is allowed to speak. We will be leading you to witness a historical moment. This may be long, or brief, but regardless, do not speak.

“Any who disobey these instructions will be killed.”

The students were shocked. All of them were elites from their own universe, and while their levels of strength certainly varied, their future potential was undeniable. They enjoyed high statuses in their home universes, but they were being openly threatened with death now. This was something that most of them had never dealt with before, and no one dared to speak a single word.

By utilizing a power that seemed quite similar to an inner world, Shi Jiao led the entire group away from the Sixverse Academy, assisted by You Teng, Xu Xiang Yin, and Mu Sanye.

Lu Yin realized that they were headed for the Cyclic Universe; otherwise, Shi Jiao would not have been the one to take the lead.

Were they really about to enter the Cyclic Universe? Just the thought left Lu Yin’s heart fluttering with unease. This was a universe where even a Progenitor’s power could be given to an individual. Would the Great Sovereign sense Lu Yin’s presence? Would they stumble upon a Progenitor? The unexpected nature of this visit left Lu Yin completely unprepared.

In the blink of an eye, they emerged from the void to find themselves in an unfamiliar region of the universe.

Even for the students from the Cyclic Universe, they did not recognize where they had appeared. However, Lu Yin felt that the place felt oddly familiar. He could see a vast continent stretching across the vastness of space, and there was also the presence of stellular energy pulsating around him. If the landmass before him was not so incredibly vast, he might have mistaken this place for the Fifth Mainland.

The only portion of the Fifth Mainland where any part of the Fifth Mainland’s original landmass still existed was the Neoverse. Everything else had long since crumbled into nothingness.

The landmass before them was beyond massive, and it stretched out so far that it filled their vision, extending into the heart of the Cyclic Universe. The sight awed everyone present who was looking at it.

Lu Yin had glimpsed such a scene before in the memories of the Sixth Mainland’s cultivators, and then again when he had been traveling through space and time.

The Origin Universe had once boasted continents like what Lu Yin was seeing, but they were all gone now.

"Why is there a continent here?" an adorable, lively looking girl cried out in surprise. Curiosity filled her eyes as she turned to look at Zhi Bing with her question.

The man’s face fell when he heard her words, and the very next moment, the girl was gone. All that remained was a spatter of blood in space.

The other students who saw what had happened were overcome with absolute terror at what they had just witnessed.

The girl was dead. A spirited young woman had been instantly silenced by Shi Jiao.

"I already warned you—any who speak will be killed," Shi Jiao's voice rang out, her tone even colder than before.

The gravity of the woman’s words were embedded into the hearts of everyone who was present. This was not a joke; she really would kill any one of them without a bit of hesitation.

The girl had been from the Lost Clan, and she had even been one of Zhi Bing's favorite students. Despite that, she had been executed without a second thought. Zhi Bing could have intervened, but he had chosen not to. This was not merely the judgment of the Sixverse Academy, but a representation of the collective resolve of the entire Sixverse Association.

The student’s demeanors shifted. They sealed their mouths, determined to remain silent.

Lu Yin stared down at the landmass below. They were in the Cyclic Universe, but it was surprisingly similar to the Fifth Mainland, or rather, the Origin Universe. There had to be some sort of connection between the two universes.

A somber atmosphere settled over the crowd as Shi Jiao led them along. Even with her great speed given her strength as a Semi-Progenitor, they needed several days to cross the landmass. Once they reached the other side, Lu Yin and the others saw something truly shocking.

Everyone stared dumbfounded at a distant battlefield. They saw countless cultivators and corpse kings fighting a fierce battle. An impressive wall had been erected on the landmass, but it was so large that it no longer appeared to be a wall, but rather more like a folded continent. This was something that had been put in place to keep Aeternus at bay. It was simple and crude, but it was even more breathtakingly impressive than the Three Monarchs Universe’s rainbow wall. The wall before the students had a wild grandeur to it.

Stars could be seen shining both within and beyond the wall. Lu Yin could clearly make out a sourcebox array that was composed of countless stars that were scattered throughout the wall and beyond.

The wall seemed to be large enough to encircle the entire Cyclic Universe, though it was also possible that it only blocked one direction. It was possible to see dark-red stains across the wall. The battlefield was not only filled with humans and corpse kings, but also with various astral beasts.

There were countless cultivators fighting atop the wall, along it, and even within its deep crevices. While those fissures seemed small in comparison to the entire wall, they were enormous for the people fighting within them, and some were so large that they even held planets the size of Earth.

This was the Cyclic Universe’s battlefield where they fought against Aeternus. This was their version of the Perennial World’s rear battlefield.

Violence and slaughter filled the air, and every breath was tainted with the stench of blood.

There was a literal mountain of corpses, and a sea of blood.

"This is the battlefront for the war between my Cyclic Universe and Aeternus. Here, aside from peak powerhouses, everyone else is nothing more than an ant. Even people like us can easily fall in a moment’s carelessness. This wall has already been stained with the blood of two peak powerhouses, and today, you might witness the blood of the third be spilled upon this wall. This wall is known as the Wall of Purity." Shi Jiao's voice echoed in everyone's ears.

The crowd stared into the distance. The Wall of Purity?

It looked like a wall, but it was vast enough to contain stars and planets and tough enough to endure the attacks of Semi-Progenitors. It was even able to endure battles involving Progenitors. This was the Cyclic Universe’s battlefront.

Lu Yin took a deep breath. He was seeing fighting at least as intense as what he had witnessed on the rear battlefield. The bloodstains across the wall made it clear that this place had been a battlefield for a very long time. If the fighting was so intense at this location, he could only imagine how fierce the war on the Endless Frontier had to be.

The students did not know what they were supposed to be looking at. It was impossible for them to participate in the battle across the Wall of Purity, as it would be nothing less than suicide.

Shi Jiao's words sparked a great deal of speculation among the students. What had she been hinting at when she suggested that they might see the blood of a third peak powerhouse stain the wall? Was it possible that such an expert was about to enter the fray?

Even in a place like the Wall of Purity, it was rare for such experts to interfere.

The students continued to watch in silence.

War raged for ten days straight in the Wall of Purity. Day after day, the endless slaughter continued unabated, and blood continued to soak into the ground.

On the eleventh day, there was a sudden shift in outer space, and a sense of impending doom abruptly appeared and pressed onto the students’ very souls.

Lu Yin's expression hardened. A Progenitor-level figure had just arrived.

Shi Jiao and the others looked up to see an elderly man standing in outer space. There was a serene expression on his face as he gazed down upon the Wall of Purity.

The old man’s arrival caused the entire Wall of Purity to tremble from an overwhelming pressure that only a Progenitor could produce.

Shi Jiao bowed low. "Greetings, Sage Hua."

You Teng and Xu Xiangyin also bowed. "Greetings, Sage Hua."

All across the Wall of Purity, countless cultivators paid their respects.

Lu Yin and the other students followed suit, paying their respects to the Progenitor.

However, compared to Lu Yin and the others, Shi Jiao's eyes held a hint of sadness. Only she knew what was about to happen. It was one of the rarest moments in the Cyclic Universe and was something that would be recorded down in history: Lamentation of Sages.

Sage Hua spent two days staring at the Wall of Purity before he suddenly vanished. The next moment, countless corpse kings that had gathered beyond the Wall of Purity were crushed. Sage Hua had appeared and personally slaughtered the monsters.

“Sage Hua, you are seeking death!" A stern warning echoed from beyond the Wall of Purity. It was a Progenitor-level corpse king, and the voice that spoke was deep and cold. The corpse king charged forward to engage Sage Hua in a battle that shook the space and the entire landmass down below.

Fights between Progenitor-level figures were rare occurrences, and few ever had the opportunity to witness such a battle. Even as the people from the Sixverse Academy watched, their eyes stung. They were unable to see anything that was happening in the battle.

Countless cultivators fled from the Wall of Purity, with more constantly getting caught up in the powerhouses’ battle.

Space shattered. The pressure of just the aftershocks of the battle were intense enough to leave a Semi-Progenitor vomiting blood.

The Wall of Purity started to break apart as two figures traded ferocious blows. One of the two was the Progenitor-level corpse king.

Sage Hua was at a distinct disadvantage, and he physically fell behind in the battle. Humans had a significant disadvantage against corpse kings due to the difference in their physical abilities. However, Sage Hua was able to counter the corpse king's massive strength by employing the Harmonious Heavens Technique, and the corpse king was pushed to its limits.

Shi Jiao and everyone else watched intently, despite barely being able to make out any details at all.

Lu Yin remained calm. Sage Hua had arrived to die. He had charged away from the Wall of Purity and invaded Aeternus's territory. This was the punishment that he had been given by the Cyclic Universe and the Great Sovereign.

Pu!

Again and again, Sage Hua spat out blood. His corpse king opponent did not fare much better, as cracks covered its entire body.

"How much longer can your sourcebox array hold?" the corpse king roared as it hammered at the array with its weapon. Every blow tore the void apart and exposed an endless darkness that looked like the universe had been torn apart.

Even so, something deflected each of the attacks, and the blows were slightly diverted. Sage Hua was using a sourcebox array, though Lu Yin could not determine the array’s functions. The only clear thing was that the sourcebox array guaranteed that the Progenitor-level corpse king's attacks would miss Sage Hua, while the corpse king was forced to withstand Sage Hua's attacks.

It was clear that Sage Hua was an Array Grandmaster.

As soon as Lu Yin had been exposed to the Harmonious Heavens Technique, he had started to suspect something. If sourcebox arrays existed in other universes, then Array Grandmasters had to also exist, and Sage Hua was very likely one such expert. Lu Yin had already confirmed those suspicions, though he felt a pang of regret at the realization. How wonderful would it be if he could learn Sage Hua's sourcebox array.

Unfortunately, that opportunity seemed to be lost forever.

Sage Hua fought recklessly with no apparent concern for his life. No matter where the corpse king went, even if it retreated from the Wall of Purity, Sage Hua pursued the monster.

"I understand now—Lamentation of Sages. You were punished with the Lamentation of Sages," the corpse king said in a deep voice.

Sage Hua said nothing. He ignored the numerous wounds that had torn his body open, as well as his diminishing strength. With the fearlessness of someone who was determined to die, the man shot away from the Wall of Purity.

"Come, if you dare! Since you wish to die, I'll grant you your wish!" the Progenitor-level corpse king shouted once more.

As Sage Hua once again invaded Aeternus’s territory, and a lake took form around him. Unconsciously, Lu Yin stepped forward. He was seeing a Progenitor's world, Sage Hua's Progenitor's world.

The appearance of the Progenitor's world meant that Sage Hua was truly utilizing his full power. It was also a sign that the end was fast approaching.