Chapter 3088: Star Capital

Lu Yin did not downplay his abilities. When dealing with powerful civilizations, the more humbly one behaved, the weaker they would be seen. Only by being bold and unabashed could he demonstrate his strength and gain a voice in a conversation.

He did not immediately mention Mister Mu, as Lu Yin wanted to use his master as a trump card at a critical moment.

First, it was important to earn their respect for his own strength, as that would help facilitate any future interactions.

While conversations with the Scourge Occupation had been pleasant, that had mostly been because of Mister Mu. There would inevitably be complications in future collaborations, which meant that Lu Yin needed to find opportunities to show his strength to those people.

This Aeternus Kingdom they were targeting had not been established for very long, no more than a few years. Once the Aeternus Kingdom was destroyed, the people who had not yet been transformed into corpse kings would be allowed to go free.

According to Mimina, there were many Aeternus Kingdoms throughout her universe. In the past, they had been difficult to destroy because the Aeternals had posted a very powerful entity to protect those places, but recently, that powerful guardian had disappeared, which had given them an opportunity for a counterattack.

Lu Yin asked more specific questions about the powerful guardian.

Mimina replied, "You might not believe me, but she was just a little girl. She only looked a few years old."

Lu Yin blurted, "Lan Lan?"

Mimina was taken aback. "You know her?"

Lu Yin's expression grew serious. "So, you’ve been facing the Second Scourge."

Mimina grew puzzled. "What's the Second Scourge?"

Lu Yin answered in a solemn tone. "I am happy to share information about Aeternus with you, but I do ask that, in return, you share what you know about them with me."

"Of course. Mentor Kakawen has already agreed to meet you, so I will take you to him immediately," Mimina stated clearly before moving to lead Lu Yin to the Nine-Star Civilization's most prosperous city, which was also where Mentor Kakawen resided: Star Capital.

Star Capital, as the name suggested, had been built in the shape of a star. The city was large, though not nearly as large as the Heavens Sect.

The city’s population bustled about, and there was no sign that their civilization was at war with Aeternus.

Mimina held a high position within the Nine-Star Civilization, and that allowed her to guide Lu Yin and his companions straight to the tallest building in the city. The building looked like a clock tower, and it even had a massive clock at the top, which gave off an exotic charm.

There was an academy within the building. In a place, above the massive expanse of Star Capital, many energetic students bustled about.

Lu Yin felt a pang of nostalgia for his days at Astral-10.

"Mimina requests an audience with Mentor Kakawen."

"Come in," a hoarse voice replied, right as the clock struck the hour.

Lu Yin and the other two followed Mimina into the tower, where they saw students hurrying up and down, seemingly focused on their studies.

The group did not make their way straight to the top of the tower. Instead, they started walking up.

As they climbed, the students greeted them, and many gave Lu Yin and his companions curious glances.

"I’m sorry, but Mentor Kakawen insists that no one use any special privileges within the academy. Everyone is required to do the same as the students, which means that we need to walk up," Mimina said apologetically.

Lu Yin did not mind. "That’s only right."

The clock tower was quite tall, and the people were walking slowly. The higher they went, the fewer students they saw.

In the end, there was only a single female student with long golden hair who respectfully greeted Mimina as she walked past the group. Finally, they reached the end of their climb.

There was a wooden door at the top of the clock tower that led to a single room. The door was clearly ancient, and it was practically falling apart, as there were gaps all around it.

"Mentor Kakawen, we have arrived." Mimina respectfully announced their presence.

"Come in. I won't get up to greet my guests, so please forgive me for getting old," the same hoarse voice replied.

Mimina opened the door and gestured for the three men to enter.

Lu Yin stepped in and the first thing he saw was an old man sitting at a wooden table. The man smiled at his visitors.

Sure enough, the old man looked quite decrepit.

His aura was similar to the ancient wooden door, as it was filled with a sense of decay. This was not like Shao Yin’s Extreme Yin and Law of Rot, as this decay was due to the passing of time. It gave the impression that the old man could die at any moment. His face was covered with wrinkles, and his eyes were cloudy. Even his white robe had faded into gray after many long years of use.

"I am Kakawen, the mentor of the Nine-Star Civilization," the old man stated. His cloudy eyes focused on Lu Yin, and he gave off the impression of a kind elder. There was no pressure from the old man.

Lu Yin answered politely, "I am Lu Yin, from the Origin Universe."

Kakawen smiled. "I know."

Lu Yin was surprised. "You know of the Origin Universe?"

Arch-Elder Zen and Leng Qing were both astonished as well.

Even Mimina was surprised, as she had not known about this.

Kakawen explained, "Mimina mentioned in her message that you referred to Seven-Star corpse kings as 'Progenitor-level corpse kings.' The term ‘Progenitor' is from the Origin Universe."

Lu Yin was impressed. "I see. Since you know about the Origin Universe, then you should understand that we cannot be agents of Aeternus."

"Hehe, not necessarily. Do you believe that Aeternus is unaware of the Origin Universe?" Kakawen retorted.

Lu Yin had no counter to that. "If it’s necessary, I invite you to visit the Origin Universe."

Kakawen raised a hand. "Let's sit down and talk first. Does the Daosource Sect still rule over the Origin Universe?"

Lu Yin shook his head. "There have been many significant changes since then. May I ask how you know about the Origin Universe and the Daosource Sect?"

Mimina casually moved towards the wooden table, where she prepared a tea-like beverage for Lu Yin.

"The people of my Nine-Star Civilization have visited the Origin Universe before your time. Some of our people have even gone to the Immemorial Citadel," Kakawen stated.

Lu Yin was caught off guard. "They went to the Immemorial Citadel?"

"The Immemorial Citadel might be a legend to you, but not to us. An old friend of mine is currently at the Immemorial Citadel," Kakawen replied, his smile deepening the creases on his face.

Lu Yin realized that he had been underestimating the Nine-Star Civilization.

The Immemorial Citadel not only held human powerhouses, but also other creatures who fought against Aeternus. Lu Yin had seen many strange combat methods be used on the Immemorial Citadel’s battlefield.

Could there have been people from the Nine-Star Civilization there as well?

"Senior Kakawen, since you know about the Origin Universe and since your civilization has sent people to the Immemorial Citadel, you should understand the threat posed by Aeternus. I am here as a representative of the Origin Universe to propose an alliance with the Nine-Star Civilization to stand against Aeternus," Lu Yin formally stated.

"If you have doubts about us, we can take you to the Origin Universe. Once there, you will see everything.

"Aeternus may be able to impersonate people from my Origin Universe and have them reach out to you, but they cannot falsify the entire Origin Universe. Right now, the universe is ruled by the Heavens Sect."

Kakawen was astonished. "The Heavens Sect? The same all-powerful sect that Aeternus destroyed all those years ago?"

Lu Yin nodded.

Kakawen grew puzzled. "Since the Heavens Sect was destroyed, how has it reappeared? By what right does the current sect carry the same name as the ancient Heavens Sect? As far as I know, during the Daosource Sect’s era, your Origin Universe was incredibly powerful, but even then, people did not dare to use the name of the Heavens Sect. May I ask who the current leader of the Heavens Sect is?"

"I am," Lu Yin replied.

Mimina was stunned. While she had known that Lu Yin enjoyed a high status and possessed impressive strength, she had never thought that he was the ruler of an entire universe, which made him comparable to Mentor Kakawen. How was that possible?

Kakawen also did not believe Lu Yin. "You?"

Lu Yin nodded.

"Forgive this old man’s poor eyesight, but may I ask, what is your strength?"

"Semi-Progenitor."

"Say again?"

"Semi-Progenitor."

"A Semi-Progenitor is able to rule over an entire universe? The two men behind you are both Progenitors, aren’t they? How did you manage this, young man?"

Lu Yin shrugged. "There are many things that can't be explained with just a few words, but the short answer is that times are changing. I managed to accomplish things that might not be possible even for those at the Immemorial Citadel. If you don't believe me, I invite you to visit the Origin Universe to see for yourself."

This was the third time he had extended an invitation.

Kakawen shook his head. "I won't go. I simply don't trust you. The Aeternals are too cunning, and while an old man like me isn’t put off by the threat of death, I can still be of some use. Aeternus is always watching me. On top of that, how coincidental is it that, out of the countless parallel universes, the ruler of the Origin Universe just so happens to visit my Nine-Star Civilization? Such coincidences don't happen."

Lu Yin was at a loss. "In that case, I’ll be open with you. The reason why I was able to enter your universe was because I was guided here by my master. He is known as Mister Mu."

Crash!

The teapot fell from Mimina's hands, and it shattered on the floor.

She stared at Lu Yin in shock, her expression frozen.

Across the table from Lu Yin, Kakawen, despite his ancient and wise appearance, was equally stunned by Lu Yin's words.

"Mister Mu? Is Mister Mu your master?" Kakawen was visibly excited.

Mimina was still staring at Lu Yin, her eyes filled with a mix of excitement and curiosity.

Lu Yin had no idea what Mister Mu had done for this civilization, but judging by the strong reaction, he had clearly struck a chord.

"Yes, my master really is Mister Mu."

Kakawen's eyes flickered, and his excitement gave way to intense scrutiny. "Are you really Mister Mu's disciple?"

Lu Yin nodded.

"Prove it. Young man, I will warn you now. Even if you were actually sent here by Aeternus, I won't act against you without proof, but if you dare try to deceive us by using Mister Mu's name and are unable to prove that you are his disciple, I will make sure that you never leave my Star Capital, even if it means that my Nine-Star Civilization suffers. We are willing to bear that cost," Kakawen stated solemnly.

The man’s aura of decay had grown oppressive, and the skies over Star Capital grew dark.

Mimina warily stared at Lu Yin, ready to attack at any moment.

Lu Yin had not realized his master was held in such high regard by the Nine-Star Civilization, but in hindsight, this was not terribly surprising.

The people of the Scourge Occupation were violent and rather crude, and yet they greatly respected Lu Yin just because of Mister Mu. The Nine-Star Civilization was bound to be even more cautious.

The Scourge Occupation had not doubted Lu Yin because they did not believe that anyone would dare to impersonate Mister Mu to deceive them. There was no need to do so either, but the Nine-Star Civilization was different. They had fought against Aeternus for an unknown length of time and had experienced many things.

In some ways, they were just like the Origin Universe, where even the glorious Heavens Sect had been destroyed by the Aeternals. This had not been accomplished through overwhelming strength, but rather through Aeternus’s cunning plots.

Even the Lu family had been exiled due to Aeternus's schemes, and they had very nearly been unable to return.

Aeternus was adept at recruiting Redbacks and spies, and they were willing to use whatever means were necessary—including assassination and crushing people’s spirits. In fact, they excelled at such things.