Chapter 3177: Understanding The Bigger Picture

In the Origin Universe, on the mountain behind the Heavens Sect, Lu Yin examined a card in front of him. It was Shan Gu’s card, Heavenly King. For the members of the Lost Clan, their cards were like a second life, so the fact that Shan Gu had willingly put his card into Lu Yin’s care showed the man’s absolute trust in Lu Yin.

In the past, Lu Yin had hesitated over whether he should help the Great Elder by Enhancing his card, but he had since dismissed his reservations. His only choice at the moment was to proceed with the upgrade. Whether or not the butterfly was helping Aeternus did not matter. What did was the fact that Aeternus had the means to gain the butterfly’s assistance.

The Lost Clan was only the beginning. As Aeternus grew weaker, they would start using more and more diverse methods to retaliate. Still, there were only so many powerhouses in existence, and Lu Yin refused to believe that Aeternus could hold out forever.

He raised his hand, and his die appeared. A touch set the cube spinning, and Lu Yin watched as it slowly landed on three pips: Enhance. His eyes lit up. Getting Enhance on his first roll was a lucky start.

He placed Heavenly King on the top light screen and started out throwing endless star essence. Upgrading Evernight had cost him over 100 trillion star essence,[1] a staggering amount. There was no chance that Heavenly King would be any cheaper to Enhance.

100 trillion star essence. It had taken a tremendous amount of effort to gather such a sum, and yet he was using it up so quickly. The loss was incredibly painful for Lu Yin.

No, this was unacceptable. He had to find a way to get more star essence. He most likely would not be able to acquire more from the Origin Universe, which meant that he could only look to the Cyclic Universe. While their energies were the opposites, both could still be used by Lu Yin’s die.

As the star essence disappeared, the card continued to slowly fall until it finally dropped out of the bottom screen. Just like with Evernight, the upgrade had cost Lu Yin 100 trillion star essence.

He reached out and picked up the card. At that moment, a scene repeated itself, and the people in the Lost Clan's universe were astonished as their cards inexplicably reacted to something unseen. It was as though the cards were worshiping something.

At this moment, Shan Gu was currently in the Heavens Sect, though he also noticed the phenomenon, and he looked towards the mountain behind the Heavens Sect. At this moment, he understood that the phenomenon he had witnessed before was not caused by the arrival of a Primeval card, but rather due to Evernight.

Lu Yin had Enhanced Evernight into a Primeval card, and that had induced the strange phenomenon in the other cards. The fact that it was repeating meant that Heavenly King’s upgrade had succeeded.

The old man had no idea how Lu Yin had done it, as it was too miraculous to even consider. Even at their civilization’s greatest peak, they had not been capable of improving Immemorial cards. On top of that, how long had Lu Yin taken to finish the process? At this juncture, the Great Elder felt that there was a shroud of mystery concealing Lu Yin. There were unfathomable depths to the young man.

Shan Gu grew anxious as he waited to have his card returned to him. When he finally saw it, he could feel that the familiar connection to his blood was still present, but there was also something odd about the connection. It was as though there was a barrier between the man and his card.

This was the power of a Primeval card. Shan Gu was still only a peak powerhouses, and he was not an Ortuser. Using a Primeval card meant exceeding his own level of cultivation, and doing so would be far from easy.

"Great Elder, give it a try. If you’re confident that this will be enough to stop that butterfly, wonderful. If not, we’ll come up with something else," Lu Yin said.

𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

Lu Yuan gave the card a curious look and then turned his focus to Lu Yin. Lu Yuan remembered hearing True God mention something. Mirebound artifact? Perhaps only a mirebound artifact could possess such a miraculous ability.

Great Elder Shan Gu soon returned to the Lost Clan’s universe. He felt extremely excited, as though he had discovered a new path forward. Since Lu Yin was able to upgrade an Immemorial card into a Primeval card, then could Heavenly King be upgraded once more?

Lu Yin did not say yes, but he also did not say no, which gave the Great Elder hope. At his people’s peak, they had possessed a card greater than Primeval cards, and that card was the one that had landed a blow on that invincible being. If they could acquire a second card at that level, they might actually have a chance to resist.

This was also what only Lu Yin could do to strengthen the Lost Clan. There were many other human civilizations in existence, and with Lu Yin’s abilities, what could not be achieved? At this moment, the Great Elder’s perspective of Lu Yin transformed.

Shortly after Shan Gu returned to the Lost Clan’s universe, the butterfly returned. This time, Lu Yuan did not show up, and instead, Lu Yin made an appearance. He wanted to see how the Great Elder would go about stopping the butterfly.

"Tian En, if you want to exile my people, go ahead and try. No one will help us, but we won’t allow you to push us around however you please!" Great Elder Shan Gu stared at the butterfly from a great distance, and his tone of voice was completely different from before. This time, there was hope.

The butterfly flapped its wings. "Dao Monarch Lu, what is your Heavens Sect's position on this matter? Please don’t make things difficult for me."

Lu Yin arched a brow. "I won’t make trouble for you. Go ahead."

"Thank you. You’re someone who can understand the bigger picture," said the butterfly, gratitude clearly present in her melodious voice.

Lu Yin smirked. "I should also thank you, for helping Aeternus to cause trouble for me. Please, call me Seventh Bro."

"I haven’t helped Aeternus. Aeternus has done me a favor, as have you humans. My attitude towards both of you remains the same," the butterfly said.

Lu Yin retorted, "Then what about Feng Bo? Did you drive him out?"

"Yong Heng told me that Feng Bo is already dead. You killed him."

Lu Yin sneered. "How ridiculous! Do you actually believe that? That a mighty sequence powerhouse was killed by a Semi-Progenitor like me? On top of that, the moment you said something about Feng Bo not being from this megaverse, Aeternus told you that he’s already dead. You’re still only targeting the Lost Clan. Why aren’t you going after Aeternus?"

"I’m really sorry about Feng Bo, and I promise that I will give humanity an explanation for my actions. For now, please allow me to first handle the matter of the Lost Clan," the butterfly replied.

According to Mister Mu’s words, if they wanted to avoid provoking all four Boundary Guardians, then the Lost Clan needed to deal with Tian En on their own. Regardless of whether or not they could endure, none of the Guardians would attack the Heavens Sect. On top of that, as long as there was only one outsider to deal with, only one of the Boundary Guardians would act, as they oversaw completely different regions of the megaverse.

The butterfly was currently focused on Shan Gu. Out of everyone in the Lost Clan, he alone deserved Tian En’s attention.

However, aside from Shan Gu, there was no one else present from the Lost Clan. Even their peak powerhouses, such as Shan Zheng and Shan Yan, were gone. If Shan Gu was unable to endure, then there was no chance that their other powerhouses would be able to do anything at all.

"Your name is Shan Gu, right?" the butterfly asked in a soft voice.

The Great Elder stared at the butterfly. "It’s true that my Lost Clan doesn’t belong to this megaverse, but we’ve still lived here for many years. We’ve long since come to regard this place as our home and have forged deep ties with the people here while fighting against Aeternus. Why can my people not be accepted?"

"Your clan’s destiny does not belong in this megaverse, so you should not stay here. Leave, and I will point you in the right direction." The butterfly flapped her wings. This was a demonstration of her respect for the Lost Clan. They were not a weak civilization, and with the support of the Heavens Sect, Tian En was unwilling to push too far.

The Great Elder’s eyes lit up. "The direction back to our homeland?"

The butterfly sighed. "I'm sorry, but I don't know where your homeland is, so I can't show you that direction. All I can do is guide you out of this megaverse."

"You'll give us a direction, but towards what? What kind of megaverse will await us? Do you know?" Shan Gu pressed.

The butterfly said nothing, which was an answer. She did not know.

Her duty was to remove all outsiders from the megaverse, but that did not extend to helping them find their way home. Whether they lived or died once they left the megaverse was none of the Guardians' concern.

Lu Yin suddenly thought of Mister Mu. He was another person who clearly did not belong to this megaverse. Since Aeternus had fallen to a disadvantage in the war against humanity, there was no way they would forget about Mister Mu.

This thought prompted Lu Yin to look over at the butterfly again, but this time, a flicker of killing intent appeared in his eyes. There was no doubt that the Boundary Guardians were humanity’s enemies.

Some individuals were righteous and impartial, but others were protective of their own kind. Lu Yin clearly belonged to the latter. While he would offer a certain degree of courtesy and respect to strangers, he would go to exceptional lengths to protect those who were close to him. Mister Mu was among the closest, being Lu Yin’s master. Whether or not the Boundary Guardians were helping Aeternus, even if they were simply performing their duty, Lu Yin would not tolerate any action they took against Mister Mu.

It also seemed that the Boundary Guardians were increasingly leaning towards supporting Aeternus. While the butterfly spoke in a kind tone, used polite words, and claimed that she owed humanity a favor, what sort of favor was it? It was nothing more than an excuse to take action against the Lost Clan.

Shan Gu sighed. "It appears that you don’t care about us at all. Is there no way for us guests from afar to have a way of staying?"

The butterfly's voice remained as gentle as ever. "I’ve already said all there is to say. If you insist on trying to stay, then I will have no choice but to act against you. I’m truly sorry. Dao Monarch Lu, this is just a reminder, but there are three others like me. If humans insist on protecting these people, we might end up as your enemies."

Lu Yin narrowed his eyes. "Is that a threat?"

"No, it’s just a reminder, with the best of intentions. I really don’t want to end up as your enemy. I’m sorry for this." With that, the butterfly flapped its wings, stirring up a beautiful glow that swept out. In an instant, the light replaced the Lost Clan's universe, abruptly revealing a kaleidoscope of colors.

Lu Yin’s expression changed. This was the power of an Ortuser. There was no indication of any sort of attack, but the Lost Clan's entire universe had been transformed.

While Ortusers were not necessarily much more powerful than peak powerhouses, they had a single distinct advantage: Ortusers were unaffected by the laws of the universe.

This was why sequence powerhouses were forced to bow their heads against Ortusers.

As the light flowed out, the Lost Clan’s universe froze. It looked like a beautiful painting. The entire Lost Clan was held within the painting, and not one of them could move.

Lu Yin was able to move, but that was only because the butterfly had not targeted him. Even so, Lu Yin could not do anything.

The butterfly may have refrained from attacking Lu Yin as a means of inciting him to attack her, or perhaps she was trying to avoid giving him a reason to attack.

However, there was no need for Lu Yin to do anything. There was a reason why Ancestor Lu Yuan had not even bothered to make an appearance.

Above Shan Gu's head floated Heavenly King, and around it stood three tall statues. Their features were indistinct, but they radiated a majestic aura, giving the impression of towering mountains that could crush the universe. The butterfly’s attack was met head-on.

The moment the butterfly's light touched the three statues, it collapsed. It could not get any closer.

Lu Yin's eyes went wide at the sight. The butterfly’s radiance was able to freeze the entire universe, but it was unable to even get close to Shan Gu. What did those three statues represent? Heavenly King clearly had not possessed such power in the past. Had the statues somehow changed when the card was upgraded to a Primeval card?

The butterfly was astonished. "The power of an Ortuser? How can you wield this strength?"

The Great Elder calmly gazed at the butterfly. "Why not? If not for this level of power, how could my people have entered this megaverse?"

The butterfly’s wings slowed their flapping, and the surrounding universe slowly returned to normal as the light dissipated and the beautiful image vanished.

1. A typo in chapter 3150 led to the amount being mistaken. The old chapter has been fixed. This amount is correct. ☜