Chapter 3291: Chains Of Karma

Lu Yin immediately called for Mu Zhu and his senior disciple brothers. If time had been taken from Progenitor Ku, then they could use Origin Tracer technique to search for it.

Mu Zhu was fine, but Qing Ping and Mu Xie were still struggling to recover. They had already used Origin Tracer to help Lu Yin deal with Prof. Wei, and they had not yet regained their full strength.

However, this matter was too important. If some of Progenitor Ku’s time had really been stolen away, then something truly significant must have occurred during that time.

When Progenitor Ku had invaded the Scourges by himself, he had not expected to return alive. He had fully intended to pave a path for future generations. Even if he died, he had intended to leave behind some clues within Aeternus. Even when he used his sequence particles to escape, he had not really expected to succeed. Lu Yin had scoured the black Mother Tree and all six Scourges, but he had not found even a trace of a clue.

That period of time had been taken away, and Master Qing Cao had to have been involved. But if Master Qing Cao had been in the Scourge during Progenitor Ku’s invasion, why had the man not simply killed Progenitor Ku? If he had not cared about the Progenitor, then why had Tian En been sent out to hunt Progenitor Ku down?

Master Qing Cao had his own plans, and both Lu Yin and Progenitor Ku wanted to discover what had happened during the missing time.

Senior Brothers Qing Ping and Mu Xie both went to the Five Spirits Alliance so that they could quickly recover in the parallel universes where time flowed faster.

It was more than a month before they finally returned. They had needed the extended stay with the Five Spirits Alliance in order to fully recover.

They were going to try to use Origin Tracer to search for a removed piece of time that involved a terrifying expert like Master Qing Cao. Not only were Lu Yin and several others present, but even Mister Mu had come, just in case.

The target for Origin Tracer was Progenitor Ku.

If some time had truly been taken away from Progenitor Ku, then his presence during that time would have to exist outside of the River of Aeons, which meant that Origin Tracer should be able to find it.

As they started using the technique, all that Lu Yin and the others could do was wait.

Ancient God’s death meant that Lu Yuan and his peers were all grieving terribly. Even the Origin Progenitor had fallen silent beneath the Immemorial Citadel.

The Immemorial Citadel was all quiet, and the Heavens Sect had similarly become eerily still.

The Aeternals may have been defeated, but only those who were unaware of the truth were celebrating. No peak powerhouse or anyone who had reached a higher level of cultivation could bring themselves to feel joy.

The true enemy had only just revealed themselves.

After half a year passed, the day finally came when Mu Zhu and the others shouted, “We’ve found it!”

They were staring at the stream of the River of Aeons trickling between them. There was a flashing gray light as images flickered by, but they were too blurry to make out.

Suddenly, a pair of eyes snapped open within the gray, and they stared directly at the four individuals.

Lu Yin instantly recognized the eyes, as they belonged to Master Qing Cao.

Cough!

All four people using Origin Tracer abruptly coughed up blood and collapsed.

A wave of Mister Mu's hand caused the void to tremble as the stream of the River of Aeons vanished. Concern covered his face.

In the middle of outer space, Master Qing Cao frowned. Had he been discovered? If so, it was time to start the war in earnest.

He stood up and made his way toward the edge of the megaverse.

On the mountain behind the Heavens Sect, only Mu Zhu remained conscious. The three men who had been working with her had all fainted at the same time.

Mister Mu quickly examined them and then said, "They’re fine. They only received a glance. That person didn’t do much to them."

After moving Senior Brother Mu Ke and the others aside so that they could rest, Lu Yin turned to Mu Zhu. "Senior Sister, were you able to see anything?"

Mu Zhu’s face was pale, but she recalled what she had seen and started drawing a symbol in the air.

The symbol that she drew was the same one that True God had noticed when Ancient God had been trying to fight Master Qing Cao. It was the symbol that was on Qing Cao’s withered wrist.

Progenitor Ku grew excited. "That’s the symbol! I don’t know why, but when I saw that, I knew that I had to survive and get the message out."

Lu Yin glanced toward Mister Mu, Lu Yuan, and the other senior cultivators present.

Lu Yuan and the others of the Three Realms and Six Dao were all visibly confused.

Even Wu Tian, who was known for being a teacher and possessing the broadest knowledge base, was unable to make any sense of the symbol.

"Karma," Mister Mu said as he stared at the symbol. That was all he said, just one word.

Everyone looked at the man in confusion.

What did the symbol have to do with karma?

Mister Mu stared at the symbol for a long time before he let out a sigh. "So that’s it. Now I understand. No wonder I managed to survive. It all makes sense now."

"Master, you understand this?" Lu Yin asked.

Mister Mu waved his hand, and the symbol disappeared. "In this megaverse, aside from myself, no one else will understand this symbol, not even Tai Chu. That’s because you simply haven’t experienced it.

"I saw this symbol long ago."

Mu Zhu looked at Mister Mu. "In our megaverse?"

Mister Mu nodded, his expression conflicted. "Yes, in our megaverse. At the time, I didn’t understand what the symbol meant, and I didn’t think much of it."

He then turned to Progenitor Ku. "As for you, why did you find this symbol so strange?"

Mister Mu then immediately shook his head. "Never mind, you won’t remember."

While it was true that Progenitor Ku could not remember, something must have happened at the time that had made him feel that the symbol was important enough to let others know about it.

It was even possible that the symbol was the reason why Master Qing Cao had taken a period of time away from Progenitor Ku and then sent Tian En to hunt the Progenitor down.

"If I were to guess, then I believe that this symbol is used for measuring time," Mister Mu continued.

Everyone felt confused by that. Measuring time?

Mister Mu continued in a solemn tone. “There are no absolutes in the megaverse. This is something that I, Tai Chu, Wei Nu, Tai Hong, and others have all agreed upon. If an absolute were to exist, such as an Immortal, then there would have to be restrictions holding them back. The most probable restriction is karma.

“We don’t know how Immortals might be restricted, but whatever it is, it must be severe. If not, how could a megaverse develop normally? An Immortal cannot possibly dominate the entire megaverse.

“When an Immortal takes actions, that is a cause, while the restrictions of the megaverse produce backlash, which is the effect. So, in my opinion, this symbol is a chain of karma. It’s a tool to measure karmic backlash.

“Immortals are truly invincible. If they act, then they can instantly alter the structure of the megaverse. When they don’t act, they are restricted by this chain of karma.

“This might be the only way to counter an Immortal.”

Lu Yin looked at Mister Mu. “Master, did you see a chain of karma like this when you encountered an Immortal?”

Mister Mu’s hands were clasped behind his back as he nodded.

“The first time I saw it, I found the symbol to be odd, but I didn’t think too much of it. I simply assumed that it was a symbol that belonged to that powerful being. Now, after seeing almost the same symbol once again, I realize that there is something wrong.”

Lu Yin suddenly thought of something. “Ask Shan Gu to come over.”

Mister Mu and Great Elder Shan Gu were the only two people who had ever personally encountered an Immortal. The Lost Clan had once succeeded in defeating their archenemies in their home megaverse, but then an invincible being had appeared, and all of the Lost Clan’s efforts were rendered futile, and they had even been forced to flee.

Great Elder Shan Gu quickly arrived.

Mu Zhu drew the symbol in the air once more.

Shan Gu stared at the drawing. There was confusion at first, but then his eyes grew wide with disbelief. “This- this symbol?”

“You’ve seen it before?”

Shan Gu gritted his teeth. “Yes, I’ve seen it. Lord Lu, where did you see this symbol?”

Lu Yin’s eyes flashed. “Where did

you

see it, Senior?”

The Great Elder was visibly agitated, as pure hatred filled his eyes. “That invincible being.”

“Was it on his wrist?” Mister Mu asked.

A tremor ran through Shan Gu’s body before he looked over at Mister Mu. “Yes.”

Mister Mu let out a breath. “So, it’s true. All Immortals carry this symbol, and they are unable to hide it.”

“Senior Shan Gu, is this symbol the exact same one that you saw?” Lu Yin asked. He then continued in a very serious manner. “Please think carefully, Senior. This matter is of great importance.”

Shan Gu nodded. He did not know where Lu Yin and the others had seen this symbol, but he clearly understood the gravity of the situation. It involved an Immortal, which was an invincible being. Would this megaverse see a repeat of the tragedy that had befallen his own?

The man closed his eyes and reviewed his memories for a long time before his eyes opened again. “They are different. The symbol that I saw was simpler.”

Using hazy memories, Shan Gu also drew a symbol. “I remember it clearly. At the time, my comrades, seniors, and juniors had all died, and their blood had stained the stars. My clearest memory of that time is this symbol. It seemed like that invincible being’s emblem. It lit up the stars as it was engraved deeply into my soul and the souls of everyone in my Lost Clan.

“This symbol has repeatedly appeared in my dreams. I remember it perfectly.”

Everyone compared the two symbols. In general, they were quite similar, but the one that Great Elder Shan Gu had drawn was a good bit simpler than the one that Master Qing Cao wore.

It was now clear that either all Immortals bore such a symbol, or Master Qing Cao had been the one to destroy Shan Gu’s megaverse. However, the Great Elder had seen images of Master Qing Cao and said that that man was not responsible.

Such a being would not bother to disguise themselves, just as how a human would not bother to disguise themselves in front of ants.

If the two Immortals were different people, then the symbol most likely served the purpose that Mister Mu had hypothesized. Immortals were all restricted by the megaverse, and this symbol was a measure of that restriction.

It was clear that Master Qing Cao’s symbol consisted of more lines than the one that Shan Gu had previously seen. The lines of the two symbols were not complicated, but rather repetitive. Most notably, they formed a circle that went around the wrist. What would happen if that circle was completed?

“Now that the Fated One has appeared, Master can finally recover,” Wu Tian suddenly announced.

Lu Yuan and the others' eyes all lit up. Yes, the Origin Progenitor had not allowed himself to recover out of fear of being targeted by the Fated One. Since that person had been exposed, the Origin Progenitor should be able to recover.

Lu Yin, however, considered a more serious problem. “The Fated One has been exposed, but we don’t know his goal. Now that he’s revealed himself, what is he going to do, since he can’t take direct action due to the chain of karma?”

“He’ll have someone else act for him,” Lu Yuan blurted.

𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Lu Yin’s expression changed. “But there’s no one left in this megaverse who can do that.”

“The Boundary Guardians,” Garan Zhiluo suddenly thought aloud.

Alarmed, Lu Yin quickly turned to Mister Mu. “Master, we have to go to the stone gate!”

...

At the Tianyuan Megaverse’s boundary, Jiang Feng was calmly sitting in front of the massive stone gate, his sword resting on his lap.

A figure appeared in the distance. It was Master Qing Cao. The old man was bent over as he carried his bamboo basket, and he slowly approached the gate.

Jiang Feng frowned as he watched the old man move closer. The Lord of Lightning did not recognize this man, but his mere presence made Jiang Feng wary. While he could clearly see the man, it somehow felt as though the old man was not really there.

“Who are you?” Jiang Feng asked as he slowly rose to his feet.

Master Qing Cao smiled as he examined Jiang Feng. “The Lord of Whitecloud City. Your rise to prominence was thanks to your mirebound artifacts. You have quite the legendary tale.

“I am Qing Cao, though people usually call me Master Qing Cao.”