Chaoter 3761: The Center

Chao Yi’s thoughts shifted to something else. Earlier, when he had been in the Willbound Expanse, he had sensed the power of karma and believed it to be an indication that Greater Sancte Green Lotus had arrived. He carefully considered that belief; if Greater Sancte Green Lotus had truly arrived in the Consciousness Megaverse, then why had Deathmound sent him?

He had dwelled on that idea for a while, but when Green Lotus never appeared, it had eventually been dropped.

Regardless of Green Lotus or Deathmound’s motives, Chao Yi’s only concern was to complete his mission.

After learning that Lu Yin had comprehended the power of karma, Chao Yi felt a chill run through his body. Was it possible that the power of karma that he had sensed before actually belonged to Lu Yin?

Chao Yi stared at Lu Yin in shock.

Lu Yin raised a hand, and a spiral of karma coiled around a fingertip before being casually flicked at Chao Yi. “If you don’t believe me, see for yourself.”

Chao Yi immediately avoided the karma. While the attack was invisible, he could still sense it. Sure enough, Lu Yin wielded the mighty power of karma.

The man stared at Lu Yin with an entirely different expression on his face. This man really had comprehended karma.

“I want the title of Lesser Sancte. That’s not too much to ask, is it?” Lu Yin confidently asked again.

Chao Yi simply continued to stare at Lu Yin.

Even asking for the title of Greater Sancte wouldn’t seem excessive with the power of karma.

Whether or not Lu Yin would eventually be able to reach the Immortal realm depended on his cultivation, but everyone in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse believed the power of karma was a shortcut to Immortality.

Not one of the young prodigies frozen in cryostasis in the Scion Spire had ever comprehended the power of karma. Throughout history, only Greater Sancte Green Lotus had ever mastered the power of karma at a young age.

Just how astonishingly talented was Lu Yin?

When word of Lu Yin’s accomplishment reached the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, there was no telling what sort of shock it would cause.

And Yue Ya had concealed it entirely.

“Fine. I will report your condition.”

Chao Yi continued to stare at Lu Yin: “You will visit the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, right?”

“Of course. I need my Lesser Sancte title,” Lu Yin replied.

Chao Yi nodded. “You’re welcome to visit Deathmound.”

With that, he left.

Luo Ning and the other captives felt helpless as they watched Chao Yi move away. They all wished to go with him.

Lu Yin tossed everyone back onto a Zenith Mountain. It was time to strengthen his consciousness once again.

He had recently captured Old Chief, Shuangdao, and Xi Wen, and so he immediately started by devouring Xi Wen’s consciousness before moving onto Shuangdao.

No matter how the Luminaries begged or tried to prove how invaluable they were, nothing could compare to the straightforward value of Lu Yin improving his consciousness.

After devouring another two Luminaries, Lu Yin’s head felt heavy, as if he was holding up an entire mountain. Even so, his perception of the Consciousness Megaverse became clearer than ever.

He observed the High Seraph and Yue Ya as they descended onto a planet.

There was no rush. He would deal with those two after devouring Old Chief’s consciousness.

Lu Yin was eager to see the shock on his two enemies’ faces. They had no idea that Old Chief and the other Luminaries had been captured.

Lu Yin moved within five meters of Old Chief. The conscient tried to speak, but he had already been Possessed.

Old Chief was the oldest Universe-realm conscient in the Consciousness Megaverse, and his memories were far more extensive than any of the other Luminaries. Lu Yin still had not fully processed even Wu Wei’s memories, so there was no way he could accept all of Old Chief’s.

The memories regarding the Heaven and Earth Lock were the only ones that Lu Yin needed to investigate. While Old Chief most likely had other highly valuable memories, there was no way for Lu Yin to pinpoint them, and his mind could not endure the burden of so many memories.

Suddenly, Lu Yin’s mind returned to his own body, and he stared at Old Chief in a daze.

My mind can’t endure so many memories... Yes, his memories are unbearable to me. This pressure is similar to the memories above the cliff in the Willbound Spire? But the pressure I felt there was more obvious, while the pressure that I suffer from absorbing Old Chief’s memories isn’t as clear. It’s just the vastness of them that overwhelms me

.

One was tangible, perceptible, and completely irrefutable.

The other was intangible, imperceptible, but could be rejected.

They were two different forms of memory, but if Lu Yin could convert the pressure on his string of memories when he was atop the cliff into this intangible pressure, then he would be able to reject those memories. That would allow him to approach the palace.

The more he considered the possibility, the more excited Lu Yin became. There were times when enlightenment arrived in a single instant. Once it was grasped, a transformation would occur.

Lu Yin stared at Old Chief with feverish eyes. He needed to find a way to transform Old Chief’s vast, boundless memories into a tangible pressure. Only after that would he be able to invert that pressure into an intangible form that he could reject.

He did not know if anyone had ever considered this method before, but he felt that it was highly likely that no one ever had.

Not everyone encountered the same fortuitous encounters as him.

His die’s Possession ability allowed him to repeatedly enter others’ bodies, which had made him accustomed to viewing others’ memories. Because of that, he had developed a strong ability to withstand memory pressure.

His consciousness had also made his own memories more resilient.

Old Chief, due to his overwhelmingly vast memories, was the perfect subject for Lu Yin to experiment with.

Enlightenment was nothing more than the final stroke, though carrying out that enlightenment would be anything but easy.

Old Chief saw Lu Yin’s burning eyes, and he was immediately filled with hopelessness and despair. A new spike of fear shot through him.

The ancient conscient had always instinctively feared death, but he had already resigned himself to it. However, what did Lu Yin’s new expression mean? Why did he appear so... terrifying?

Lu Yin informed everyone aboard

Boundless

that he was not to be disturbed and that they should continue to focus on capturing more conscients. He needed to test his new idea. If he succeeded, he would be able to reach the palace in the Willbound Spire.

Right.

There was still another problem: he was not able to climb up that cliff.

However, that was not an insurmountable problem. Lu Yin wanted to climb the cliff, and so did the High Seraph. Lu Yin had found a method that would allow him to reach the palace, while the High Seraph was similarly confident that he could succeed. Their goals were aligned, which meant that they would join forces again sooner or later.

Elsewhere, Chao Yi left the Consciousness Megaverse. Ruler Garden had been annihilated, meaning that his mission had been completed. He was eager to return to Deathmound, not only to report his mission, but also to inform the Greater Sancti about Lu Yin.

A cultivator who had comprehended the power of karma was essentially someone who had found the path to Immortality. Caution was imperative.

A single green lotus leaf left the Consciousness Megaverse, drifting along an unseen path towards the Nine Odysseys Megaverse.

Chao Yi’s expression grew heavier. Lu Yin was not just some genius who had managed to comprehend karma either. He was the ruler of the Tianyuan Megaverse. He was both qualified and powerful enough to participate in the struggles at the peak of the megaverses. He had led

Boundless

to the Spirit Nidus, rendered the High Seraph helpless, and made all of Yue Ya’s efforts worthless. No matter if his strength, strategy, or methods were considered, Lu Yin could be regarded as anyone’s equal.

How should such a person be dealt with?

As Chao Yi continued to ponder the situation, he suddenly went stiff as he was struck by an indescribable chill that froze him to the bone. He was being watched, but by whom? Who could possibly observe him while he was traveling on a green lotus leaf? Not even people like the High Seraph and Yue Ya could hope to catch up.

Who could it be?

Chao Yi slowly turned around to see a pair of eyes staring at him. They were bright, gentle, and showed admiration and kindness as they observed the man.

The eyes belonged to a young man with strikingly handsome features. He was wearing a loose-fitting black and white robe, and a small, unreadable smile was on his face as he observed Chao Yi.

His eyes were so clear, and his smile was so pure. He simply stood in the Aevum Inch, surrounded by endless darkness, and yet a beam of white light shone upon him, illuminating the Aevum Inch and making the young man appear to be the center of reality.

Chao Yi stared in a daze. The green lotus leaf moved quickly, capable of speeds faster than what could be accomplished with a springboard, but at this moment, time and space both seemed to have frozen.

The instant their eyes met, the Aevum Inch became locked in place.

It was an odd sensation, and Chao Yi could not find words to describe it. It was like entering a store that had been cleared of all people so that a guest could be shown to the best seat. Even if there was a wall in front of the honored guest, they would not walk around it; rather, the wall would have to be torn down to make way for them.

That was the only way to describe what Chao Yi was feeling.

The omniverse itself was making way for this young man, for no other reason than that he wished to observe Chao Yi for a single moment longer.

A single glance was enough for Chao Yi to feel honored.

When the young man saw that Chao Yi was looking back at him, he placed a hand on his chest and offered a slight, gentle bow. His manners felt completely natural.

Neither man said a word.

When the young man straightened up, Chao Yi was no longer able to see him. The green lotus leaf had already carried him an unfathomable distance away.

The leaf traveled so quickly that not even a Dukkhan traveling through the Aevum Inch would be able to catch so much as an afterimage. Had Chao Yi simply caught a momentary illusion?

He turned back but saw nothing at all. The omniverse was mysterious and endless. The Aevum Inch was empty, and yet it held everything.

Had that young man been real or fake?

Was it possible for anyone to match the speed of a green lotus leaf?

At the boundary of the Consciousness Megaverse, the shattered gate had long since become nothing more than a decoration. It was completely incapable of preventing any creature from leaving or entering.

A lone figure suddenly appeared at the boundary. They stood tall atop some of the broken fragments of the gate and peered into the distance.

A black and white robe fluttered, as though caught by a breeze, and strands of the man’s hair brushed past his ear, creating faint ripples.

The man lifted his arm, and slender fingers slowly opened to expose a flawless white palm.

The moment the hand opened, an invisible tremor shook the Consciousness Megaverse. A spiral appeared above the man’s hand, but it instantly vanished. After that, shards of bright light shot towards him from all directions, traveling straight to his palm. The fragments of light soon gathered to form a long sword. If Yue Ya and others saw the blade, they would have instantly recognized it as a vastly miniaturized Starforged Sword.

“Oh? There are still a few fragments missing. Are they so keen to not return? Let’s hope that those who picked them up are polite,” the man said before disappearing.

On a planet in the Consciousness Megaverse, dark-gold clouds drifted about. Yue Ya had no intention of returning to the Nine Odysseys Megaverse. He did not even want to go back.

He was the reason why Ruler Garden had broken the law, which effectively made him a criminal as well. On top of that, interfering in the affairs of the three lower megaverses was something that the Nine Odysseys Megaverse did not tolerate. Returning at this point in time would be disastrous for Yue Ya even if he were still a Lesser Sancte.

The Lesser Sancti stood at the top of the megaverses, second only to the Immortals themselves. However, there were others who stood on the same level as Yue Ya in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse. He was certainly not unique.

The Consciousness Megaverse had been intended to be the final step of his path. He would either succeed and have his power transform, becoming invincible beneath the Immortal realm, or he would die.

He was waiting to see what the High Seraph would do. After all, no one but the High Seraph could possibly offer any form of assistance.

The High Seraph and Lu Yin may have joined forces before, but that did not change the fact that the two men were ultimately sworn enemies.

Also, there was that other person.

As Yue Ya considered his options, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him, startling him.

Yue Ya stared at the newcomer in a daze. He was in his cloud form, yet his gaze remained entirely fixed on his visitor.

“An impressive manifested thought body.”

𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Yue Ya could not believe this situation. How had someone appeared so suddenly? Not even the High Seraph or Lu Yin could possibly approach Yue Ya in an instant. It was simply impossible.

No one had ever done this before.

Even if he was not covering the entire Consciousness Megaverse with his Voidheart Mirror, Yue Ya’s manifested thought had enveloped a large portion of his surroundings. Anyone who entered within a certain range would be noticed, and yet Yue Ya had never detected this person.

“You seem quite surprised. Did I startle you? My apologies. I’ll be more mindful in the future.”

“Who are you?” Yue Ya demanded sharply, only to immediately back down, feeling his heart skip a beat. He felt an inexplicable sense of panic. Was he actually afraid? This man was speaking so politely, and yet somehow his words managed to invoke a primal fear from Yue Ya.