Chapter 3969: The Great Master?

Lu Yin exhaled. He vanished, and when he reappeared, he was already back on the Yan family’s island.

Zhang Hongyun saw Lu Yin arrive and hurried over.

Lu Yin’s gaze swept over the crowd of over 100,000 cultivators from the Yan family, “Deprive the Yan family of their right to cultivate. All of their spirit seeds are to be turned in and sent to the front line.”

Zhang Hongyun bowed respectfully. “Understood.”

When the members of the Yan family heard Lu Yin’s order, their minds were thrown into chaos. Some grew pale, a few fainted on the spot, while others cursed loudly. “Lu Yin, what the hell are you doing? What gives you the right to revoke our right to cultivate? You’re from the Tianyuan Megaverse. You don’t belong to our Nine Odysseys Megaverse!”

“Lu Yin, you’re helping the Tianyuan Megaverse destroy the Nine Odysseys Megaverse!”

“What gives you the right to do this?”

Zhang Hongyun’s eyes flickered sharply. He released his aura and suppressed the entire Yan family. “Silence!”

Lu Yin looked at the crowd. “Ask your patriarch who told him to denounce me. He listened to the Netherfiends.”

The people before him looked completely bewildered, though Zhang Hongyun trembled.

The Netherfiends?

“It doesn’t matter if you know about the Netherfiends or not—I don’t need to explain anything to you. The bottom line is that you either hand over all of your spirit seeds, or you can personally report to the front lines. This is the price that your family must pay.”

Lu Yin then turned to Yan Zhong. “As for you, do you understand what you should do?”

Yan Zhong closed his eyes and slowly knelt down. “My life is not worth pitying, but the rest of my Yan family know nothing of the Netherfiends. I beg you, sir, allow them to go to the front line. There- there’s a chance that they might survive.”

“If they can survive, they will be allowed to live,” Lu Yin replied. With that, he simply left.

He was not concerned with how the Yan family had condemned him. The ultimate outcome of the war would reveal everything, and the people who actually mattered in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse already knew the truth.

He had refrained from destroying the Yan family not out of mercy, but because it was unnecessary.

The members of the Yan family had merely been following the crowd when condemning Lu Yin. That was not a crime deserving of death.

Perhaps...

Lu Yin returned to the Frightened Sparrow Terrace. Once there, he turned to look back at the South Domain. Had he gained a bit of compassion?

After rising above hatred, compassion had appeared. Compassion for whom? It was not for the Yan family, but for... people.

Greater Sancte Awe Gate had already appeared on the Frightened Sparrow Terrace. “Resolved?”

“I found a small fish, but unfortunately, I wasn’t able to catch a bigger one.”

Greater Sancte Awe Gate replied, “If the Netherfiends were so easy to deal with, we old fellows wouldn’t have failed to find them.”

Lu Yin did not feel disappointed. Not even several Immortals had been able to find the Netherfiends. It was impossible for him to drag them out that easily. “We’ve waited for years, both for Greater Sancti Green Lotus and Blood Tower to return, and also to chase out the Netherfiends. It seems that this should count as a failure.”

Greater Sancte Awe Gate said, “It wasn’t exactly a failure. The Netherfiends don’t have many small fish, and every one that is eliminated counts. The real problem at this moment is that the insect swarms are still growing, and their numbers are becoming absurd.”

𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Lu Yin’s expression hardened. “The insects are reproducing even faster than I anticipated. With just a few more years, even you might not be able to hold yourself back, Senior.”

Greater Sancte Awe Gate did not deny it.

“In that case, let’s add a few variables to the field. We’ll force them to restart the fight.”

“How do you intend to do that?”

Cold killing intent flashed in Lu Yin’s eyes. “Kill an Insect Lord.”

...

The moment that Lu Yin revealed his decision to kill an Insect Lord, he could not tell if it was just an illusion or real, but he felt like Greater Sancte Awe Gate had let out a breath of relief.

While she was an Immortal with the authority to decide everything in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse with but a single word, she was still under a great deal of pressure.

It was not that she did not trust Lu Yin, but rather that war could not be fought by following personal desires. As the situation changed, the relationship between Lu Yin and the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, as well as the war between the Nine Odysseys Megaverse and the Nest civilization, could all see unpredictable developments.

No one was truly able to control the battlefield, not even the Immortals.

If one of the Insect Lords was eliminated, the Nine Odysseys Megaverse would be under much less pressure.

But which one should they kill?

They had learned a great deal about the four Insect Lords.

Lu Yin had personally tested Unbroken Time, and there was no denying that it was a difficult opponent. There was also no doubt that Unbroken Time had managed to keep a number of its abilities hidden.

Chang had been assaulted by frenetic attacks from Gu Duanke and many of Deathmound’s experts. While the Third Night Pillar had been retrieved, in hindsight, it was clear that the insects had willingly given up the Night Pillar. Even Master Qing Cao was troubled by that particular development.

As for Luo Chan, needless to say, the bug could not even be found.

That left only Shan Xiao, who had been born in the Third Rampart. That bug possessed one of the Lost Clan’s cards, as well as their battle techniques. In every way, she appeared to be a human cultivator. That should make her the easiest to kill.

The ones who had fought Shan Xiao were those from the Eighth Night Pillar; specifically, it was Odyssey Commander Xue Lou, who was Greater Sancte Blood Tower’s eldest disciple. The man was a formidable powerhouse, and he was known as the Bloodwraith. He was truly powerful and nearly invincible beneath the Immortal realm. He should have been able to force out most of Shan Xiao’s abilities.

Lu Yin’s eyes flickered. Shan Xiao was indeed the most suitable target.

A few days later, someone arrived in the Frightened Sparrow Terrace, Lesser Sancte Dan Jin. She was only there because she had received Lu Yin’s invitation, and she had been asked to join the taskforce that would kill an Insect Lord.

To accomplish such a thing, adequate preparations were necessary.

Each of the Insect Lords was extremely powerful, and none would be easy to kill. Even with Lu Yin’s participation, there was no guarantee of success, especially with Unbroken Time and a strange lifeform like Luo Chan present. Adding in the possibility that the Insect Lords could use Immortal matter or even Lifeforce, Lu Yin’s goal of eliminating one would not be easy.

To that end, he had decided to ask several people to join a taskforce.

He did not expect the people that he invited to be able to kill an Insect Lord, but at the very least, they could ensure that he fought on an undisturbed battlefield. It would be worth having others help him, even if they only managed to isolate Luo Chan away from Lu Yin’s fight.

Luo Chan was able to instantly teleport, and it could also move an entire swarm of insects by enveloping them with its aura. If it was possible to perfectly isolate a region of outer space that blocked out all aura, Luo Chan’s support should be cut off as well.

That was the purpose of having Dan Jin and others join the attack.

“Are you confident?” Dan Jin asked as she walked over to Lu Yin’s side.

She knew that the four Insect Lords were powerful. If not for them, the Nine Odysseys Megaverse would not have been so passive in the current war.

Lu Yin replied, “As long as I have a chance to be in a one-on-one fight, I should be able to eliminate one.”

“Which one?”

“Shan Xiao.”

Dan Jin thought for a moment. “She might indeed be the most suitable target. Humans really are looked down upon.”

Lu Yin looked over in surprise, and Dan Jin continued to say, “When choosing an Insect Lord to target, all of us chose Shan Xiao, the bug who looks like a human. Am I wrong?”

Lu Yin looked away. It was true. Of the four Insect Lords, he certainly wanted to target the one that was easiest to kill. His first thought had been Shan Xiao, but why? Because she was closest to being human. Were humans the weakest?

At that moment, Lu Yin felt conflicted over whether he should target Shan Xiao.

At first glance, Shan Xiao seemed to be the weakest, but she was most human as well. What did humans excel at? Hiding things.

Appearing weak while actually being strong could very well be a defining aspect of humanity.

If they understood that about their own species, why had the humans still chosen to target the Insect Lord that seemed to be the most similar to humanity?

Lu Yin fell silent.

Soon, another person arrived, and they reeked of wine. It was Qing Xing.

“I didn’t expect you to actually come,” Lu Yin commented. He had only invited Qing Xing as a test. If Qing Xing had not helped on the battlefield with Ci Liu and suppressed the bug, Lu Yin would not have bothered inviting the man at all. Qing Xing appeared to no longer care about anything.

The man took a swig of his wine. “My master’s greatest wish while alive was to protect humanity. Besides, these bugs disgust me as well.”

Lu Yin nodded, saying no more.

Qing Xing asked no questions. He had no interest in finding out which Insect Lord was the target. He would simply attack.

Dan Jin also remained silent as she stood to the side, waiting.

Lu Yin had invited a total of three people. Two had already arrived, but he did not know if the last would appear or not. He had sent the invitation mostly out of curiosity. The two who had arrived would already be enough for his plans.

Still, there was no denying that it would be best if the third person joined them.

Just as Lu Yin was thinking about that, another person stepped onto the Frightened Sparrow Terrace.

Lu Yin immediately looked over, only for his eyes to reveal his surprise.

Is that really the Great Master?

The third person that he had invited was the master of Deathmound, the Great Master.

He had always been very curious about the master of Deathmound. The Great Master oversaw Deathmound and enjoyed a high level of authority in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse that was second only to the Greater Sancti. Not even the Lesser Sancti would dare to act presumptuously before the Great Master, which gave them an extremely unique status.

Furthermore, the Great Master’s behavior was decidedly odd. Deathmound specifically protected people who harbored deep and bitter grudges. Such a tendency made Lu Yin all the more curious about what kind of person the Great Master truly was.

Before, Lu Yin had spoken with the Great Master from Cragpeak, and he had felt that the Great Master was a calm and wise individual. However, when Li Guo had tried to call the Great Master, the latter’s behavior had instead seemed quite erratic.

All in all, Lu Yin was very curious about the Great Master.

Upon seeing the Great Master in person, Lu Yin’s curiosity was sated, though it was replaced by astonishment.

Is that really the Great Master?

He was looking at a woman who was wearing sheer clothing that was covered with a straw cloak to stave off the rain. The outfit made her look like a fisherwoman. Her features were delicate, but she gave off the impression of being very honest, or even a bit dull. Her thin waist and long legs were both exposed as she slowly walked over to Lu Yin. She even had an oar strapped to her back.

Lu Yin stared in a daze.

Is this really the Great Master? Can I be sure that she’s not just some fisherwoman? No, even a fisherwoman wouldn’t dress like this. It’s as if... as if...

He could not even find the words to describe what he was seeing.

Neither Qing Xing nor Dan Jin were at all surprised, as they had both met the Great Master before.

After all, one had been Greater Sancte Mi Jin’s disciple, while the other was a Lesser Sancte.

However, this was Lu Yin’s first time laying eyes on the Great Master, and he was genuinely shocked.

Her appearance was far too different from what he had imagined.

“Who are we fighting?” the Great Master asked bluntly as soon as she arrived. She stared at Lu Yin with a rather vacant gaze. Her voice was clear and crisp, and it sounded completely different from the altered voice that he had heard through the communication device.

Lu Yin coughed lightly. “Great Master?”

“Yes.”

“Oh.”

“Surprised?”

“A bit.”

“You shouldn’t judge appearances. That’s why I don’t like showing my face. People like you always judge appearances.” The Great Master arched a brow while giving Lu Yin a cold stare.

Lu Yin was speechless. Even if a person did not want to judge someone’s appearance, there were times when it was impossible not to. The woman’s appearance was simply too sharp of a contrast from what people expected.

“This isn’t our first meeting,” the Great Master stated.

Lu Yin nodded. “We spoke when I was on Cragpeak.”

“We also met in the Sea of Karma,” the Great Master retorted.

Lu Yin momentarily froze and then blurted, “You’re one of the Seven Fairies?”

The Great Master grunted softly. “I’m the eldest.”

This time, Lu Yin was not alone in being astonished, as even Qing Xing and Dan Jin were badly startled.

“You’re one of the Seven Fairies? But you’ve been around for so long. How could you be one of the Seven Fairies?” Qing Xing was dumbfounded.

Dan Jin was also astonished, and she simply stared at the Great Master.

The Great Master rolled her eyes. “That’s why I’m the eldest.”

Three people on the Frightened Sparrow Terrace were left speechless. Was that really an explanation?

The Great Master quickly grew impatient. “Enough. None of you are all that young anymore. Haven’t you seen enough? What’s there to be so surprised about?”

Lu Yin said nothing, and the Great Master looked over at him. “Who are we fighting?”

“I haven’t decided yet.”

The Great Master said, “Then we go after Unbroken Time.”

“Why?” Lu Yin asked, feeling puzzled. No matter how he analyzed the situation, Unbroken Time was not a suitable target. Even Chang would be a better choice. Unbroken Time’s mastery of time was far too bizarre. If that thing wanted to flee, Lu Yin had no confidence that he could stop it. He had not even considered Unbroken Time as a potential target.

The Great Master confidently stated, “When it comes to the power of time, Unbroken Time’s mastery doesn’t necessarily exceed my own by much. You also seem to have a decent mastery of time. If we work together, we can eliminate that one first. If we don’t, it will always be a potential calamity. Anyone who encounters that thing will suffer.

“If we’re going to fight, we should target the strong ones.”