Chapter 4067: Coincidence

Lu Yin was taken aback. “The Shan Barrens?”

The Shan Barrens was the name of the region where they were currently at, the name of the area where the Lost Clan lived. It was unexpected for their Primordial card to bear the same name.

Shan Gu stared at Lu Yin. “Lord Lu, did you know that my heart grew still after my people escaped from the Third Rampart? Do you know when it first started to reawaken?”

“When I first drew out that corner of Shan Barrens,” Lu Yin gave an immediate answer.

Shan Gu nodded. His voice grew heavy. “Yes. It was when you first drew a corner of Shan Barrens. Aside from me, no one in the Lost Clan knew that it was a Primordial card. Its strength is too far above us, to the point where not even our emperors could ever control it. That’s why I didn’t tell you at the time.

“While you were later able to fight against sequence powerhouses, you were still far from touching that card’s level.

“Your perspective was constrained by the Tianyuan, whereas we once fought against the Nest civilization and an Immortal—specifically, that humanoid Verdant Sage. A Primordial card allowed us to escape from beneath their gaze. That is not something that an Ortuser or even a Dukkhan could possibly accomplish. Therefore-”

Lu Yin raised a hand. “There’s no need to dwell on the past. Right now, I would like to learn about the card, and,” He paused as he stared at Elder Shan Gu, “If it can be controlled, are you willing to allow me to control it?”

“Of course!” Elder Shan Gu exclaimed, excitement growing in his eyes. “All of us are willing. Our Third Rampart is gone. We, the remnants of our defeated civilization, have no right to ask for vengeance. Only you, Lord Lu, can possibly achieve that.

“I know that it’s demeaning, even shameless, for our hatred to remain ours even while we entrust it to you. However, we are truly incapable. If we had even the most remote of chances, we would be willing to try to avenge ourselves, even if it meant dying with the Immortal Lord.

“But we can’t. We simply cannot reach the necessary height.”

Elder Shan Gu grew increasingly agitated. “Throughout the entire history of the Third Rampart, no one had ever mastered Shan Barrens. We don’t know where it came from, only that it belongs to us. It is our unique power, and yet no one has ever controlled it. Had our last emperor mastered it, how could the Third Rampart have fallen so easily?

“We had already won, or so we thought. During that final battle, the emperor, the royal regent, and the hidden masters from the various eras all stepped forward. The scale of our forces were no less than what the current Tianyuan possesses, and yet...” The old man sank back down, drained. “We lost to an Immortal. That war turned to despair. Our joyous victory transformed into annihilation far too quickly.

“Our ancient powerhouses and magnificent cards were all reduced to ash. Many sang battle songs to their final breath, but nothing changed our fate of being wiped out.

“The emperor burned his blood down to the last drop, but his imperial cards were still seized in the end. The royal regent was reduced to dust. Nothing remained... nothing...”

Lu Yin listened to the final splendor of a dead civilization in silence. It was magnificent and yet cold.

That final battle had been like a firework’s final burst, only leaving a small ripple in the endless River of Aeons.

Silence fell. After speaking for some time, Great Elder Shan Gu fell silent for a long time.

Lu Yin sipped his tea as he quietly waited.

A long while later, Shan Gu gathered himself and quickly apologized, “Forgive me, Lord Lu! I drifted off.”

Lu Yin set his cup down. “I understand.”

Great Elder Shan Gu drew a deep breath and suppressed his grief. “During the Nest civilization’s recent attack, I saw Shan Xiao, and many of my memories of the Third Rampart have returned. Memories that should have been sealed away.

“Among them is a legend that might be related to Shan Barrens.”

Lu Yin listened with curiosity.

𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

“There is a legend that claims that, at some point in our history, a remarkable man appeared. No one knew his cultivation, his name, or even the name of his card. With ingenious ideas, he created a trap that, by all accounts, could only be explained as coincidence. The emperor called it coincidence, as did every master of that age. Yet coincidence can still become legend.”

“Yet coincidence does not prevent legend.

“The man vanished in a flash, right as he was about to become famous. Some say that he was murdered for his trap; others say that someone tried to steal it. Some believe that he left because he was unable to advance any further within the Third Rampart and entered the Aevum Inch. Regardless, that man, and his trap, left a small mark in our history.

“Yet it was only a blurry mark, and nothing more remains.”

Great Elder Shan Gu looked over at Lu Yin. “If the legend has a connection to the Primordial card, then the trap within it may very well be that ‘coincidental’ trap.

“Aside from the one legend, I haven’t been able to connect anything else to the Primordial card, no matter how long I’ve thought about it.”

The story was essentially as good as nothing at all. Lu Yin did not want a legend; he wanted to know how to draw out the card.

He had previously made a great vow, and he had managed to break True God’s Dominion with the Primordial card. At that time, he had believed that his will exceeded the universe. Even with his broader perspective, there was nothing that he could say at the moment that could be more stirring than his earlier vow.

Did the card require him to first become the strongest in the cosmos, the master of all civilizations, before it acknowledged him?

That was impossible. The card had come from the Third Rampart, and thus, it was inherently limited.

There had to be another reason that was preventing him from summoning the card.

“How did your emperors try to draw out the card?” Lu Yin asked.

Great Elder Shan Gu thought back. “Some demonstrated their ambition while others flaunted their strength. There were even some...” The man hesitated. “Who flexed their muscles.”

“...”

Great Elder Shan Gu quickly added, “To be honest, as time passed, things grew more and more ridiculous, as no one actually believed that they could summon Shan Barrens.”

Lu Yin rubbed his forehead. “That’s troublesome.”

Great Elder Shan Gu said, “It also seems that the card lacks the ability to exchange its interior with the exterior universe.”

That exchange referred to the ability of certain cards, such as Shan Lie’s Rampart or Shan Xiao’s Emperor’s Gaze, to manifest traps in the external world to attack others. Most of the Lost Clan cards did not have such an ability.

Even Great Elder Shan Gu’s former card, the Heavenly King, and Lu Yin’s Evernight lacked such an ability.

This ability was one of the criteria by which the Lost Clan ranked powerhouses. The stronger the card was, the greater the likelihood that it had such an ability.

After Lu Yin had Enhanced Aurora to the Primeval level, that card had become capable of exchanging its interior with the external universe.

However, if Shan Barrens was unable to perform that exchange, then it would be of limited use. If Lu Yin could trap an Immortal within the card’s space, why would he need the card to attack them?

In an instant, Lu Yin’s interest in the Primordial card dropped significantly.

Great Elder Shan Gu opened his hands in a helpless manner. “To be precise, nothing has been confirmed, given that no one has ever mastered Shan Barrens. You might very well be the first.”

Lu Yin shook his head. “That’s very difficult.”

The old man could only nod. Success was truly too difficult.

Lu Yin looked at him. “Your Lost Clan’s cultivation method is quite peculiar. Your cards and traps serve as your finishing moves, and yet they also limit you. Despite that, you managed to produce experts like your royal regent and your last emperor.

“That emperor undoubtedly reached the pinnacle of strength beneath the Immortal realm.”

Great Elder Shan Gu nodded in a reverent manner. “The emperor was truly supreme. I’ve only felt such an aura one other time—when Emperor Slayer destroyed the Immortal bug’s droplet attack. Sadly, the emperor failed to become an Immortal. He never could take that last, crucial step.

“The emperor once said that, when man and card unite as one, as the card grows stronger, the person will also transform.”

Lu Yin arched a brow. “Is that so?”

Shan Gu gave a bitter smile. “I haven’t reached that level yet, so I can’t say. However, during that last battle, our top experts were different from the rest of us. We were only able to kill the bugs with our cards and traps, while those people personally exuded a crushing pressure. When their traps were released from their cards, they destroyed countless numbers of the Nest civilization’s elites.”

He looked at Lu Yin with hopeful eyes. “Even if Shan Barrens cannot help you kill an Immortal, could it raise your strength further?”

Lu Yin blinked. “Do you believe that?”

Shan Gu gave a small cough, but he said nothing.

Lu Yin wondered if the last comment had been made up just to coax him to try to summon Shan Barrens again.

Still, he was indeed tempted. While he was already capable of fighting against an Immortal, such battles were far too difficult. He had failed to kill even the half-crippled Immortal monster, let alone an expert like Master Qing Cao.

It was true that Lu Yin could exchange blows with an Immortal, but he was still a long way from defeating such an expert.

He had considered speaking with Uncle Jiang to see if it might be possible to cultivate the man’s power, but Lu Yin had asked before, and he knew that the chances were slim.

Jiang Qingyue had also offered him a bit of advice.

Whitecloud City followed its own unique cultivation method, which was connected to Uncle Jiang’s three divine artifacts. Thus, it was a shortcut that Lu Yin could not take.

If the Primordial card truly could push him another step forward, then all the better.

Lu Yin rose to his feet and headed outside. Shan Gu nervously followed behind him. “Lord Lu, about Shan Barrens...?”

Lu Yin said, “Show me around, Senior.”

Shan Gu did not know what Lu Yin wanted to see, but he still complied. “Very well, please follow me.”

There were countless traps throughout the Lost Clan’s universe, and visitors dreaded falling into one. Lu Yin could still remember being warned a thousand times not to wander about during his first visit.

However, there were only a few traps in the nearby area.

Shan Gu led Lu Yin down a few streets. Things were quaint and quiet here. There were no advanced commercial areas. Instead, the streets felt more like an ancient marketplace that stretched far into the distance.

As they moved along, every member of the Lost Clan that they came across bowed and shared their gratitude for the great kindness that Lu Yin had shown them.

When the Boundary Guardians had tried to exterminate the Lost Clan, Lu Yin had saved them. The people’s thankfulness was completely heartfelt.

Walking the entire length of the street would take a long time, but Lu Yin was in no hurry, and he continued along, step by steady step.

Shan Gu matched Lu Yin’s pace while guiding him.

The two strolled along from dawn to dusk, and then from dusk back to dawn.

The people along the street did not leave. It was as though time itself had been paused.