Chapter 4079: Your Homeland

How can that be? She’s an Immortal. It should be practically impossible for an Immortal to change their cultivation system given that they’ve already reached the peak. And yet, Greater Sancte Awe Gate actually cultivated the Nirvana Tree Path.

It’s no wonder why she wants Master’s spirit seed. She intends to use it for Seed Transfusion

.

Many in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse had started to cultivate the Nirvana Tree Path, though most of them did so in order to obtain another path to Immortality. Greater Sancte Awe Gate was already an Immortal, which made it seem as though learning the new cultivation path would not benefit her.

𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

“Why?” Qing Xing asked hoarsely.

Greater Sancte Awe Gate opened her eyes. She turned to stare at Greater Sancte Mi Jin’s tomb in an absent manner. “Living is truly difficult.”

“Greater Sancte Green Lotus has returned, and Ku Deng has just become an Immortal as well, granting us a fourth Greater Sancte. He is quite powerful,” Qing Xing commented.

“I am an Immortal, yet and there is one fact in my life that cannot be denied,” Greater Sancte Awe Gate replied as she looked back at Qing Xing, “I will inevitably face a crisis that is guaranteed to result in my death, and human civilization will also inevitably face an existential crisis.”

Qing Xing’s eyes flickered.

Right, Immortals are different from the rest of us.

No matter how long someone might live, they would still eventually die. Once they were dead, nothing would remain. There would be no civilization, nor any emotions. Their lives were finite.

Immortals were different. For an Immortal to die, they had to experience some sort of terrible crisis. Across the endless years, human civilization would also eventually face the threat of extinction. Both of these matters were undeniable truths.

Ordinary people had brief lives. So, when they examined their lives, they examined the present. Cultivators were not different, except that they pursued Immortality. That realm was their ultimate goal.

In contrast, Immortals would look at their ending, as well as the termination of their civilization.

They saw the cosmos more clearly than ordinary creatures, and they understood what needed to be faced, even if they did not know when such a day would arrive.

Ordinary people did not need to consider the future of their civilization; they would most likely not live to see such a thing. It was the Immortals who needed to consider such things.

“The longer one lives, the lighter death feels. It’s a pity that I was never able to exchange the Dao with Senior Mi Jin at his level. But if I can inherit his power, my life will not be in vain.”

Qing Xing continued to stare at Greater Sancte Awe Gate as she left. A cold wind swept through. He slowly sat down in front of the tomb. “Master, the civilization that you sought to protect will not disappoint you.”

...

The Nine Odysseys Megaverse lay beneath the Mother Tree’s canopy. In a hidden underground lair, dust fell upon white bones. The skeleton’s head suddenly rose to meet a pair of eyes.

“We meet again, Zhu.”

“Trai... tor.”

“Don’t say that. I only wanted a better life.”

“How did... you find... me?”

“Someone once said that life is a line and that each end is a different extreme. Immortality is one extreme, and mortality is another. Since you possess a mirebound artifact that not even Immortals can comprehend, an ordinary perspective is necessary. For ordinary people, they seek clues. There is always something to find.”

“Like when... you found... Blackmarsh before?”

“You could say that.”

“Aren’t you... afraid I’ll... kill you?”

“You aren’t that capable. Also, you won’t. Given your current state, do you dare to make any moves?”

There was a brief silence before the white skeleton spoke again. “Exactly what... do you want?”

“Your method to contact the Death Megaverse has been destroyed. The Nine Odysseys Megaverse has taken control of all the necessary spirit treasures. You’ll never again have an opportunity to contact the Death Megaverse. Sooner or later, you’ll be found. Since that’s the case, it’s better to just leave. Leave the Nine Odysseys Megaverse.”

“Lea... ve?”

“Yes. The creatures of the Death Megaverse are hated by the entire human civilization. As soon as you’re discovered, no one will hold back. I’m also hated, particularly by an enemy who is continuously searching for me. It’s hard for me to stay hidden. While we are still able to, we should leave.”

“Where do you... want to go?”

“Your homeland.”

The skeleton stared into the eyes above, while the eyes above stared down. The two held each other’s gaze

It was impossible to read the skeleton’s thoughts. There were no eyes, just two dark cavities. It was also impossible to read any emotions in the slitted scarlet eyes.

“You want to go... to the Death... Megaverse?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because I also belong to the Death Megaverse.” As those last words were spoken, the eyes sank into their sockets, and the flesh surrounding the eyes ripped open to reveal bare white bone with blood smeared across it. It looked ghastly and savage.

...

In the Tianyuan Megaverse, Lu Yin returned to the Heavens Sect in a rather exhausted state.

Master Qing Cao had disappeared. No one knew where he had gone. Lu Yin and Progenitor Chen had searched for the Immortal for an entire year, hoping to make contact with Obscura’s hidden expert through Master Qing Cao. Lu Yin knew that it would be extremely difficult to extract any answers, even if they did find Qing Cao. But still, he wanted to preserve Progenitor Chen’s hope.

Unfortunately, it had been impossible to even find Master Qing Cao.

Truthfully, it might be better to not find the man.

Lu Yin had repeatedly questioned Master Qing Cao, but the man refused to say anything. If Progenitor Chen encountered the Immortal, he might do something rash.

As for Wang Xiaoyu, it was impossible for anyone to alter her fate after her true feelings were exposed. Only the hidden member of Obscura could decide if she lived or died. Not even an intervention on Master Qing Cao’s part would change anything.

Over the course of the last year, Lu Yin had constantly examined his own karma indirectly, trying to see if anyone in the Tianyuan was still plotting against him.

There was nothing, or at the very least, he was unable to find anything.

That should have been good news, but the fact that no one was plotting against him left Lu Yin feeling uneasy. If someone could avoid being found through karma, they had to be a terrifying enemy—for example, the hidden expert from Obscura.

The Tianyuan did not lack enemies.

“Master.” Hui Can arrived at the mountain behind the Heavens Sect and bowed respectfully to Lu Yin.

There was a grunt of acknowledgement as Lu Yin observed his disciple. “Your cultivation has improved greatly.”

“Thank you for your praise, Master,” Hui Can happily replied.

Hui Can did not need much supervision. He had already endured a great deal of hardship, and as a result, his will was tough, and he was able to be ruthless. He was rather similar to Lu Yin in that regard.

“Tell me what you’ve been doing recently.” Since the man was his disciple, Lu Yin could not ignore him. While being Lu Yin’s disciple was a great honor within the Tianyuan, if it was abused, Lu Yin would not spare his disciples.

Hui Can respectfully shared what he had experienced, both big and small, since he had left the Heavens Sect. Lu Yin silently listened, as though it were a story.

Everyone had their own story, and those countless stories connected to form a civilization.

As Lu Yin observed Hui Can, he thought of Progenitor Hui and Greater Sancte Mi Jin. Both men had pioneered new paths and protected human civilization. It was others’ turn to bear that burden.

Hui Can spent half a day talking. As he spoke, Long Xi brewed tea, which was respectfully accepted.

Long Xi took a seat by the stone table, as though doing so was only natural, and she listened to the man’s story with open interest.

Hui Can treated Long Xi with even greater respect than he did Lu Yin. The man saw Long Xi as his master’s wife.

While Hui Can had once hated the Perennial World’s four great powers, that was in the distant past.

“What about Tuo Lin? How is he?” Lu Yin was reminded of his other disciple. He felt rather guilty about Tuo Lin, as Lu Yin and Hui Can had both deceived the man.

When Tuo Lin was mentioned, Hui Can fell silent. “Senior Brother is the same as ever, wandering the megaverse. I suppose... that he’s happy.”

He did not know what to tell Lu Yin. Should he say that Tuo Lin had gone mad? That he carried a statue of Lu Yin around while perpetually muttering to himself? That his devotion to Lu Yin had become an obsession?

Hui Can could not say those things. It would be too awkward.

They were fellow disciples, and yet Tuo Lin was so devout to their master. What of Hui Can? It was better to say nothing.

He also could not tell Lu Yin that Tuo Lin was deranged and muttered all day, as that would result in him being punished.

Lu Yin knew that Tuo Lin was generally fine, and that was good enough. He did not know what to say to that disciple.

Maintain the current lie, or tell the truth?

Lu Yin had once tricked Tuo Lin by telling him that he was the savior of humanity and that, before cultivating, he needed to first temper his heart. That task had already lasted for many years. In the past, Tuo Lin had not been able to cultivate because of his bloodline, but later on, Sage Yajna had sacrificed himself. That should have enabled Tuo Lin to cultivate, but instead, his meridians that had been connected and repaired had slowly faded away. Ultimately, he had never been able to cultivate.

For someone who had never cultivated, not even the Nirvana Tree Path could help them.

If Tuo Lin asked when he would be able to cultivate, how should Lu Yin respond?

Tell the man that he had not yet tempered his heart enough?

Lu Yin could not bring himself to say such a thing. Tuo Lin was too obsessed with books, and he was also devoted to Lu Yin. He could not bear to lie to such a person yet again.

Lu Yin could only allow his first disciple to slowly grow old while living in peace as the Heavens Sect’s young lord.

“If you’re free, check in on your senior brother. Don’t allow him to be bullied,” Lu Yin instructed.

Hui Can released a breath. “Yes. I will be sure to look after Senior Brother.”

With that, he excused himself.

Long Xi collected the teacup. “Your disciples are so different from each other. That Tuo Lin is quite pitiful. Can he truly not cultivate?”

Lu Yin shook his head. “His meridians are fake. He’s like an empty shell.”

Long Xi sighed, but said nothing more before leaving.

Lu Yin stared out at the stars.

An empty shell... Is he truly unable to cultivate?

Every sapient creature had its own thoughts and logic, and because of their sapience, they were able to cultivate.

Even a machine could gain greater abilities by replacing its parts, so how much more true was that for a human?

Tuo Lin lacked meridians, and yet he had an excellent mind. He had spent so many years reading.

Perhaps... he can cultivate consciousness and manifested thought?

“Lord Lu, Jiang Qi has arrived to see you,” the Second Nightking reported.

“Show him in.”

Jiang Qi was a very peculiar individual; he was able to block karma and have it avoid him.

Lu Yin had studied the man when he arrived on Boundless, and he had occasionally tried to understand how his ability to avoid karma worked. However, Lu Yin had not made much progress.

Aside from ignoring karma, there was nothing different about Jiang Qi from any other person.

He thought that he was afraid of sunlight, but he actually feared the karmic walls.

After arriving in the Tianyuan, his fears had greatly eased, but years of habit meant that the still remained curled beneath his blanket.

Lu Yin had summoned Jiang Qi to the Heavens Sect, as he wanted to see if he could find out what made the man special.

He had intended to ask Greater Sancte Green Lotus about the matter, but all that had happened, including their long discussions, Lu Yin had forgotten about Jiang Qi.

“Gree- greetings, Lord Lu,” Jiang Qi said while trembling under his blanket.

Lu Yin chuckled. “Are you still afraid of me?”

“N- no. Lord Lu has been very kind,” Jiang Qi answered stiffly.

Long Xi arrived. She gave Jiang Qi a curious look before reaching out to set a teacup on his blanket.

Jiang Qi reflexively pulled back. “S-sorry. My blanket is dirty.”

Long Xi shot a puzzled glance at Lu Yin. He just nodded and motioned for her to step back.

“Jiang Qi, do you fear the sunlight here in the Tianyuan?”

“N- no.”

“Then why do you stay wrapped in that blanket?”

“...Cold.”

There was nothing to say to that. It was a flawless excuse.