Star Odyssey

Chapter 3176: Method

Murder appeared in Lu Yin's eyes. As expected, during the battle in the Scourge, the butterfly had only been pretending to want to put an end to the conflict. In truth, the butterfly was helping Aeternus.

Now, just as the Heavens Sect completed its military declaration, the butterfly had appeared once again. If it was allowed to take the Lost Clan away, what would happen to the Heavens Sect’s reputation? With just a little propaganda, Aeternus could portray Lu Yin as a complete joke.

No matter how he looked at things, the butterfly was clearly helping Aeternus.

Mister Mu grew solemn. "The Boundary Guardians are not to be trifled with. I only left the Immemorial Citadel because I sensed Tian En's presence here. If you want to protect the Lost Clan, you'll need to either fight against the Guardians with your full strength—humanity's current power should be enough to oppose them—but doing so will make it nearly impossible for you to fend off Aeternus."

"We'll handle this ourselves," Shan Gu declared softly.

The Lost Clan rarely interacted with other civilizations. This was something they did to avoid losing anything more. However, the current situation had reversed things; the Lost Clan would be taken away from the megaverse, but their departure would not matter to most people, due to their lack of connections.

Lu Yuan could not hold back from saying, "Since the Boundary Guardians have a duty, they shouldn't fight us to the death just because of the Lost Clan, right? If they lose, their duty will be meaningless."

Mister Mu replied, "Even if just two or three of them appear, it will be enough. The Boundary Guardians rarely show themselves. They’ve stayed hidden for countless years because of how difficult it is for any creature to enter this megaverse from the outside. Still, they have their methods.

"There is one point that might be an opportunity.

"While the Boundary Guardians may seem like four members of a single group, the truth is that each one is responsible for a specific region. If the Lost Clan fights back against one of them alone, without any outside help, the other three might not get involved. This is the only way you can hope to avoid an all-out conflict with them while also protecting the Lost Clan."

Lu Yuan shook his head. "How could the Lost Clan hope to fight back against an Ortuser?"

Shan Gu felt helpless. If the Lost Clan were still at its peak, they would not fear one or two Ortusers, but they were nothing more than the last, exiled remnant of their people.

Lu Yin's eyes suddenly lit up. It might not be entirely impossible for the Lost Clan to handle the butterfly on their own.

Mister Mu looked at Lu Yin and smiled. "Congratulations on leading the Heavens Sect out into the open again. That call to arms was brilliant."

Lu Yin grew excited. He had always sought Mister Mu's praise, but in the past, no matter how well he had performed, Mister Mu had always seemed indifferent to everything. That had somewhat frustrated Lu Yin, but this time, he could tell that his master was genuinely impressed.

This meant that Lu Yin genuinely deserved the praise.

"Thank you, Master."

Mister Mu nodded and looked back at Lu Yuan. "As for Tai Chu, if you can defeat the Aeternals, come to the Immemorial Citadel and join us there. That will be the site of the final battle. In addition to your master, you might see some other familiar faces."

Lu Yuan clenched his fists. "We will definitely go to the Immemorial Citadel to meet up with you and Master."

The gray color that surrounded Mister Mu started to slowly fade away. "I can't stay here for long as the Aeternals are always watching me. Everyone, I'll see you again at the Immemorial Citadel."

With that, the man disappeared.

There were many questions that Lu Yin wanted to ask his master, but Mister Mu was already gone.

In the past, Lu Yin had not understood why Mister Mu always came and left so abruptly, but things finally made sense to Lu Yin. Mister Mu was always keeping an eye on the Immemorial Citadel while also hiding his actions from Aeternus. Mister Mu’s knowledge and strength meant that, if he was gone for too long, the Immemorial Citadel would be placed in danger.

The stronger a person became, sometimes the more restricted their actions were.

The freedom of ordinary humans was something that could never be experienced again after losing it.

After Mister Mu left, Lu Yuan turned to Shan Gu. "Do you have any confidence in fighting against the butterfly?"

Shan Gu shook his head. "The moment it appeared, I completely fell under its control. It was like I was in a dream or an illusion of some kind, and I was completely unable to resist."

Lu Yuan was looking at Lu Yin. This was a problem. If the Heavens Sect tried to protect the Lost Clan, they would be forced to go against four Ortusers. Mister Mu had shown up at the perfect time, as without his warning, the Heavens Sect would have never known that they were offending four enemy Ortusers.

Everything from this point forward depended on what action the Heavens Sect would choose. Would they abandon the Lost Clan, or would they confront four enemy Ortusers for the sake of an ally?

Shan Gu slowly bowed to Lu Yin. "As one of the Heavens Sect’s Three Suns and Six Rulers, I, Shan Gu, formally request permission to leave the Heavens Sect. My Lost Clan has been ungrateful. We have received the Heavens Sect's favor, but because of my people's xenophobia, we must withdraw. None of this has anything to do with the Heavens Sect, and so I ask that the Dao Monarch allow the Lost Clan to leave."

Lu Yuan's eyes flared. The Great Elder intended to bear all the blame for breaking the alliance in order to prevent the Heavens Sect from facing criticism. This would avoid putting Lu Yin in a difficult position.

If the Lost Clan withdrew from the Heavens Sect, they might not be driven out by the butterfly, but rather simply exterminated.

This would be the most tragic fate possible for the Lost Clan.

"My Lost Clan has experienced too much. We are nothing more than the last remnants of a destroyed megaverse. We should have died long ago. I ask the Dao Monarch to grant us this favor," Shan Gu worded his request respectfully while maintaining a deep bow.

For a man who was nearly as powerful as an Ortuser to demean himself in such a manner was shocking even to Lu Yuan.

Lu Yuan’s personality meant that he would never be intimidated by the Boundary Guardians or Aeternus. They were both enemies, and the Lu family had never acted out of fear. However, the Lu family no longer represented themselves alone, but also the entire Heavens Sect, and even all of humanity.

The alliance between the Heavens Sect and the various parallel universes was too important. They could not allow the hope of humanity's victory over Aeternus to be shattered just because of the Lost Clan or their pride.

Not even Lu Yuan was willing to pursue such a path.

He did not fear death and was willing to lead the Lu family to their demise, but he could not sacrifice all of humanity.

Lu Yuan could not help but look over at Lu Yin. The older man knew that this decision would be a huge test for Lu Yin as well.

If they abandoned the Lost Clan, the decision would undoubtedly become a thorn in Lu Yin's heart, and it might even impact his future cultivation and potential. This might even be Aeternus's true goal.

Even more importantly, how would the other parallel universes react if the Heavens Sect abandoned the Lost Clan? It could be a devastating blow to the alliance. Regardless of the decision they chose, things would not work out well. Aeternus would never allow the Lost Clan to withdraw from the Heavens Sect; the truth would certainly be revealed and spread. There was no point in hoping for a different outcome.

Lu Yin's expression grew solemn. "I, Lu Yin, Dao Monarch of the Heavens Sect, formally reject your request."

Lu Yuan remained calm. This decision was not at all surprising.

The pain on the Great Elder’s face deepened, and he lowered himself even further. "Please, Dao Monarch, allow my Lost Clan to leave. This matter is our fault, and the people of this megaverse should not have to bear our burden. I ask the Dao Monarch to consider the bigger picture."

Lu Yin stretched out his hand to help the Great Elder stand back up, but the old man remained motionless and maintained his posture. "I ask the Dao Monarch to grant the Lost Clan permission to leave."

Lu Yin stared at Shan Gu. "Do you understand that, if your Lost Clan leaves the Heavens Sect, your people will be completely wiped out? That butterfly clearly came here at the Aeternals’ request and is trying to make trouble for me. Sacrificing your Lost Clan might simply cause the Voidforce Universe or the Arboreal Realm to become the next sacrifice. There’s no telling the ramifications of this."

The Great Elder sighed. "Since they haven't appeared for so many years, the Boundary Guardians must have their own concerns. Dao Monarch, please consider the bigger picture. The humans of this megaverse should not pay for our mistakes. We are just the stragglers of a civilization, the ones who fear death."

Lu Yin chuckled. "Who isn't afraid of death? Great Elder, don't be in such a hurry to leave. Let's discuss this. There might be a way for you to handle that butterfly on your own."

Shan Gu felt helpless. "If there were a way, I wouldn't be in this situation. Dao Monarch, let us go."

Lu Yin continued to stare at the old man. "What if I could improve your Heavenly King card to another level? Do you think that that would be enough for you to stop the butterfly?"

The Great Elder’s head snapped up, and he stared at Lu Yin in a daze. "What did you just say?"

"I am able to upgrade your Heavenly King card to the next level. With that, could you stop the butterfly?"

Shan Gu went completely bug-eyed. "How can you upgrade a card?"

"I'm just asking if that would be enough for you to stop the butterfly," Lu Yin pressed.

Shan Gu straightened up as he seriously considered the question. "I wouldn't be able to win, but it would no longer be capable of dragging me away either."

Lu Yin smiled. "Then that's enough."

...

Far away, Tian En fluttered into the First Scourge. As soon as she arrived, her light spread out.

Sovereign Dou Sheng watched the butterfly as it flew overhead. He did not try to stop her. He knew that, while the butterfly could not kill him, he was similarly incapable of stopping the butterfly. Instead, the Sovereign simply spat in disgust.

The butterfly's arrival drew the entire Scourge’s attention.

Even the Great Sovereign opened her eyes and looked into the sky.

"Yong Heng."

Given his position at the top of the black Mother Tree, True God was nearly level with the butterfly. "Did you fail?"

"The Heavens Sect needs to be given a bit of face," the butterfly softly stated.

True God chuckled. "What of your duty as a Guardian of the Four Directions?"

The butterfly continued to flap her wings. "You told me about the Lost Clan when the Heavens Sect conducted their military declaration, intending to use me to deal a blow to the Heavens Sect. I couldn't refuse because of my duty, but their Dao Monarch told me something interesting.

"Does your Aeternus have someone named Feng Bo?"

True God nodded. "We do. He's one of our Three Pillars and Six Skies. But he hasn't been back for many years."

"Where is he? I wish to see him."

"He's already dead."

The butterfly was surprised. "Dead? When did he die?"

"Not long ago. He was killed by Lu Yin. Didn't he tell you?"

The butterfly remained silent for a moment. "This Feng Bo, he didn't belong to this megaverse."

True God showed a slight smile. "That’s true, he didn't. I brought him here."

"Why?"

"During the first Divine Commandment, my people were short of manpower. When the Second Mainland was destroyed, Feng Bo was the one who contributed the most."

"You disregarded us, the Boundary Guardians.”

"The Boundary Guardians have a duty to expel or eliminate any creature that does not belong to this megaverse, but only if that creature is in this megaverse. I brought him here, and if you had managed to find him and wanted to drive him out, I would have done nothing to stop you. But you never noticed him."

"Now I know."

"But Feng Bo is dead."

The butterfly fell silent for a second time. "Yong Heng, do you believe that I'll accept that Feng Bo was killed by Dao Monarch Lu?"

True God replied, "Whether you believe it or not, it remains the truth. You're free to look into the matter for yourself. If you can find Feng Bo, my Aeternals will do nothing to stop you from expelling him. In the same manner, I hope that you will quickly drive the Lost Clan out. After all, they're an entire civilization."

"I will search for Feng Bo, and you should remember that you should not try to use us, or else Tian Fa will come for you," the butterfly declared before disappearing with a flap of her wings.

True God watched calmly and said nothing.

A bit further down, the Great Sovereign frowned. True God had not tried to hide his conversation with the butterfly from her, and she realized that she was still too ignorant of the megaverse. The Boundary Guardians... I think that I’ve heard of them before...

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