Star Odyssey

Chapter 3708: Leverage

Even if all of the Consciousness Megaverse’s Thirteen Luminaries were gathered together, it was highly unlikely that they would be able to utter such words.

It was only when every expert aboard Boundless stepped out and many of them released the Nine Heavens that the people on the other vessels understood just what they were facing.

The stars trembled and swayed as monstrous power surged out, tearing the universe apart.

Chu Yi, Ce Wangtian, Wilderness God, Lu Tianyi, Sovereign Dou Sheng, Ye Wu, and more released the Nine Heavens, causing their auras to instantly spike.

Additionally, there was an entire host of powerhouses, such as Hu Wu and Tian Ya, who had once belonged to the Spirit Nidus.

Finally, the Origin Progenitor also used the Nine Heavens Transformation, and his subsequent aura caused the Consciousness Megaverse itself to shake. Only then did the people from the Spirit Nidus grasp what they were up against. Hell, when did the Nine Heavens Transformation become so common?

When Emperor Wu had revealed that he could use the Nine Heavens Transformation, more than half of the people from the Spirit Nidus who had been watching had believed that Emperor Wu was capable of challenging the High Seraph.

Just what were they looking at?

Dukkhans, Ortusers, and even sequence powerhouses were all using the Nine Heavens Transformation. Seeing this completely shattered the Spirit Nidus cultivators’ worldview.

Even Old Salamander was stupefied. How was this possible?

A gourd slipped from Jiu Xian’s fingers. She could not believe what she was looking at.

Zi Tianshu’s scalp went numb, and a chill ran from his head to his toes as he stared at the Origin Progenitor and suffered from the suffocating pressure. It was clear that this man was another expert at the same level as the High Seraph.

If such an expert had been hiding aboard Boundless, then why had the High Seraph not yet appeared?

Su Shidao still stood on Boundless, a wry smile on his face. Just moments earlier, two hands from two different people had settled on his shoulders, rendering him incapable of moving. Boundless had chosen to reveal its full strength, but why at this moment?

The man looked over at Genesis. That had to be it. They were taking action in the High Seraph’s absence.

How did Boundless know about that?

Meng Sang fled without any hesitation. The Origin Progenitor looked over and released Verdant Eternity. It enveloped the nearby universe, shattering any hope of escape.

Lightning flared from the sequence base on Old Salamander. He leapt up with Heaven's Seal, assuming the form of a Five‑Clawed Celestial Salamander. However, instead of attacking, the old beast turned and fled.

Given the number of experts aboard Boundless who were capable of using the Nine Heavens Transformation, the only way the Spirit Nidus’s people might stand a chance was if the High Seraph was present. Given that he had not yet appeared, he was clearly absent. Even the combined efforts of all the Seven Seraphs might accomplish nothing against so many powerhouses.

Just the pressure from the Origin Progenitor alone was overwhelming. It was more than enough to send Old Salamander running.

However, Old Salamander was the Origin Progenitor’s primary target. That beast hid a secret.

Sovereign Dou Sheng stepped forward, his golden cudgel resting on his shoulder. “Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to flip the tables. Why don’t we see who’ll be doing the resetting.”

Lu Tianyi thrust a finger forward, releasing his Undoing sequence particles.

Wilderness God roared.

Ce Wangtian brandished a slipper as an astral chessboard swirled into existence around him, the universe displayed as his gameboard.

Chu Yi chased after Meng Sang while using his Dao of One Heavens.

Yuan Qi shook his head. Unless the Spirit Nidus returned to its peak strength with all of the Seven Seraphs being led by the High Seraph, there was no chance of them fighting back against the strength that had been hidden so carefully aboard Boundless. It was already over.

Old Salamander’s claws slashed out with enough power to nearly tear Verdant Eternity apart. After being strengthened by Heaven's Seal, the old beast caused the Origin Progenitor’s ultimate technique to shudder. Old Salamander had just barely reached a level comparable to the High Seraph, and he roughly matched the strength that Emperor Wu had demonstrated when fighting at the source of the Fu River when empowered by the sequence base.

The Origin Progenitor swept a hand out, sending six swords and three weapons flying out at once. “Verdant Arsenal!”

Nine weapons shot through the void, and Old Salamander let out a howl. The claws from all four of his appendages were sliced off, and a crushing blow had struck his head. No matter how impressive his physical strength was, he was helpless before the Origin Progenitor and his Verdant Arsenal.

The Origin Progenitor had ceased cultivating for an excessive period of time, during which he had suppressed the sequence strings beneath the Immemorial Citadel. That had allowed Yong Heng to surpass the Origin Progenitor. However, the Nine Heavens Transformation had reduced that gap, and it was not at all difficult for the Origin Progenitor to suppress Old Salamander.

Old Salamander’s miserable fate caused Zi Tianshu and the others to abandon all thoughts of resistance. With Verdant Eternity surrounding them, there was nowhere for them to run. Aside from the few Dukkhans and Ortusers who were present, the other cultivators were not even qualified to raise a hand.

Very few people aboard the five battleships were strong enough to oppose Boundless’s experts.

The Nine Heavens Transformation brought about terrifying power, and it raised the strength of an entire group of people from Boundless by a qualitative level. Without that battle technique, victory would not have been nearly so easy.

Even so, one person did manage to escape: Jiu Xian.

Shockingly, she had managed to escape through a gate that she had opened up. The gate had blocked a finger attack from Lu Tianyi after he used the Nine Heavens Transformation, and that had been enough for Jiu Xian to escape.

“Are you declaring war on the Spirit Nidus?” Zi Tianshu demanded loudly.

No one in the Spirit Nidus had ever imagined that their opponents during their campaign against the Consciousness Megaverse would be not only the conscients, but also Boundless. On top of that, so many incredible experts had been hidden aboard the ship for so long.

There were countless cultivators on the Spirit Nidus’s five universe-class battleships, and all of them were staring at Boundless. Each vessel was being watched by experts from Boundless, which left them little room for resistance.

Everyone was desperate for an answer at this moment, but one could give them one.𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

No one had predicted such an outcome.

It was already a surprise that the High Seraph was absent. If he was present, then none doubted that he would have completely suppressed Boundless.

In fact, even Chu Yi and the others had not known about this plan in advance. Lu Yin had only discussed it with the Origin Progenitor.

Lu Yin had wanted the Origin Progenitor to capture everyone from the Spirit Nidus, so long as the High Seraph was gone.

The cultivators who had joined the expedition to the Consciousness Megaverse made up the vast majority of the Spirit Nidus’s most powerful individuals. The strength and background of each person on these battleships were beyond reproach. Capturing these people meant holding the Spirit Nidus’s future captive. In particular, there were several Seraphs among the captives.

Naturally, it should have been difficult to find such an opening, but Lu Yin had known in advance that the Willbound Expanse was a trap that the Consciousness Megaverse had laid for the High Seraph. This meant that there was a chance of an opportunity appearing, so long as the conscients delayed the High Seraph for them.

While the people of the Tianyuan Megaverse had been on the back foot their entire time in the Spirit Nidus, after leaving, things had finally turned around.

Both the Spirit Nidus and the Tianyuan Megaverse were enemies of the Consciousness Megaverse, and that presented a scenario where Lu Yin excelled: using one opponent against another.

Still, not even the Origin Progenitor had expected an opportunity to appear so quickly.

As soon as Boundless arrived at the Willbound Expanse, the Origin Progenitor had probed Genesis. Since the High Seraph was aware of the Origin Progenitor’s presence aboard Boundless, there was no need to stay hidden.

However, the High Seraph was surprisingly absent from the battleship. Thus, the Origin Progenitor demonstrated no mercy and instantly captured everyone.

"Confiscate all of the spirit seeds! Everyone, sit tight!" Sovereign Dou Sheng barked. He carried out the Origin Progenitor’s orders and first collected all of the spirit seeds. Lu Yin needed them, and everything else that needed to be done could wait.

Curses rang out across multiple battleships. "Why isn’t Lord High Seraph here?"

"Just you wait! Lord High Seraph will be back and will deal with you!"

"Isn’t Lord Lu supposed to be the invincible being’s disciple? Why did they attack us?"

"Lies! It was all nothing but lies! They are loyal to the Tianyuan Megaverse!"

"Then why did the Wisdom Domain submit to Boundless? They’ve doomed us all..."

All manner of curses echoed across the universe.

The Origin Progenitor let out a breath as he peered into the Willbound Expanse. Would the High Seraph return? The old man had no idea. Clearly, something was happening in the Willbound Expanse, but the Origin Progenitor could only trust Lu Yin.

Even if the High Seraph did return, the worst case scenario would merely result in the captives’ release. Boundless and the Tianyuan Megaverse were already the Spirit Nidus’s enemies. Even if open war erupted, the Origin Progenitor would not fear the High Seraph, as he could at least ensure that Boundless escaped. On top of that, the prisoners could be used as hostages; would the High Seraph really be willing to attack?

The greatest threat was still Master Qing Cao.

Who knew if the Immortal was present in the Consciousness Megaverse or not? How much did the Aevum Inch limit such an expert? No one knew.

Fortunately, even Immortals were not free to act however they wished. Master Qing Cao was restrained by the chain of karma. If he killed enough people from Boundless, the backlash from that chain would become unbearable. If the Immortal was capable of enduring that, Lu Yin would have never been allowed to rise up and rebuild the Heavens Sect. The Tianyuan Megaverse would have long since fallen to the Spirit Nidus.

There was one more, crucial reason to capture everyone.

The Origin Progenitor blankly stared at the Willbound Expanse. Pillar, only you can ensure our megaverse’s continual advancement.

“Senior, I need a number of people from the Spirit Nidus that we can use as hostages. This isn’t so that we can threaten the Spirit Nidus, but rather to give us some leverage against the Nine Odysseys Megaverse.

“The people in the Rivers Domain and other domains died when their spirit seeds were removed from their bodies. That shows that the spirit seeds that the people in the Spirit Nidus cultivate are incredibly important to the Nine Odysseys Megaverse. If we control the lives of some of the Spirit Nidus’ top experts, then we also effectively control the spirit seeds that they have cultivated. That is enough to allow us to negotiate with the Nine Odysseys Megaverse.

“The Nine Odysseys Megaverse is far too powerful. Their three Greater Sancti are all Immortals, and nothing we can do means anything before such beings. We need to acquire some chips that they actually care about. This will be dangerous, but it’s the only way that we can possibly gain anything for the Tianyuan Megaverse.”

The Origin Progenitor kept remembering what Lu Yin had said. Pillar had considered so much and endured so much for the sake of their megaverse.

...

In the Willbound Spire, the Everlasting Will was still drawing closer to the cliff.

Shuangdao warily eyed the High Seraph as he asked, “We were moving so quickly when we first broke through the cliff’s barrier, so why is it taking so long now?”

The High Seraph retorted in a cool tone, “If you don’t want to follow, you can turn back.”

The Old Chief tried to calm Shuangdao while also telling him to stay silent.

Lu Yin stared as the cliff drew closer and closer. It was almost within arm’s reach, but that tiny gap still remained, even if it was steadily closing.

This gap was not a matter of distance, but rather of time.

He turned to look at the light of Everlasting Will. It was a transcended sequence that came from Everstone sequence particles, but Lu Yin could not fathom why such a law of the universe could accomplish something that everyone else had found impossible. Only when he touched the transcended sequence with Lightstream did he vaguely understand.

Everlasting Will is the power of space. Once one’s mind attained the Everstone state and they could trigger Star Transference, they would be able to stand in for the High Seraph and absorb Heaven’s Blade. After all, Heaven’s Blade struck at the “result,” and with a mind as solid as rock, everything surrounding the High Seraph was already the “result.”

The power of space was present, but the thing closing the final bit of the gap was not the power of space alone, but also the power of time.

The High Seraph had managed to keep his usage of the power of time concealed. He was capable of using the power of time, despite the fact that the Spirit Nidus had fallen to a terrible disadvantage when it came to the power of time as they had lost access to the River of Aeons. However, that limitation had not put the High Seraph at a disadvantage. After all, he was a peak Dukkhan.

Instead, due to the absence of the River of Aeons, Lu Yin was the one who had fallen to a disadvantage. While he had learned to manipulate the power of time, his mastery had never been tempered by the loss of the River of Aeons. On the contrary, Lu Yin overly relied on the river.

The High Seraph was using the power of time in conjunction with Everlasting Will. This was the only way that they were able to continue moving closer to the cliff.

This was an incredible level of mastery over the power of time. Otherwise, Lu Yin could have accomplished the same feat as the High Seraph.

Even without the presence of the River of Aeons, Lu Yin had still managed to climb the cliff with the power of time. Clearly, the High Seraph’s mastery was astounding.

This realization left Lu Yin all the more wary. Just how could anyone defeat the High Seraph with all that he was capable of?

As that thought occurred to Lu Yin, a spirit thread quivered. It had made contact with the cliff.