Chapter 1400: Tribulation Crystal Pillar
Chapter 1400: Tribulation Crystal Pillar
The next day, the bearded soldier returned to Lu Yin and respectfully said, “Your request for a meeting was delivered to the commander, and he is waiting for you at headquarters.”
Lu Yin nodded. “Alright.”
The man then left.
Lu Yin sighed. It seemed that Long Xian had found out about the incident the day before between Long Ding and Long Qi. But then, why would the commander want to meet with him at this time?
Meeting with Long Xian would drag Lu Yin into the White Dragon Clan’s internal conflicts. Thus, he immediately contacted Long Xi to avoid any mistakes. He did not want to infuriate her, and her temper was quite poor.
Long Xi’s image soon appeared. Her amber eyes were as beautiful as ever, but they seemed worried. “What did you do?”
Lu Yin was stunned. “What do you mean?”
Long Xi’s eyes narrowed. “You wouldn’t contact me unless you’ve already done something wrong.”
Lu Yin was left speechless. This woman really had a horrible impression of him. “Long Ding attacked me yesterday.”
Long Xi’s brows rose. “Long Ding? Long Xian’s son?”
Lu Yin nodded.
“You aren’t injured, right?” she asked.
Lu Yin answered, “I’m fine, and I even managed to wound him.”
Long Xi’s eyes gleamed. “Was that by using the inheritance that you got from the Sword Monument?”
Lu Yin nodded. “Long Xian just invited me to the army’s headquarters. Do you think that I should go?”
Long Xi replied, “Wait a minute.”
She then ended the call.
Lu Yin’s communication crystal vibrated a short while later, and Long Xi’s image reappeared. “Go and meet him. I’ve spoken with Elder Long Kui, and he’s at the army’s headquarters as well.”
Lu Yin nodded. “Long Xian won’t try to do anything to me, right?”
Long Xi reassured him, “He won’t. By the way, take Guo Shan with you.”
Lu Yin nodded, realizing that Long Xi wanted to drag the Fourteenth Gate into the mess.
Humility’s Gate was not allowed to get involved in the four ruling powers’ internal conflicts, but many people liked how Humility’s Gate was very protective of its own. Thus, the four ruling powers often did their best to have their juniors enter Humility’s Gate, like what the Junior Progenitors had all done.
Out of all of Humility’s Gate’s various gates, the Fourteenth Gate was the most protective of their members.
If Lu Yin brought Guo Shan along to the army’s headquarters, then Long Xian would be unable to do anything to Lu Yin at all. Even if the army commander did not care about Long Kui, he would still have to be cautious of the Fourteenth Gate. It was a hornet’s nest, and kicking it would help no one. The Progenitor behind Humility’s Gate was a massive deterrent to everybody due to his overprotectiveness. However, that overprotectiveness also allowed Humility’s Gate to be more united than a typical organization, letting them develop many powerhouses.
However, it would not be easy to drag Guo Shan into the mess. The man was not dumb, and he was clearly aware that Long Qi was entangled in the White Dragon Clan’s internal conflicts, especially after the earlier attack. And now, Long Qi was actually going to the army’s headquarters.
Unexpectedly, Guo Shan readily agreed to go when Lu Yin invited him. Guo Shan was not going in order to help Lu Yin, but rather because the older man knew that Long Xian was not stupid and that he would not dare to do anything to Long Qi. Yesterday’s attack had failed, and everybody knew who was behind the attack. Since Long Qi was being invited to the army’s headquarters, it indicated that the commander was either planning to apologize, or the man was confident that he could save face.
The only way for the army commander to save face was to have Long Ding openly fight against Long Qi and then win. And the only reason why Long Ding would be confident in his victory was by either becoming an Enlighter or by opening his lower meridian point.
“I’ve never seen anyone open their lower meridian point, so this’ll be a new experience for me,” Guo Shan said.
Lu Yin was also curious about this matter, as he had never seen it before either.
The Flying Armor Troops’ headquarters lay in the center of Flying Armor Pass. It took up a massive area, and many troops patrolled about, making the area impenetrable.
Long Xian personally welcomed Lu Yin and Guo Shan. Meanwhile, a young man stood behind the army commander, and the youth glared viciously at Lu Yin. Although the young man made an attempt to be polite, Lu Yin was already certain that this person was Long Ding.
“The Fourteenth Gate’s Guo Shan and Long Qi have arrived.”
Displeasure flashed through Long Xian’s eyes as he heard Lu Yin’s name, but it disappeared nearly instantly. “Please enter, Master Guo.”
Guo Shan smiled.
Long Xian then turned to Lu Yin and laughed. “So you’re Long Qi, the son-in-law of the White Dragon Clan’s main family.”
Lu Yin humbly replied, “You’re too kind, commander.”
Long Xian continued to say, “Being able to surpass Bai Xian’er’s record at the Sword Monument is quite impressive, and you’re now the person who holds the record for taking the longest to receive an inheritance from the Sword Monument. Your name’s already spread throughout the Higher Realm and even the entire Perennial World.”
Lu Yin’s reputation in the Perennial World had grown tremendously after he had received that inheritance from the Sword Monument. People had started to accept his talent, and if not for that incident, then his earlier fight against Long Ding would have made Lu Yin’s strength incredibly suspicious to Long Kui, Long Xi, and even Long Tian.
However, after Lu Yin had received an inheritance from the Sword Monument, nobody would question a sharp increase in his abilities. They would only be jealous.
Lu Yin humbly replied, “I only learned a few battle techniques, and there’s no way I could compare with your son. This must be Brother Long Ding.
Long Ding walked forward and tried his best to put on a friendly appearance. “I’ve heard a lot about you, Brother Long Qi.”
Lu Yin answered, “What you’ve heard are just exaggerations. I can’t compare with someone like you who has actual experience.”
Lu Yin looked completely sincere as he spoke, and nobody would have been able to pick up on his sarcasm if not for the previous day’s incident.
A murderous intent flashed through Long Ding’s eyes.
Long Xian led Lu Yin and Guo Shan into the building. Nobody brought up the incident from yesterday, and the conversation remained casual and the atmosphere friendly.
Half a day later, somebody came to report, “Commander, everything is ready.”
Lu Yin and Guo Shan looked at each other. Ready?
Long Xian laughed. “Go and invite Elder Long Kui to watch the ceremony.”
“Yes, Commander.”
Long Ding looked at Lu Yin, clear excitement in his eyes. He was clearly eager for whatever was about to happen.
Long Xian smiled at Lu Yin and Guo Shan. “What a coincidence that both of you are here today. My son is about to open his first meridian point. Would you like to watch the ceremony?”
Guo Shan acted surprised. “Open his lower meridian point? Commander, are you saying that you have enough tribulation crystals for your son to open his lower meridian point?”
Long Xian replied, “I stumbled upon an unexpected inheritance that belonged to my ancestors and gained some tribulation crystals. Thus, I have just enough for my son to open his lower meridian point. It was just luck.”
Nobody would ever believe such crap, Lu Yin and Guo Shan both thought.
“Commander, you’re so lucky! There are very few people who are able to open their meridian points, and usually, only one or two people a century from each of the four ruling powers are able to do so. I can’t believe that I’m lucky enough to watch your son open his meridian point today. Congratulations!” Guo Shan exclaimed.
Long Xian laughed heartily and turned to face Lu Yin. “Long Qi, you’re Princess Long Xi’s husband, so the clan will definitely do their best to help you open your lower meridian point as well. You can watch Long Ding go through it today so that you can know what to expect.”
Lu Yin remained polite. “That would be great.”
He then turned towards Long Ding and enviously said, “Congratulations, Brother Long, on this breakthrough.”
Long Ding waved a hand. “It hasn’t even happened yet. Let’s go, Brother Long Qi.”
“After you.”
Many of the Flying Armor Troops’ powerhouses had already gathered in the central courtyard, and all of them were keeping a close eye on the central platform. There was a ten meter tall cylindrical object standing there that had been covered by a sheet of cloth.
Once Long Xian arrived, he waved a hand and removed the cloth, revealing a giant collection of tribulation crystals.
Even though he had already known what would happen, Guo Shan was still shocked by what he saw.
Most people would only ever have a chance to see a tiny amount of tribulation crystals, and each crystal might not even be visible to the naked eye. Despite that, even a tiny amount of tribulation crystals would be enough wealth for anyone to live a good life. It was rare for anyone to see a tribulation crystal the size of a normal rock, let alone a ten meter tall pillar of crystal that was a full meter in diameter.
Lu Yi felt astounded; was this really how much tribulation crystal a person needed to open their lower meridian point? This was insane.
The man who had found that crystal that was the size of a fingernail could already live out the rest of his life in comfort from what he would gain from that crystal, and this pillar was hundreds of times bigger than the crystal that the man had found.
Tribulation crystals only formed when Enlighters underwent their stellular tribulation and tried to break through to an Envoy, but how many crystals were produced by each tribulation? It would only be a small amount, and some tribulations did not form any crystals at all. How long would it take to gather this many tribulation crystals?
How many Envoys were represented by this crystal pillar? Lu Yin could not even make an estimate.
Long Ding’s breathing began to pick up as he looked at the crystal pillar with fervent eyes. He had only seen it once before, after which his father had forbidden him from looking at it again. Now, Long Ding was finally able to see it once more.
This amount of tribulation crystals was enough to drive even the four ruling powers crazy.
How many tribulation crystals were each of the four ruling powers able to accumulate during a century? There were enough tribulation crystals here to trigger an actual battle.
The crystal pillar had been formed by combining countless tribulation crystals. It looked like each individual crystal had a unique light, and it was even possible to see lightning flickering within the pillar. The gigantic pillar looked like something from another world, and it caused space to twist around it and even affected the sky above Flying Armor Pass, causing the true universe to be revealed.
Long Xian’s palms grew sweaty as he looked around. Many of the powerhouses from the Flying Armor Troops were looking at the pillar with burning eyes. Fortunately, they had already activated the Flying Armor Array; otherwise, someone would have likely done something stupid.
Long Kui also arrived, and he stared at the pillar in shock. “This-”
The elder had absolutely no idea that Long Xian possessed so many crystals. Long Kui had merely received an invitation to attend a ceremony, and he had not been informed that it was to open Long Ding’s lower meridian point. Long Kui was an elder of the White Dragon Clan, but he was still astonished when he arrived in the courtyard.
Long Xian glanced at Long Ding and winked.
Long Ding leaped up onto the platform and walked towards the crystal pillar. Star energy surged around him as he placed both of his hands onto the pillar.
The first step to opening a meridian point was to refine the tribulation crystals into the smallest size possible so that they could absorb it better. The crystals would then help open the lower meridian point that the human body was normally unable to open on its own. What’s more, it was only possible to open a meridian point with the use of tribulation crystals, as they were the only things capable of stabilizing the meridian points and breaking through them.
Opening a meridian point would improve a person’s ability to circulate star energy, as well as double their strength, which was a massive increase.
The human body was extremely complex, and opening all three meridian points was the best way to increase one’s strength. Not to mention, it was also a necessary step towards becoming a Progenitor.
Long Kui still had not had a chance to react when Long Ding started refining the pillar.
“Brother Xian, what is this?” Long Kui was confused.
Long Xian smiled. “Elder, weren’t you wondering why the Fourteenth Gate was investigating Flying Armor Pass? I can now tell you that it’s because of this tribulation crystal pillar.”