Star Odyssey

Chapter 469: War

The Explorer Starsibyl had seen the battle as well. Lu Yin’s answer kept returning to her mind. She didn’t know what to make of his answer, but she felt it was necessary to return to the sect and report it. Lu Yin, Mu Rong, and the others all represented the younger generation to a certain degree. When the Ten Arbiters inevitably left the younger generation, it would be time for the top ten of the Top 100 Rankings to take their place. Lu Yin and his peers would likely take the places of the Ten Arbiters, and Lu Yin was obviously one of the very top ones, which meant that his answer was very important. 

Hai Qiqi kept to herself for a few days, but in the end, she decided to visit Lu Yin. “Hey, how does that cowherd’s song work?” That was the bit that she was the most curious about. 

Lu Yin’s eyes went wide, and he looked at her. “It controls people.”

“That’s amazing! So why didn’t you get controlled?” Hai Qiqi’s eyes were huge, and she blinked slowly.

Lu Yin pursed his lips. “Because I’m strong.”

Hai Qiqi looked like she was deep in thought as she focused on Lu Yin. After a long period of silence, she asked, “Do you think cultivators are more likely to become perpetrators of domestic abuse?” 

Lu Yin was left speechless.

The Ghost Monkey sighed. “I suddenly feel like Ming Yan suits you better, Seventh Bro. I know that you want more influence, but there’s no need to sacrifice so much for it! Find somebody else. With your talent, I’m sure that there’ll be someone who’s blind enough to want you.”

At that moment, Lu Yin’s gadget beeped with a notification. He tapped the screen and found that Lily Anne was calling him. 

“Congratulations on properly becoming the most powerful Limiteer!” She grinned as she spoke.

Lu Yin gave a short, modest response.

Hai Qiqi poked her head over. “Who’s that?”

“It’s got nothing to do with you,” Lu Yin retorted in annoyance.

Hai Qiqi snorted. “I’ll tell father that you have a mistress.”

Lu Yin was stunned, and so was Lily Anne.  

Hai Qiqi burst out laughing. “I didn’t mean it! I never planned on marrying you anyways. It works out better for me if you already have someone who you like. I’ll have father allow you two to be together.” After that, she waved at Lily Anne and happily left. 

It was only after Hai Qiqi had gone far away that Lily Anne regained her wits. This was the first time she had ever met such a person, and she had obviously not been able to keep her composure. Just one sentence had completely changed the atmosphere. 

“My apologies, Ms. An-er. That girl is a little… a little…” Lu Yin didn’t even know what to say. Regardless of all else, Hai Qiqi’s thought process was all over the place, her mind was not at all normal, and she also had a very sharp tongue. However, Lu Yin didn’t dare to say any of this since he was sure that the Sea King was watching him. 

Lily Anne chuckled. “That must have been the Sea King’s daughter.” 

Lu Yin nodded, clearly at a loss for what to say.

Lily Anne smiled. “She’s very direct, and she’s a good kid. You need to make sure that you hang onto her, Lu Yin. Being able to marry the Sea King’s daughter is many people’s dream. Not to mention that she’s very pretty!”

Lu Yin had no idea where Lily Anne had gotten the idea that Hai Qiqi was a good person. Was she pretty? This woman must be trying to suck up to him. However, Lily Anne possessed an intellectual beauty, and didn’t seem like the type to do any bootlicking. Lu Yin still had not forgotten what had happened on their way to Northline Flowzone. That woman had sucked up to somebody without anybody realizing it. This time, she must be trying to suck up to the Sea King. 

“Is there anything you need from me, Ms. An-er?” Lu Yin inquired.

Lily Anne’s expression suddenly turned grim. “Do you know what’s happened in Frostwave Weave?”

Lu Yin was startled. “Frostwave Weave? What happened?”

Lily Anne frowned. “You haven’t heard? The Beast Tamers Flowzone’s Second Grade Hall has declared war on Frostwave Weave, and their target is the Great Yu Empire. Apparently, quite a few captains from the Great Yu Empire’s Imperial Thirteen Squadrons have already headed towards the border, including that Hunter realm blind monk.” 

Lu Yin’s expression changed, because he honestly had no idea that such a development had taken place. “How did you find out about this?”

“It seems like you truly didn’t know. Alright, I’ll tell you. This is no longer a secret known only to the great clans of the universe.” She paused for a moment and then seriously said, “Within the Astral Wilderness, somebody discovered an extremely dense substance called pyrolyte that is incredibly destructive. Just one gram of it can release a destructive power that matches an attack with a power level of over 10,000, which means that it is a strategic war resource. Securing a large amount of this substance could possibly be enough to alter the courses of certain circumstances in the universe, which is why many organizations have sent their people to explore the Astral Wilderness. 

“At this time, the place where we’ve found the most pyrolyte is close to Northcastle Weave, which is coincidentally one of the places in the Outerverse that’s close to the Astral Wilderness. It also happens to lie directly north of Frostwave Weave. I hope that this makes sense to you, Lu Yin.” 

Lu Yin narrowed his eyes. “So you’re saying that a number of organizations have sent people into Northcastle Weave and that the Second Grade Hall is trying to lay their hands on Frostwave Weave?” 

“I’m not exactly sure what’s happening behind the scenes, but I know that the Second Grade Hall has launched an attack against Frostwave Weave for sure. After finding out, I immediately contacted you,” Lily Anne explained. 

Lu Yin took a deep breath. “Thanks for letting me know, Ms. An-er.”

Lily Anne knew that Lu Yin needed to immediately contact his people in the Great Yu Empire, so she did not drag the conversation out any further and quickly hung up.

Lu Yin’s eyes flashed, and he immediately called Huo Qingshan. Soon enough, the man appeared on Lu Yin’s screen. 

“Is there something that you haven’t told me?” Lu Yin asked while holding in his rage.

Huo Qingshan was confused. “What? Nothing is happening.”

“The Second Grade Hall is attacking Frostwave Weave, and you’re trying to keep it from me? Or are you trying to say that I am no longer the regent of the Great Yu Empire?” Lu Yin demanded. He was now truly furious, feeling like he’d been cheated.

Huo Qingshan answered, “Where did you hear these rumors, your highness?”

Lu Yin narrowed his eyes. “Rumors?”

Huo Qingshan nodded. “Some time ago, some experts from the Second Grade Hall pursued and tried to kill a survivor of Northcastle Weave’s Greatsword Dynasty. They fought Captain Shalosh, but they were all defeated. So, they sent some more men to take revenge, but that’s all that happened. There hasn’t been any attack against Frostwave Weave.”

“What about the Blind Monk? Why’d he go to the border?” Lu Yin asked.

Huo Qingshan chuckled. “That’s because we were afraid that one of the Second Grade Hall’s commanders might personally come. A Hunter isn’t someone who Captain Shalosh or the others can deal with. Please do not worry, your highness. The Great Yu Empire isn’t weak, and this matter has already been reported to the Fifth Princess, Wendy Yushan. She told us not to bother you.” 

Lu Yin sighed. It seemed that Huo Qingshan and the rest had not intentionally hidden things from him. They had only done so because they did not realize just how serious the situation was. A while back, Lu Yin had told Huo Qingshan that they shouldn’t contact him unless it was something very important. And Huo Qingshan saw this matter as an act of revenge, not war, which explained why he hadn’t reported any of it to Lu Yin. But in actuality, this really was war. 

The Great Yu Empire definitely knew nothing about pyrolyte and thought that the Second Grade Hall appearing in Northcastle Weave was just a random coincidental matter. Those large organizations had managed to completely seal off all relevant information from the rest of the universe. It was likely that even that survivor from the Greatsword Dynasty had no idea about why his dynasty had fallen. Most of the organizations in the Outerverse knew nothing about the current situation, and only those in the Innerverse would have knowledge of the discovery of pyrolyte. 

Thankfully Lu Yin had managed to find out. Otherwise, the moment the Second Grade Hall started coveting Frostwave Weave’s geographic location and attacked, the Great Yu Empire would have found itself waist deep in grave danger. 

“This is an order: the Great Yu Empire is to cease all attacks. Gather all of our warships in the north. The captains of the Ninth Imperial Squadron, Rocky Auna, the Thirteenth Imperial Squadron, Liuying Yushan, and all the new recruits who are at or above the Explorer realm are to gather at the border between Frostwave Weave and Northcastle Weave. The moment enemies are discovered, make sure to intimidate them, but do not declare war on them. In addition, please have Xueshan Auna head over to the border to take charge,” Lu Yin stated sternly. 

Huo Qingshan was shocked, but when he studied Lu Yin’s expression more, he realized that things were bad. “Has something happened, your highness?”

Lu Yin sighed for a moment before telling the man about pyrolyte. Huo Qingshan immediately realized where the issue lay. Frostwave Weave was just south of Northcastle Weave, and they even directly bordered it. Their geographical location was very important, and the Second Grade Hall clearly wanted to take control of Frostwave Weave. That meant that Northcastle Weave was already done for.

Reality didn’t match that survivor’s description, as he had said that only the Greatsword Dynasty had been destroyed. It might seem like many of the large organizations in Northcastle Weave still existed, but in actuality, the Innerverse had taken control of every major organization. 

The Second and First Grade Halls were both subservient to the Divine Grade Hall. And the Divine Grade Hall represented the entire Beast Tamers Flowzone.

“Understood. Please do not worry, your highness,” Huo Qingshan stated grimly.

Lu Yin nodded, but just as he was about to hang up, a thought suddenly occurred to him. “Did you say that Captain Shalosh fought against some experts from the Second Grade Hall in order to protect a survivor from the Greatsword Dynasty? Where is that survivor?” 

“On his way to Zenyu Star,” Huo Qingshan answered.

Lu Yin stated, “Keep him safe.”

“Yes, sir.”

Many of the large organizations from the Innerverse had gathered in Northcastle Weave, making that weave very lively. Even the Lily Clan had gone there, and they were just a small family who weren’t even from one of the Eight Great Flowzones. Thus, why shouldn’t Lu Yin participate as well?

Lu Yin was not actually expecting to actually get anything, but it would be nice if he managed to achieve something of note. Even if it was just a tiny bit, he would be able to upgrade any rare or unusual items he acquired with his die’s Enhance. There was even a chance that he might strike it rich. At the thought of how much money he’d made from those items he acquired inside the centipede’s body, his eyes gleamed. 

However, handling the crisis in Frostwave Weave was of the utmost importance right now. 

With this in mind, Lu Yin contacted Wendy Yushan, but unfortunately, he did not manage to reach her. He thought about calling Mira but ultimately decided against it. The Ten Arbiters Council would not be able to exert any influence upon the competition in the Northcastle Weave and the Astral Wilderness. Additionally, they would not be able to protect Frostwave Weave either. 

While standing beneath the waterfall, Lu Yin pondered over the matter for a long time before finally bowing towards the sky. “I would like to request an audience with you, sir.”

Soon enough, the Sea King appeared in front of Lu Yin. “You haven’t thought of a way to defeat Mu Rong without brute force?”

Lu Yin shook his head. “No, I have not.”

“It’s very simple. Just steal his flute,” the Sea King chided.

Lu Yin froze. “Steal- steal his flute?”

“His innate gift is that flute, and that farmer boy’s song can only be performed if he plays the flute. Thus, so long as you steal it, you’ll be able to stop him from playing the song! Since you managed to hit him once, that means that you should be able to hit him twice, though you might have to pay a price for it. However, compared to such a feat as defeating him, it would be worth it,” the Sea King explained. 

Lu Yin blinked. “But since that flute is his innate gift, it should disappear even if I do manage to steal it.” 

“You’re so stupid! Just steal it and then destroy it. An innate gift is something that places a huge burden on the body if it’s used enough. Nobody’s innate gift can be used indefinitely. So naturally, if you destroy it, it will affect him greatly. It isn’t that easy to perform that farmer boy’s song. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have given Ling Que the chance to combine those three blades into one. Perhaps if he had taken that attack, he wouldn’t have been able to use the farmer boy’s song,” the Sea King explained. 

Lu Yin recalled what had happened with Mu Rong in their battle and realized that the Sea King’s words were true. Mu Rong had not given Lu Yin the chance to attack a second time and had hurriedly used the farmer boy’s song. It was indeed possible that the attack took a lot out of him and that once he was injured enough, he wouldn’t be able to use it anymore. Destroying Mu Rong’s flute would actually be able to hurt him at that point. 

Having thought things through, Lu Yin looked at the Sea King in awe. “Thank you for the guidance, sir.”