Star Odyssey

Chapter 931: Disappearance

Lu Yin did not rule out the possibility of other Arbiters also having some connection with the Cosmic Sea. However, right now, Jin He was the most likely candidate. 

In the past, Zi Xianxian had once said that one of the Ten Arbiters could not be attacked and that they also detested those with primeval surnames. That person should also be Jin He. 

Since this person both hated primeval surnames and came from the Cosmic Sea’s Four Pirate Crews, he was very likely to be the culprit. 

Lu Yin set down the scroll and let out a  heavy breath. He had finally found the one he had been searching for after all these years. 

He now knew about all of the Ten Arbiters, at least on a superficial level. And he would learn more information once he reached a certain height. Even if Lu Yin had not obtained access to Amethyst Exchange’s information, he would still eventually learn this. When Yuan Shi had appeared before the group of people from the Starfall Sea who had escaped to the Outerverse, the old man had not spoken a single word to Lan Si. In fact, he had not even bothered with the Arbiter. This showed just how lofty Yuan Shi’s status was. The Ten Arbiters held great sway over the younger generation and perhaps even over Enlighters, but they were seen as nothing more than juniors to those at the higher levels. 

Lu Yin himself was no different. Even if he unified the entire Outerverse, he would still only be a junior. If the Sixth Mainland had not tried to invade their border, he would have never caught Yuan Shi’s eye.

Jin He—Lu Yin would remember this name. 

From a distance, Zi Xianxian watched as Lu Yin’s expressions went through various changes, especially when he looked at the last scroll. Her heart sank; even family members like her could not access some of the information in this place, as Amethyst Exchange was afraid of creating trouble for themselves. She guessed that Lu Yin had likely found the answer that he had been searching for. 

This answer may lead to something in the future, and this moment would be remembered as the trigger.

Information was a type of weapon, and whoever controlled it seized the advantage. However, in a similar sense, information could also bring about disaster. 

She did not know how the answer that Lu Yin had found would affect Amethyst Exchange in the future, but she could only hope that it would not become some great calamity. However, she had no confidence in that wishful belief, as this was related to the Ten Arbiters, and behind them stood too many enormous forces. 

Lu Yin looked around the library again, casually flipping through a few more reports. It had to be acknowledged that Amethyst Exchange’s information was very comprehensive, and they had some information that could be of great help to Lu Yin. However, there was simply too much to comb through in such a short period of time. 

“You can head back first. I’ll take a look around by myself,” Lu Yin told Zi Xianxian.

Zi Xianxian nodded. “You may look through the records, but nothing can leave this place.”

“Got it,” Lu Yin replied casually. 

Zi Xianxian gave him a serious look before turning to leave.

Lu Yin looked up and watched her leave with a crafty glint in his eyes. He did not believe that the Zi family would actually hand over all of its information. There were definitely more secrets that they were keeping from him, but he had no choice to ignore it as he could not keep pressing them too hard. 

Fortunately, he had found what he wanted regarding the Ten Arbiters. Otherwise, he might have been forced to employ more extreme methods. 

***

In Frostwave Weave, on Earth, snow drifted through the sky. The temperature on Changbai Mountain was very low, but it was not uncomfortable to cultivators. 

This was the location of Blue Camp, and even though Earth’s average cultivation level had soared with the help of the Great Yu Empire, Blue Camp had always remained there. Nobody dared to touch it. 

Earth was special, and although it had not raised that many powerful cultivators, it was Lu Yin’s home planet. Thus, the tourists and anyone visiting the planet would not be too brazen, and they would all take the initiative to first approach Zhou Shan. 

Zhou Shan was also special, as he was Lu Yin’s comrade as well as one of Lu Yin’s few friends. 

One day, Zhou Shan led his daughter, Xixi, to visit Changbai Mountain. As they walked, snowflakes fell on her head, though Xixi just revolved star energy through her body to melt the snowflakes. 

Although she was quite young, she had already begun cultivating. Most children on Earth were the same, and they had all stepped onto the path of cultivation at a young age. 

“Papa, there’s someone there! It’s Uncle Zhang!” Zhou Xixi cried out as she pointed at the peak of the mountain 

Zhou Shan smiled. “Let’s go and see him.”

The snow covered the ground in thick layers, and two sets of footprints broke the vast whiteness, one large and one small. However, they were quickly covered over by the endless falling snow. 

Some time had passed since Zhang Dingtian had returned to Earth, and he had already met with Zhou Shan, visited the capital to look for Wu Shang, and met with many old acquaintances. 

It had been difficult for Zhou Shan to find the time to visit Changbai Mountain to meet with Zhang Dingtian and Bai Xue. 

Bai Xue was very grateful to Zhang Dingtian. If not for him, she would have still been suffering from being blackmailed. 

“During Earth’s apocalypse, there were the Seven Sages of China. Although we faced a different crisis at every turn, it was still quite amazing. Now that things have changed, there’s only a few of us left from the seven.” Wu Shang had also come, and he sighed as he took a swig of wine. 

Zhang Dingtian had a complex expression. “Earth’s apocalypse was the start of our connection with the wider universe, and Earth is still too small.” 

“If not for Lu Yin, who knows what Earth would even look like right now. It’s possible that we would have all been sent to the border warfront to become cannon fodder,” Zhou Shan said. 

“Papa, why hasn’t Uncle Lu come back?” Zhou Xixi tugged at Zhou Shan’s clothes.

Zhou Shan rubbed her head. “Uncle Lu doesn’t have time, but I’ll invite him next time.”

Bai Xue waved Zhou Xixi over and lovingly hugged the adorable little girl. 

Zhou Xixi quite liked this beautiful aunt.

“Zhou Shan, does Xixi have a formcast model?” Bai Xue asked. 

Zhou Shan nodded.

Bai Xue rubbed Zhou Xixi’s head and then took her on a tour of Changbai Mountain.

The next day, the group dispersed, as Zhou Shan had many things that he needed to attend to, as did Wu Shang. Meanwhile, Zhang Dingtian decided to visit Jupiter. 

In fact, Lu Yin had specifically told Zhang Dingtian to investigate Jupiter.

“Jupiter? What’s to see there?” Bai Xue asked when she heard of Zhang Dingtian’s plans. Earth’s technology had drastically improved, and they had explored many of the nearby planets, including Jupiter. But from their investigations, there had been nothing special on that planet aside from it’s terrible weather. 

Zhang Dingtian replied, “I don’t know, but Lu Yin can’t enter it.” 

Bai Xue was surprised by this reply. “I’ll go with you.”

Zhang Dingtian nodded, and he stepped into outer space.

Bai Xue followed close behind him.

Jupiter looked very pretty from a distance, but the planet’s atmosphere was deadly. Each of its seemingly beautiful lines were made up of a gas that could instantly kill commoners. 

When he had visited Jupiter, Lu Yin had not been able to enter no matter what he attempted. Thus, this time, it was Zhang Dingtian and Bai Xue’s turn to make an attempt. However, the two were pulled into the planet without any effort from themselves. 

Zhang Dingtian and Bai Xue had not expected to be pulled into Jupiter like this. In fact, they were so unprepared that they did not even have the ability to resist. Both of them vanished just like that. 

If Lu Yin learned of this, he would be very frustrated. He had tried all sorts of methods to access the planet, but these two had entered it so simply.

***

Lu Yin received news of this incident a few days later, and he watched a video of the scene on his gadget. He pursed his lips; what was with this difference in treatment? 

This video had been taken by one of the Great Yu Empire’s spacecraft that had been monitoring Jupiter, and it showed the precise moment when Zhang Dingtian and Bai Xue had been pulled into Jupiter. 

No matter what, the two of them had managed to enter the planet. However, Lu Yin had heard that once someone entered, they would never be allowed to leave. 

Lu Yin immediately ordered another five vessels to monitor Jupiter so that all angles of the planet would be constantly watched. They were also all ordered to immediately report to him if anyone emerged from the planet. 

When he checked the date, Lu Yin saw that it had been a month since he had left the Daosource Sect’s ruins, which meant that it was time to return once again. 

The Zi family’s intelligence database was as vast as an ocean, and he could not possibly peruse their entire bank. 

Lu Yin left the library, and he did not even inform his hosts of his departure.

Although he had saved the Zi family, he was well aware that they did not welcome him. But he did not mind either, as he simply wanted to use them. 

Speaking of which, the Zi family was one of the Outerverse’s four great conglomerates. Just how much money were his shares worth? Lu Yin held rather high expectations. 

Right, there was also Aegis. 

Lu Yin left Skylush Planet and looked through the star chart of the surrounding area. He was planning to find a remote place and then enter the Daosource Sect’s ruins there. His spacecraft flew through space for a period of time as Lu Yin scanned the horizon. Suddenly, his gaze trembled as a boundless amount of rune lines appeared in the distance. 

Lu Yin frowned, and he stared closely at the desolate planet that had appeared in the distance.

There was something strange with the rune lines that he was seeing, as there should not be anyone on that desolate planet. However, there were countless rune lines on it at the moment. They revealed the presence of not just one, but three people, and all of them were at the level of an Enlighter. 

Lu Yin’s gaze grew sharp, and he exited his spacecraft before donning his universal armor. After that, his figure vanished. 

There was a massive maelstrom blocking the way, but Lu Yin easily passed through it to land on the surface of the planet. He was greeted by a dusky glow that extended in all directions, but the ground was white. The only sound that greeted him was the lonely wind breeze. 

The three massive clusters of rune lines were gathered together, but Lu Yin used his cloakstone to conceal his aura as he approached them. Before long, he saw three humans sitting at the base of a dusky mountain. There was one older person and two middle-aged people. 

The trio did not speak, and they seemed to be resting. 

Lu Yin waited for half a day, but the three people did not even open their eyes.

Once a cultivator entered a state of cultivation, it would be normal for them to not move for a few days, months, years, or even centuries and millennia. However, Lu Yin did not want to waste that much time here. 

Still, the presence of these three Enlighters was just too odd. Aside from the border’s defensive line, where else could three Enlighters be seen together? Even the Neo-Vestige Sect only had three Enlighters. 

Also, the location of this planet was coincidentally right along Lu Yin’s return route to Frostwave Weave. Most likely, when he had come to Skylush Planet, these three people had not been here since he would have noticed them then. 

After thinking about it, Lu Yin came up with a theory. He then decided to test it out by using his gadget to send a message to Zi Xianxian, letting her know that he had left the Zi family’s homeworld. 

Less than two minutes later, the gadgets of the three people beeped, and they all opened their eyes in unison. “He’s out. Get ready.” 

“He’s killed Enlighters before, so the three of us need to attack him at once. Otherwise, there will be no end to our trouble.”

“Rumor has it that he has too many external items, so the three of us cannot act too brazenly. We must control him from the dark. Brother Ye, it’ll be up to you.” 

Of the trio, the elder spoke in an awe-inspiring tone. “Rest assured, he will have no opportunity to use his items. As soon as I see him, he won’t be able to move.” 

Lu Yin let out a breath. Sure enough, these three people had been lying in wait for him. Someone from the Zi family had betrayed him, and he did not even know if it had been Zi Xianxian. Even if it wasn’t her, the traitor had to be someone within the upper echelons of the Zi family who had immediately learned of Lu Yin’s situation through Zi Xianxian. 

He picked up a stone and fiercely threw it down.

The trio below him were startled by the noise, and they whirled around to see a stone turn to dust just a meter away from them. “Who’s there?”

Lu Yin stepped forward. “Are you three seniors waiting for me?”

The trio was stunned. “H- how did you get here?”

Lu Yin’s gaze swept over them. “Three Enlighters were sent out to ambush an Explorer. I’m quite flattered.” 

The trio exchanged glances, and the old person suddenly stared at Lu Yin. A formless chain appeared from the void and moved to bind Lu Yin’s limbs, even locking the air in place as it firmly bound Lu Yin. “Go!” 

Fierce attacks rained down upon the youth, and the desolate planet instantly began to crack before exploding from the pressure.

Even Explorers were capable of destroying planets, so it went without saying that Enlighters were able to do the same. 

Even the space surrounding the shattered planet began to tremble.

Lu Yin was being struck like a dummy target that had no ability to retaliate. The old man’s innate gift was very strange, and such an innate gift could force a normal cultivator into desperate straits. However, Lu Yin was no average person. He had already put on his universal armor and was simply too lazy to evade these attacks. In truth, when the elder had used his innate gift, Lu Yin had been observing the rune lines in the surroundings, and it would have been trivial for him to avoid the attack.