Star Odyssey

Chapter 2766: A Progenitor’s Tribulation

As the endless stream of stellular energy continued to pour into Lu Yin’s body, the power in his chest revolved, and the trapped stellular energy fell onto the continent of fatesand. On the continent was the Withered Bark with the gray power of time flitting about it, the river of voidforce energy, green plants along the river that were formed from the Arboreal Realm’s energy, and tri-colored soil formed from monarch energy everywhere else.

The falling stellular energy was like a spring rain nourishing the earth.

Lu Yin was not able to personally absorb the stellular energy, but the Withered Bark, continent of fatesand, river of voidforce energy, green plants, and tri-colored soil all absorbed the stellular energy and were nourished by it.

Lu Yin had just been testing things out, and he had not expected to actually succeed.

An endless outpouring of stellular energy rained down on every part of the continent, visibly rejuvenating everything. Even the river of voidforce energy expanded slightly. Despite everything being its own unique power and energy, they formed a cohesive system within Lu Yin’s chest that was able to suppress any kind of power.

As Lu Yin watched, a thought occurred to him; if the stellular energy was able to turn into voidforce energy, then could stellular energy be converted into the other powers that existed in his chest? If not, then why had some of the stellular energy become voidforce energy?

As he considered this possibility, Lu Yin saw that the rain of stellular energy had expanded the river of voidforce energy until it spanned the entire continent.

On the other side of the continent, the stellular energy formed a lake, though it quickly grew into a sea, at least in comparison to the continent of fatesand. The sea was formed from the stellular energy that had been trapped by the black and white mist that surrounded the continent of fatesand, but not been absorbed by the other powers.

Lu Yin had not managed to absorb any of the stellular energy from the stellular tribulation, but it had become vital nutrients for the power in his chest.

Lu Yin laughed and looked upwards at his tribulation. "You want to feed me until I burst? Can you even do that? Now that you’re here, you won’t even be able to leave! I choose whether I let you go or take you for myself!"

Everyone’s mouths hung open as they stared at Lu Yin, who was shouting at the sky and laughing wildly. An indescribable excitement stirred within their hearts, and many people started trembling from excitement.

"The Dao Monarch is invincible!" someone shouted.

"The Dao Monarch is invincible!"

"The Dao Monarch is invincible!"

...

Countless voices rang out as one. It was as though they were trying to overpower the maelstrom of stellular energy that was pouring out of the stellular tribulation, merging into a single voice that rang throughout the universe.

The four ruling powers were stunned. Lu Yin was still alive even after absorbing such a ridiculous amount of stellular energy. No one could even imagine what the boy had done to survive or how he had cultivated.

"Hahahaha..." Lu Buzheng’s laughter rang out as he stared at Lu Yin with eyes that were filled with awe. This descendent of his Lu family who had been born countless years after his time was far superior to Lu Tianyi. It was even possible that Lu Yin would eventually rise up to the same level as the Three Realms Six Dao.

Master Shan grew increasingly excited. This was their young master! He was the Lu family’s greatest pride, as well as the young master of the entire Fifth Mainland. Even if he had lost all of his memories and his cultivation, he was still able to rise up and challenge the universe with a smile on his face.

Cloudflow remained hidden in the Heavens Sect, but he stared eastwards in utter shock.

While the power of the stellular energy was not particularly impressive, the sheer quantity was like a vast ocean, and it was more than enough to drown even Cloudflow.

Lu Yin was too mysterious and unpredictable, and no one could imagine his future, which Cloudflow saw as a good thing. It gave him hope of one day taking back the Cloudflow Universe.

The Progenitor of Bloodlines was thrilled as he stared off into outer space. The truth was that he could not see what was happening, but he could hear it. He heard the voices of countless people expressing their best wishes to Lu Yin. He represented the future of the entire Fifth Mainland.

Zhi Yi's expression was complicated. She had once been able to compete evenly with Lu Yin, but what could she do now but watch him from a distance?

Lan Xian sighed. Anyone who did not know better would assume that this was a Progenitor’s tribulation.

Hen Xin returned, and shock covered his face as he stared at Lu Yin. He was at the cusp of triggering his Progenitor’s tribulation, and he realized that he could not afford to wait any longer. Any more delays might mean that not even becoming a Progenitor would be enough for him to change his situation.

The modern Heavens Sect was becoming increasingly unfathomable.

...

It was a day that was destined to go down in history. Every last one of Lu Yin’s stellular tribulations had been worthy of being recorded in history, as it would be difficult for any of them to ever be surpassed.

Lu Yin’s excitement rose higher, improving his battleforce. He was taunting the stellular tribulation, hoping to draw out more stellular energy so that he could water the dry continent in his chest. He needed more stellular energy to improve his strength.

Unfortunately, the tribulation eventually needed to end.

As the vortex weakened, Lu Yin felt disappointed. "Just this?"

Everyone who heard his words was rendered utterly speechless.

Lu Buzheng gave a bitter smile. Those geniuses from the Heavens Sect era who had died to unlimited absorption would climb from their graves only to die again of anger if they heard Lu Yin's words.

This tribulation was regarded as a death sentence for anyone facing their eighth stellular tribulation.

Lu Yin watched as the vortex slowly shrank and disappeared. He let out a long breath.

The continent of fatesand in his chest had been completely transformed. It possessed greater vitality, and the green buds of the growing plants looked like they were about to explode. The Withered Bark had grown brighter, and the river of voidforce energy had grown several times wider, draining into a newly formed sea of stellular energy.

While the sea was rather small, the stellular energy that it contained was incredible. In fact, there was enough for Lu Yin to reach the Semi-Progenitor level.

He tried to absorb a bit of the sea’s energy, and his eyes lit up. It was actually possible.

This is great! Now that the tribulation is over, I can use the stellular energy that I took.

While there was enough stellular energy to push Lu Yin to the Semi-Progenitor level, he needed to first take some time to stabilize his cultivation.

Additionally, the fact that there was enough stellular energy for Lu Yin to become a Semi-Progenitor meant that it was enough energy for others to become Progenitors.

The sea held as much stellular energy as a Progenitor, and not even a mediocre Progenitor at that. Lu Yin believed that the sea was roughly equal to Xia Shenji’s stellular energy reserves.

He had stolen as much stellular energy as what Xia Shenji possessed, and that was not even mentioning all the stellular energy that had nourished Lu Yin’s internal continent and its powers.

Arch-Elder Zen and the others gathered close, and they quickly asked Lu Yin how he had managed to absorb so much stellular energy. They all understood that the stellular energy from this sort of tribulation could not be used for cultivation or be truly absorbed by a cultivator. It could not be used to increase a person’s strength, so naturally, they were all very curious about what had happened to the stellular energy that Lu Yin had absorbed

Just as Lu Yin was about to respond, he felt something in his heart lurch, and he turned to look further east.

Arch-Elder Zen and all of the other experts turned and looked as well.

To the east, they saw another stellular tribulation’s dark vortex.

"Who is challenging their tribulation?" People were surprised, but the moment the question was raised, the vortex expanded wildly, and lightning erupted. A powerful pressure descended from the vortex, and even Lu Yin felt intimidated by the pressure.

"That’s a Progenitor’s tribulation!" Arch-Elder Zen exclaimed.

Everyone was startled. Was there someone trying to break through and become a Progenitor?

Regardless of who it was, everyone needed to stay far away.

Lu Yin stared intently at the distant tribulation. Is that Leng Qing? Is he about to attempt a breakthrough?

At the edge of the Astral Beast Domain, Leng Qing stared upwards. He was ready to survive his tribulation.

Leng Qing had not held any confidence in being able to pass his Progenitor’s tribulation, but after seeing Lu Yin smile at the sky and challenge his tribulation, Leng Qing had broken through his previous line of thinking. Specifically, the words, “I choose whether I let you go or take you for myself!” had awakened something inside Leng Qing. At that moment, he had understood that it was time for him to make his breakthrough.

Leng Qing looked westwards towards Lu Yin. Across the distance, the Semi-Progenitor bowed. "Thank you, Dao Monarch, for your advice. Leng Qing will overcome this tribulation."

"Quickly, get back!" Lu Buzheng pulled Lu Yin away.

Lu Yin continued to stare at Leng Qing, and smiled at the man. "I wish you success."

No one had anticipated that, as soon as Lu Yin passed his eighth source tribulation, Leng Qing would trigger his Progenitor’s tribulation.

There was no comparison between someone’s eighth stellular tribulation and a Progenitor’s tribulation.

There was no denying that Lu Yin's eighth tribulation had been shocking, and it could even be said that it had overturned what everyone knew about such tribulations. However, that did not mean that it could compare to a Progenitor’s tribulation.

A Progenitor’s tribulation was the final hurdle that humans needed to overcome. By passing it, one became free and unrestrained across the vast megaverse.

Progenitors stood at the peak of humanity, and whoever became a Progenitor would rule their era.

To be a Progenitor was not only to reach a realm of cultivation, but also to accept a responsibility. Progenitors were responsible for creating their own era and altering the universe while preserving the human heritage.

Over the course of countless years, innumerable people had tried to become Progenitors, and it was impossible to estimate just how many people had opened their three meridian points. And yet, how many of them had successfully become a Progenitor?

Even during the glorious Heavens Sect era’s most prosperous time, it had still been possible to easily count every last Progenitor.

Most people never expected to lay eyes on a Progenitor throughout their entire lives.

Leng Qing stood silently beneath his tribulation, waiting for it to start.

Lu Buzheng felt worried. "Why is he in such a hurry? There’s no reason to rush, and the chances of success are simply too low."

Cai Er moved closer, staring at Leng Qing. "He realized something. He will be the first of us to become a Progenitor."

Destina was also present, and while she and Cai Er were rivals, and Cai Er dreamed of surpassing Destina’s looks, at this moment, no one cared about their rivalries. All of them were focused on Leng Qing.

Even Hen Xin approached from the direction of the Heavens Sect, completely focused on Leng Qing and his Progenitor’s tribulation.

Would he succeed?

Lu Yin's eyes flickered. He had not expected Leng Qing to suddenly gain the confidence to survive his tribulation. Was it because of Lu Yin? Was the man really certain? It was impossible to know.

As everyone waited for the tribulation to begin, none of them noticed that their surroundings had grown incredibly quiet. It was even possible to hear the breathing of everyone nearby.

Something’s not right.

Lu Yin suddenly glared upwards. A tremendous surge of stellular energy had just appeared at the edge of the swirling vortex, creating a dome that shot towards Leng Qing. The area around the man instantly became a perfect vacuum. Within this zone, stellular energy simply did not exist.

"Heaven’s Suppression." Lu Buzheng looked solemn.

Lu Yin was startled, as this was the same tribulation that he had faced during his sixth stellular tribulation. After he passed, Lu Buzheng and the others had told Lu Yin that that phenomena was known as the field of destruction. Specifically, this tribulation removed all the stellular energy from the person facing the tribulation. Without stellular energy, what would happen? How could a person hope to overcome their tribulation?

This was a tribulation intended to kill whoever was attempting a breakthrough. It was something that ordinary cultivators would never encounter, as only truly exceptional people could trigger this particular tribulation.

Leng Qing had been one of the Twelve Heavenly Gatemasters during the Heavens Sect era. He was one of the greatest geniuses of his generation, and he was practically invincible within his realm. He was the Semi-Progenitor equivalent of Old Mo.

It was only expected for Leng Qing to trigger this particular tribulation, and also for him to overcome it.

In fact, this was not only true of Leng Qing, but also of Lu Buzheng, Destina, and all the other gatemasters. All of them were expected to be able to overcome the field of destruction.

The field of destruction was regarded as one of the worst tribulations possible for others, but Leng Qing and the others had already made their preparations. They were all ready to face the field of destruction during their tribulations.

Without the stellular energy or an inner world, most Semi-Progenitors would lose almost all of their combat strength and be destroyed by the field of destruction, but such things meant nothing to Leng Qing. He himself was a sword, and his innate gift was known as Blade Mist. When Leng Qing merged with his sword to become one, he could shatter all swords and suppress the sky itself.

At the same time that all stellular energy was removed from him, all sound was also eliminated, which usually confused the person. This made it even more likely for a weak cultivator to die, but for Leng Qing, the deafening silence meant absolutely nothing.

When a single slash of the sword sliced the field of destruction in two, not a single sigh of relief emerged from Lu Buzheng or any of the others. They knew that the true challenges of the tribulation were about to begin.

While Leng Qing's tribulation was not as comparatively freakish as Lu Yin's, it would undoubtedly be very impressive.

It was considered nearly impossible for ordinary Semi-Progenitors to break through and become a Progenitor, let alone an exceptional expert like Leng Qing.

"There are three phases to a Progenitor’s tribulation: the attack, questioning the heart, and then altering the universe. Leng Qing is about to face the attack, which is the first phase of a Progenitor’s tribulation."

Lu Yin’s eyebrows rose. This was how all Progenitors rose to power. What would happen when he faced his own Progenitor’s tribulation? He did not dare to even imagine what would happen.