Star Odyssey

Chapter 3752: Increasing Karma

This meteorite did not resemble any known form of life, and yet it had still tried to steal Lu Yin’s consciousness.

“What exactly are you? Where did you come from?” Lu Yin asked, rather than attacking.

The meteorite’s eye rolled about. It showed no emotion and was as calm as a pool of stagnant water, apart from the few bursts of madness and bloodlust.

After staring at Lu Yin for a moment, the meteorite turned and left.

Lu Yin wanted to stop it from leaving, but he ultimately chose not to. Since the meteorite had not attacked them first, it clearly had its own considerations. It had also proactively attacked Yong Heng earlier. Could there be some connection between them? Leaving such an enemy around for Yong Heng might not be a bad idea.

Yue Ya’s relentless pursuit had forced Lu Yin and the Origin Progenitor to focus solely on the being of manifested thought, which had led them to overlook Yong Heng. Because of that, True God had nearly succeeded.

This was not a debt that could be easily settled.

Cough, cough.

Lu Yin hurried over to the Origin Progenitor’s side. “Senior, your injuries are bad. Please treat them first.”

The Origin Progenitor waved Lu Yin’s concerns away and then wiped the blood off of him. He smiled. “This feels rather unfamiliar.”

During his time beneath the Immemorial Citadel, the Origin Progenitor had been missing both of his arms and forced to crouch low while biting the sequence strings. His condition had been miserable, but his wounds had not come from battle. This time, he had been wounded in combat. There were dozens of gashes across his back, and the true damage that he had suffered remained unknown.

There was no time to worry further about things. Lu Yin helped the Origin Progenitor return to Boundless. Getting back to the battleship was their first priority.

At this moment, no one was looking to make trouble for Lu Yin.

...

When the people aboard Boundless saw the Origin Progenitor’s wounds upon his return, they were all shocked.

Lu Yin asked Chu Yi and several others to tend to the Origin Progenitor’s injuries while he went to speak with Old Salamander.

Lu Yin had not spoken to the ancient beast since he had been captured along with everyone else from the Spirit Nidus. He also had not spoken to the people from the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, such as Luo Ning. Too much had happened in the Consciousness Megaverse for Lu Yin to have any time for such conversations.

All of the suffocating suppression that had surrounded him while fighting in the Spirit Nidus had been fully released in the Consciousness Megaverse. On top of that, a tremendous number of new enemies had inexplicably appeared, which had caused Lu Yin’s thoughts to be somewhat scattered.

The more chaotic the situation became, the more important the Heaven's Seal sequence base became.

Lu Yin’s expression grew dark as he stared at Old Salamander. “I don’t want to waste time with you. I want to know about Stillstorm, but that isn’t truly essential. More than that, I’m concerned about the Nine Odysseys Megaverse. This current situation in the Consciousness Megaverse makes me uneasy. I need Heaven's Seal.”

To Old Salamander, Stillstorm was the Five-Clawed Celestial Salamander, but the ancient beast had already heard of Stillstorm’s name from the Origin Progenitor. It was also possible that Yong Heng had mentioned the name long ago. Anything that Old Salamander knew, Yong Heng must have learned long ago, as True God had saved Old Salamander’s life.

Old Salamander stared straight at Lu Yin for a rather long moment before abruptly pulling out Heaven's Seal and handing it over.

Lu Yin arched a brow. That simple?

He had expected to need to apply a bit of pressure.

He stared down at the triangular yellow gem in his hand. This was the Heaven's Seal sequence base, which was formed from the sequence particles of 299 beast-form Spirit Rebirth cultivators who had cultivated the Finite Strength and Infinite Strength sequence techniques across multiple ages. This was intended to be an inheritance for beast-form Spirit Rebirths to allow them to stand up to the human-form Spirit Rebirths.

Many human cultivators struggled to accept the idea of taking on a bestial form.

Despite the Spirit Nidus having always been divided between the human-form and beast-form Spirit Rebirths, there had always been an extremely small number of beast-form Spirit Rebirths. On top of that, every High Seraph in history had been a human-form Spirit Rebirth.

Life had not been easy for the beast-form Spirit Rebirths.

This struggle was what had led to the creation of Heaven's Seal, and with it, the Primal Beastland had become able to ensure that there was a place for beast-form Spirit Rebirths to live in safety.

This history and legacy was most likely the reason why Old Salamander had initially been so reluctant to hand over the beast-form Spirit Rebirths’ inheritance.

But no matter the reason, there was nothing that could stop Lu Yin from taking Heaven's Seal. The fates of the beast-form Spirit Rebirths were not his concern. Many of the powerful beasts had joined the expedition to destroy the Tianyuan Megaverse, and they thus needed to pay the price. Beast-form Spirit Rebirths enjoyed a much longer life expectancy than their human-form counterparts. It was one of the beasts’ advantages.

After Emperor Wu’s defeat, Lu Yin had wanted to take Heaven’s Seal, but doing so at that time would have definitely resulted in war with the Primal Beastland. The beast-form Spirit Rebirths would have never allowed the sequence base to be taken, and neither would the High Seraph.

That had forced Lu Yin to back down at that time, but Heaven's Seal had finally fallen into his hands.

“Heaven's Seal should be honored to serve you, Lord Lu,” Old Salamander commented respectfully.

Lu Yin looked up at the ancient powerhouse. “Is that also how you speak to Yong Heng? It’s amazing that you’ve lived this long.”

“And I wish to live much longer,” Old Salamander replied. He continued to speak to Lu Yin. “When I was a child, I wandered near the Gate of Laws and happened to see Stillstorm pass through it. The shock that I felt was overwhelming. I had never felt such an untouchable aura before. That mighty form, those intimidating claws, and such lofty grace that repelled everything... all of it captivated me. Because of that, I abandoned my Zhan family and became dedicated to eventually undergoing a beast-form Spirit Rebirth to become like Stillstorm.

“Every word that I’ve spoken is true. I beg you, Lord Lu, for the sake of that girl that I once saved, spare my life. I am willing to guide you to the Gate of Laws.”

Lu Yin stared intently at Old Salamander. “Stillstorm came out of the Gate of Laws?”

Old Salamander nodded. “Yes. I will never forget that sight, no matter how long I live for.”

“And yet there isn’t even a single legend in the Spirit Nidus regarding Stillstorm.”

“The beast never strayed far from the Gate of Laws. It came out, only to go back in.”

Lu Yin frowned. “Just what does the Gate of Laws lead to?”

Old Salamander showed a bitter smile. “That, I do not know. The Gate of Laws needs three keys to be opened, and yet Stillstorm forced it open with pure power. The more that one learns about the gate, the clearer its meaning becomes, especially for my Zhan family. Not even the invincible being might be able to open the gate without the keys.

“What I witnessed showed me a second sky, one that remains impossibly high, and yet I still managed to catch a glimpse of it. I wish to one day reach the same heights as Stillstorm, force open the Gate of Laws, surpass everything, and stand above all other creatures.”

Lu Yin understood. “That’s why you chose to abandon the name of Zhan Qian.”

Old Salamander nodded firmly. “Zhan Qian would have never been able to surpass the High Seraph’s level, and he could have never approached the level of the invincible being. However, Zhan Qian saw that Stillstorm had surpassed that limit. After seeing a larger world, why would I not strive for it?”

The more that Old Salamander spoke, the more excited he became. “I have lived for so long, but I have always been devoted to cultivating as a Five-Clawed Celestial Salamander after undergoing a beast-form Spirit Rebirth. What I witnessed that day has been engraved into my mind. I continue to imitate that beast, striving to draw ever closer and capture the essence of the creature that I saw. Only by becoming a Five-Clawed Celestial Salamander can I hope to surpass the invincible being. It is the noblest, most unattainable form in existence. Neither humans nor any other form of beast can ever compare—it’s simply impossible.

“The longer I attempt to reach that level, the more I realize how terrifying that creature is. This form has allowed me to live for far longer than I could have otherwise hoped for, and I have outlasted generation after generation. Ultimately, I am sure to succeed.”

Lu Yin frowned. “Then why didn’t you try to take Emperor Wu’s position earlier?”

Old Salamander’s expression shifted, but then he sighed. “Because the High Seraph has suppressed the beast-form Spirit Rebirths far too harshly.

“Whenever he sensed that we were about to rise to greater heights, he would take action against us. When he fought at the source of the Fu River, the High Seraph killed the former lord of the Primal Beastland. I could have fought for the position of the domain’s ruler at that time as the woodpecker was no match for me. However, I did not dare to try it. Revealing my power would have only drawn the High Seraph’s attention.

“Only after you and your people arrived, Lord Lu, did I see a chance to fight for the position. Compared to you, the threat of us beast-form Spirit Rebirths could only be considered minor, and with the Day of Offering fast approaching, it became even more worthwhile to seize the position.”

Lu Yin looked back down at Heaven's Seal in his hand. Old Salamander had only shared a part of the story. It was clear that there was more that he did not dare to reveal.

The old beast had clearly attempted to manipulate the High Seraph to fight Boundless to the death. It was possible that Old Salamander wanted to see the High Seraph be pulled down so that the beast-form Spirit Rebirths could rise up, eventually reset some megaverse, and achieve Immortality.

He was cautious. All that could be said about Old Salamander was that he was exceedingly cautious. He had used his long lifespan to outlive multiple opponents. If Boundless had not arrived in the Spirit Nidus, Old Salamander might have even intended to outlive the High Seraph himself.

Old Salamander kept his head bowed, refusing to meet Lu Yin’s gaze.

The young man controlled the ancient beast’s life.

Already, Old Salamander had shared his value: he could guide Lu Yin to the Gate of Laws.

Zhan Ming had never dreamed that one of his ancestors was still alive, let alone that it was the familiar Old Salamander.

While the Gate of Laws had sealed itself off, it would eventually open back up. Not even the Terminus Cycle was truly invincible.

Old Salamander had not been killed because he still had value.

As Lu Yin stared down at Heaven's Seal, Old Salamander likely believed that Lu Yin would do the same as both himself and Emperor Wu: embed the sequence base in his body to use the sequence particles in battle. What Old Salamander had never realized was that Lu Yin had no intention of merely borrowing Heaven’s Seal; he intended to break it down entirely.

Nothing suited Lu Yin better than simply digesting the sequence base.

If Old Salamander had known that in advance, would he still have handed over Heaven's Seal so readily?

While considering that question, Lu Yin tossed Heaven's Seal onto the landmass within his inner universe and started breaking down the sequence base.

The difficulty of decomposing a sequence base had nothing to do with its ranking, but rather with how many sequence particles it consisted of.

Lu Yin raised a hand and brought out his die to continue rolling. He still had not fully healed from his injuries, and he also needed a great deal of time to digest Heaven's Seal. Finally, he had yet to comprehend either the Tri-Azure Sword Intent or the Heaven and Earth Lock; he refused to accept that they were beyond his reach.

In the blink of an eye, two months passed. Anything that happened in the outside world during this time had nothing to do with Boundless.

The battleship remained in a parallel universe, having no information as to what might be happening in the rest of the Consciousness Megaverse.

Throughout those two months, Lu Yin managed to roll his die nearly thirty times, and he rolled Timestop eleven times. His good luck had given him eleven years of training, and he had almost entirely digested Heaven's Seal.

His injuries had also completely healed.

After ending his seclusion, the first thing that Lu Yin did was throw both Old Salamander and Meng Sang into the Champions' Stage Purgatory. This was not to punish them, but rather simply to strengthen his karma.

In particular, because of how long Old Salamander had lived for, his karma was immense.

Despite having fully recovered from the karmic backlash, suffering it twice in a row had somewhat traumatized Lu Yin. He knew that, if his karma grew strong enough, then neither Yue Ya’s Against the Mortal World nor the hand above Yong Heng’s head would be able to induce karmic backlash ever again.

He needed to strengthen his karma, and not by a small amount.

It was clear that not even Old Salamander and Meng Sang combined would be nearly enough, so Lu Yin also threw in Zi Tianshu and many other Spirit Nidus cultivators. All of these people were released after they had increased Lu Yin’s karma. Doing this both strengthened his power of karma and also instilled dread in the people of the Spirit Nidus. None of them harbored any reckless thoughts and became very well behaved.

Lu Yin went through everyone on the four captured battleships, which equated to almost an entire generation of the Spirit Nidus’s most elite cultivators. They all strengthened his Karmic Dao, and the results were astounding.

Before, imprisoning people like Qi Guan, Wraithmother, and Golden Roc in the Champions’ Stage Purgatory had strengthened Lu Yin’s Karmic Dao enough for him to resist the karmic backlash from the temporal reversion, but that had proven inadequate as he faced increasingly powerful opponents.

Since it was not strong enough, he would continue to improve it.