Star Odyssey

Chapter 4116: Bondage

Kang Tian warily eyed the Champions' Stage Purgatory uneasily. “What is that?”

“Don’t worry about that. Go on in and walk around. Don’t resist. When you come out, I’ll agree to allow you to join our human civilization. Otherwise,” Lu Yin paused as his eyes flashed with killing intent, “I don’t mind using your shell as material.”

Kang Tian hesitated for another moment before entering.

It was worried that Lu Yin might strike, but after weighing the pros and cons, the snail ultimately decided to go along. It had just revealed a great deal of information regarding the Seven-Treasure Anuras, so if the humans had any sense, they would not attack.

An additional Immortal ally was better than anything else.

Even if the human wanted to kill it, Kang Tian did not believe that Lu Yin could do so easily. Aberrant or not, he was still not an Immortal.

As Kang Tian moved into the Champions' Stage Purgatory, karma surged forth. Lu Yin watched as his Karmic Dao frantically expanded. He was also not the only one surprised; both Awe Gate and Ku Deng were similarly stunned by the exceptional improvement.

The Karmic Dao grew further and further, expanding and spreading faster and farther than ever before.

Ultimately, the difference was that Kang Tian was a living Immortal.

There was no comparison to Yue Ya, who had been born from an Immortal’s manifested thought, nor the transparent moth. In fact, not even Qi Xu’s seven emotions could compare to Kang Tian.

As he watched his Karmic Dao spread out, Lu Yin instinctively stopped it. Karma continued to accumulate, but he prevented it from spreading any farther. There was no need. After all, no matter how far it spread, it would not come even close to rivaling the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm.

Even so, the karma from Kang Tian would allow Lu Yin’s Karmic Dao to expand to at least encompass an entire megaverse.

That was already an outrageous improvement.

This was what could be gained from an Immortal.

Lu Yin had never imagined that he would be able to force an Immortal into his Champions' Stage Purgatory to strengthen his karma.

The amount of karma that could be gained was determined by a creature’s own karmic weight. Lu Yin had no idea if Kang Tian had a lot or a little karma for an Immortal, but regardless, it far exceeded any previous increase.

If the day came when his Karmic Dao matched the scope of the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm, Lu Yin could not even guess how strong he would become, but he was certain that the way in which he used karma would transform.

He had been lacking a powerful karmic attack, but at this moment, he believed that he would be able to create one soon.

Days passed. It took longer than ever before for Lu Yin’s karma to stop increasing.

Finally, he stopped gaining more karma. Kang Tian emerged from the Champions' Stage Purgatory and gave Lu Yin a wary look. Karma... So, it was karma.

It had not considered the possibility that the human had comprehended the power of karma. The snail had assumed that Lu Yin had only cultivated Obscura’s power.

Right, he’s the one who made me hostile towards Lan Meng earlier.

“How did it feel?” Lu Yin asked, curious about what Immortals experienced in his Champions' Stage Purgatory.

Kang Tian was amazed. “So you also cultivate karma. I now realize that you were the one who altered my karma and made me hostile towards Lan Meng.”

Given Lan Meng’s knowledge of human civilization, if the Immortal who wielded karma had possessed such a trick, Lan Meng would have been on guard against it. The only explanation was that another human had also comprehended the power of karma and that that individual used karma in a different manner from the human Immortal.

Lu Yin did not deny the accusation. He could see that Kang Tian was not suffering at all, which meant that while his Champions' Stage Purgatory could improve from an Immortal’s karma, it was not able to force an Immortal to experience endless karmic cycles. If that were possible, then even if the snail was not as miserable as Yi Shang when it emerged, it would not have appeared to be so at ease.

The Champions’ Stage Purgatory needed to be strengthened further.

“Bring it in,” Greater Sancte Green Lotus ordered.

Kang Tian nervously looked over at the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm. The strongest Immortal in human civilization was Greater Sancte Green Lotus. The snail could feel that its true test was before it. Whether it lived would depend on this person’s trust.

Greater Sancte Awe Gate held Awecloud tight while radiating sharp killing intent.

Master Ku Deng’s heartlamp shone brighter than ever.

Lu Yin smiled while allowing divine energy to faintly appear behind him.

All of them were watching the snail.

Kang Tian had no choice but to move towards the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm and enter it.

As soon as it entered, the entire Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm started to churn and thunder, which made Kang Tian even more nervous. It spoke in a hoarse voice, “Honored human expert, I truly wish to join your civilization and help humanity fight against the Seven-Treasure Anuras. Please accept me. Do not make this difficult.”

“We will not make things difficult for you. Similarly, do not make this difficult for us humans.”

“What do you mean?” Kang Tian asked in confusion.

Greater Sancte Green Lotus’s voice boomed across the Aevum Inch, “Allow humanity to have no worries about you by accepting a second restraint.”

Kang Tian was aghast. “A second restraint?”

As Green Lotus spoke, karma gathered from across a vast distance, forming a chain that was identical to an Immortal’s karmic chain. Once formed, it rushed towards Kang Tian.

Only then did Lu Yin notice that Kang Tian’s karmic chain was behind the shell on its back, just below it. It was unobtrusive and could only be seen upon close inspection.

Also, the snail’s karmic chain was not very long, which showed that it rarely took action. This made it clear just how harshly the Seven-Treasure Anuras had suppressed it.

At this moment, a second karmic chain was approaching the snail. This one was artificial, having been made by Greater Sancte Green Lotus.

Kang Tian grew incredibly uncomfortable, and it retreated farther and farther. “No! I don’t want another karmic chain! Human civilization, great human civilization, I will help you! I swear that I will! Please don’t chain me!”

“Accept the chain... or die.” Greater Sancte Green Lotus coldly offered an ultimatum.

Lu Yin moved forward so that he was standing behind Kang Tian, where he released his inner universe. Instantly, the star of divine energy started spinning, and Lu Yin underwent the divine energy transformation.

Kang Tian glanced back and saw that Lu Yin had returned to his transformed state. He radiated a bloodsoaked aura that declared that he would even slay gods who barred his way. The snail was reminded of how countless Tricolor Skyborne had died earlier. Lu Yin’s red eyes were fixated on the giant snail. Any farther back, and Lu Yin would attack.

The space around Kang Tian formed a mire as time was also affected. The snail was trying to prevent the karmic chain from binding it.

What did Immortals fear most? Death and bondage. Only those two things.

At this moment, both were before Kang Tian.

Lu Yin could kill it, while Greater Sancte Green Lotus could enslave it.

The only mercy was that it only had to choose one.

At this moment, Lu Yin was not merely threatening Kang Tian, but also searching for the red line.

He could not guess what sort of changes the line would cause after entering his star of divine energy. In response, he had warned Greater Sancte Awe Gate and the other human Immortals to keep an eye on him in advance.

In his transformed state, far more scarlet energy erupted from him than before. This energy was the same as what the Netherfiends possessed, which was distinctly different from Yong Heng’s divine energy. Lu Yin felt as though there was an endless supply of this bright red energy.

As time passed, his rational mind started being devoured. Bloodlust filled his voice when he spoke. “Choose.”

That single word chilled Kang Tian to its core. It had to choose.

The swamp-like region of space pulled back, and the karmic chain fell onto Kang Tian’s back. The chain sank into the snail’s shell before ultimately appearing beside its original karmic chain.

Kang Tian completely deflated, yet it said nothing.

Lu Yin withdrew his divine energy. He had nearly lost control of himself, and even worse, he had not been able to find that red line.

Greater Sancte Green Lotus’s voice was suddenly a great deal softer. “Human civilization welcomes Immortal Kang Tian.”

Kang Tian stared upwards in a daze. At that moment, even the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm felt gentle.

If the snail had human expressions, it would show a wry smile.

Greater Sancte Awe Gate and Ku Deng exhaled. Ignoring their disgust for the creature, at worst, Kang Tian could serve as cannon fodder in a future war. At the very least, it was not an enemy for the time being.

The two were much more concerned about Lu Yin.

Not even Greater Sancte Green Lotus had been able to find Obscura’s red line within the Nine Odysseys Megaverse. What would it do after entering Lu Yin’s body?

“Let’s go. It’s time to return to the Nine Odysseys Megaverse,” Greater Sancte Awe Gate stated.

A green lotus leaf drifted down from the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm. Awe Gate, Ku Deng, and Lu Yin all stepped onto it and then looked back at Kang Tian.

The Immortal snail glanced at its own massive body. It had no choice but to shrink down so that it could climb onto the lotus leaf. The next instant, the lotus leaf vanished.

More than ten days later, Lu Yin finally fully recovered from using his divine energy transformation.

As he stared upwards, he pondered the fact that the Tianyuan, the Spirit Nidus, and even the Nine Odysseys Megaverse were all minuscule when compared to the Aevum Inch. In fact, even within the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm, the megaverses seemed puny.

So what if his Karmic Dao could encompass an entire megaverse? There was still a long, arduous road before his Karmic Dao could match the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm.

Lu Yin glanced to the side. Kang Tian had shrunk down until it was the size of a human. In this form, it looked more like a regular snail than ever before.

Kang Tian sensed Lu Yin’s gaze and looked back at him.

The moment that it had been bound by a second karmic chain, it had looked at Lu Yin and the other human powerhouses differently.

Previously, it had only feared being killed, but even if it was bound by a second karmic chain, Kang Tian had become more valuable to human civilization. To some extent, that provided it with a bit of leverage.

For that reason, it dared to ask, “Are you truly part of human civilization? Or are you a part of Obscura?”

Greater Sancte Awe Gate looked over at the snail. These were the first words that it had spoken since boarding the green lotus leaf to travel to the Nine Odysseys Megaverse.

Lu Yin replied evenly, “Human civilization.”

“You seem more like you’re part of Obscura.”

“Are you very familiar with Obscura?”

“Not really. I’ve only met Lan Meng. But I have heard tales about Obscura in Thread of Heaven.”

“Where is this Thread of Heaven?” Greater Sancte Awe Gate quickly asked.

“It was destroyed long ago, likely by Obscura,” Kang Tian replied.

“If it was destroyed, then why do you seem confident that it was done by Obscura?” Lu Yin asked in confusion.

“Because the only fishing civilization discussed in that Thread of Heaven was Obscura.”

Lu Yin’s eyes flickered. It was a simple, even crude, explanation, but it was also reasonable.

That was the way of the Aevum Inch.

“What were the legends about Obscura?” Awe Gate asked.

Ku Deng opened his eyes and looked at Kang Tian, similarly curious.

Kang Tian pondered for a moment. “A redefining of color, emerging from a sea of blood without being stained.”

Its antennas twitched as it looked toward the distant stars. “When you face Obscura, your understanding of a single color will be overturned completely. That is the legend about them.

“I didn’t understand it at the time, but I seem to now. Lan Meng is blue, and now, whenever I see blue, I feel both fear and hatred.”

Lu Yin exchanged glances with Greater Sancte Awe Gate. Qi Xu had been red, and perhaps she was the reason why both the Tianyuan and the Nine Odysseys Megaverse were so sensitive to the color red.

It was known that Obscura did not actively attack other civilizations. Instead, they were adept at manipulating other civilizations to cause destruction. Was that why they remained untainted by the sea of ​​blood?

“That red power of yours is quite... striking,” Kang Tian commented. It was why it had felt that Lu Yin looked like a member of Obscura.

Lu Yin muttered, “If what you’re saying is true... then how many colors does Obscura possess?”