All of the captive and surrendered conscients were immediately released. The plan was for all of them to unite their consciousness to attack the Third Boss.
Lu Yin's eyes lit up. He had almost forgotten that the returning battleships carried conscients.
After all, the entire reason why he had stopped was because of these conscients.
It would not be good if he simply attacked and robbed the ship, as that would make his actions too obvious and noticeable. That was why he had gone after Qing Yun; she was nothing more than an excuse. That, and he was genuinely curious about the disguise that had been concealing the woman.
He had not expected to unveil one of the Ascendant Hall’s Absolute Duo.
Her identity made things much easier, and Lu Yin could even take the woman away to serve as another maid.
Dark clouds started to appear beneath the battleship. Each cluster was another conscient. In Lu Yin’s perspective, there were nothing but dark clouds, but others saw different sights.
There were some conscients who actively took on a specific form, but all of these conscients had either been captured or surrendered to the Spirit Nidus, agreeing to serve them.
As the conscients attacked, they joined forces with various teams aboard the battleship, unleashing a far more potent consciousness assault upon Lu Yin.
A tsunami of consciousness fell upon him from all sides in a seemingly chaotic manner.
Lu Yin’s eyes flickered as he released his own consciousness. It howled out in a surge, like a sea crashing against a river, instantly overwhelming everything. Such terrifying consciousness stunned the people aboard the battleship.
"Thir- Thirteen Luminaries!" someone screamed in terror.
A moment later, everyone on the battleship collapsed, unconscious. That included even Elder Yi Zi, Si Kong, and the others who had tried to stop the confrontation.
The battleship slowed to a halt.
Lu Yin’s consciousness swept the entire area. He cut off all sight of the nearby region, and then he seized all the conscients from the battleship, both captives and traitors.
An unknown amount of time passed before anyone on the battleship woke up. They awoke with a splitting headache, having forgotten everything that had recently happened.
Other people boarded the battleship and had to explain what had occurred. As more people woke up and started to piece their fractured memories back together, people finally realized what had transpired.
Anger and curses were not enough to alter a predetermined outcome.
The battleship continued on towards the Ascendant Hall, the passengers seeking to report the incident to the High Seraph in hopes that the Ascendant Hall would uphold justice.
Meanwhile, the sedan continued on towards the Wisdom Domain.
Another woman had joined the group: Qing Yun.
She wore quite plain clothing. Unlike Palace Master Yao, whose clothing was elegant and luxurious, or Cai Keqing, who had a cold and aloof appearance, Qing Yun had an understated appearance. She had wanted to avoid drawing too much attention while fighting in the Consciousness Megaverse in disguise.
However, if one looked closer, they would notice an elusive sense of distance about the woman that gave her a mysterious, ethereal aura.
Lu Yin had never encountered such an aura before. Qing Yun seemed to give off a lofty impression, though that was not quite accurate. It was also not quite a heroic or even an elegant aura, despite there being a hint of both of those things present. She had an unusual and unique aura.
Lu Yin frequently glanced over at Qing Yun, and Old Tao soon noticed it. The old man tried to please Lu Yin, saying, "Third Boss, there's an interstellar city not much further ahead. Should we rest there for a few days before continuing?"
"Are you tired?" Lu Yin casually asked.
Old Tao smiled and winked. "It’s possible that young lady Qing Yun is tired."
Qing Yun frowned and shot a sharp glance at Old Tao.
After being captured by Lu Yin, the woman had remained calm. She had neither resisted nor asked why he had captured her. Much like Palace Master Yao and Cai Keqing, Qing Yun simply traveled along with the sedan.
It was clear to Qing Yun that even Palace Master Yao had no choice but to serve as a maid. Unless a Seraph intervened, there was absolutely no hope of escaping.
While the Third Boss occasionally glanced at her over the course of several days, he never did anything to her, which allowed her to breathe a sigh of relief.
However, Old Tao’s comment caused her nervousness to return. She had absolutely no idea why the Third Boss wanted her as one of his maids.
Was she really supposed to serve him as just a maid? What was the point of that? What was he actually thinking?
Palace Master Yao and Cai Keqing both shot glares at Old Tao.
Lu Yin pursed his lips. "Lead the way."
Old Tao chuckled awkwardly. "Yes, of course."
"Don't you have anything you want to say?" Lu Yin looked at Qing Yun. Like Cai Keqing, she had not said a word when being taken by Lu Yin, but she also had not revealed any fear or despair.
Cai Keqing’s coldness was readily apparent to Lu Yin, but Qing Yun did not have that same indifferent personality. Her demeanor might be unusual, but she clearly was not cold or indifferent. She was a normal person with normal emotions, but the only thing she revealed was calmness.
She met Lu Yin’s eyes. "What was your purpose in taking me?"
Lu Yin looked up and took a moment to think. "I’m not sure myself. I just thought that I would collect the Ascendant Hall’s Absolute Duo."
Collect? Qing Yun's eyes flickered. That did not sound nice at all.
"I have Jiu Xian behind me."
Lu Yin arched a brow. "Jiu Xian the Seraph?"
"Yes."
"Coincidentally, I’m about to challenge one of the Seven Seraphs, Bao Qi."
Qing Yun calmly replied, "You are certainly strong enough to do so."
"You can tell?" Lu Yin shot back.
Qing Yun gave a slight smile. "Jiu Xian was the one who prepared my disguise. I was told that only an Ortuser powerful enough to fight against Dukkhans would be strong enough to see through my disguise. Here in the Spirit Nidus, that level of strength means approaching the level of the Seven Seraphs.
"Since you were able to see through my disguise, you must be about as strong as a Seraph. With what Elder Zi Yi and the others said added in, your power is clear."
Lu Yin smiled. "So, you're calm because you know that you can't escape?"