The man took a deep breath before saying, "We might be as weak as ants compared to you, Third Boss, but we are not afraid! Beyond this point is the Spirit Treasure Domain, and if the Third Boss wants to stir up trouble in the Spirit Treasure Domain, then you’ll have to step over our bodies!"
"That’s right! You’ll have to step over our bodies!"
"We aren’t afraid!"
The entire group stepped forward, all of them glaring at Lu Yin.
Old Tao frowned. "Disperse. You aren’t qualified to decide what our Third Boss does."
The young man replied, "We can't control the Third Boss, and if he wants to kill us, then he can go ahead and do so. All we ask is that he doesn’t cause trouble in the Spirit Treasure Domain. The Spirit Treasure Society has always kept to itself, and it has never fought with any outside power."
Old Tao was placed in a difficult position, so he turned to look at Lu Yin.
Lu Yin observed the people blocking his path. "Who sent you here?"
The group met his gaze. "No one sent us! We just don't want the Third Boss to ruin the Spirit Treasure Domain. We came here on our own."
"The Spirit Treasure Society has a duty to protect the Spirit Treasure Domain. All of us are members of the Spirit Treasure Society."
Lu Yin continued to stare at the group as spirals of karma twined around his fingers. After a moment, they shot forward, and passed through the bodies of everyone in Lu Yin’s path. As that happened, he observed the resulting lines of karma.
"Master! Master! I’ve finished!"
"Oh? Let me take a look… Hmm, well done. Next, we, as master and disciple, will explore these 10,000 great mountains."
"10,000 mountains…? That's a lot."
"Hahaha! We are in the Spirit Treasure Domain. Every location and corner of this domain might contain a hidden spirit treasure. I hope to find all of the spirit treasures in the entire domain and discover what might be sealed within them."
"Master, your disciple will definitely help you!"
…
"Master, please don't die! This is all because of the spirit treasure’s danger field. Master! Master—!"
"Cough, cough. Disciple, don't blame the spirit treasures’ danger zones. Instead, be grateful. This is what makes exploring and unlocking spirit treasures so enticing. Your master is leaving first. In the end, I wasn’t able to cross the 10,000 great mountains."
"Master, rest assured. Your disciple will be grateful, and I will cross these 10,000 great mountains so that your final wish will be fulfilled."
"Hehe, hahaha. Well, that's good."
…
"Brother Ning, will escaping to the Spirit Treasure Domain really be enough? Will they really stop chasing us?"
"Don’t worry, we’re in the Spirit Treasure Domain, and I’m a member of the Spirit Treasure Society. They won’t dare to come after us here."
"Brother Ning, they’re here!"
"Quick! Hide behind me!"
"Eh? Brother Ning, they’ve left already."
"Those people are from the Spirit Treasure Society, and they came to help us. I told you—as soon as we got to the Spirit Treasure Domain, we’re safe. The Spirit Treasure Society is the most united organization in the megaverse. We made it!"
…
More lines of karma continued to appear, and Lu Yin saw more and more scenes unfold. Through these lines and spirals of karma, Lu Yin was able to confirm that the people had indeed come to stop him on their own.
The man in the center was there because his goal was to fulfill his late master's last wish to cross 10,000 great mountains. He had also told his disciple to be extremely grateful towards the Spirit Treasure Domain.
The man and woman beside him had been saved after arriving in the Spirit Treasure Domain, and thus they had vowed to protect it.
All the others had their own stories as well.
All of them were determined to protect the Spirit Treasure Domain in their own way. While they may have initially been drawn to the domain out of a desire to survive, their gratitude for that opportunity had transformed into a desire to protect the domain.
The group nervously stared at Lu Yin. While their courage was enough to prompt them to voluntarily step forward, deep inside, they were not nearly as calm as they pretended to be.
The man in the center was clenching his jaw so tightly that his gums were bleeding. Mentally, he was repeatedly seeing the scene of his master’s death. Be grateful, be grateful.
Lu Yin’s observers all watched, some from the shadows and others openly. Many hoped to see the Third Boss take action, even if that meant offending the Spirit Treasure Domain. However, it appeared as if the Third Boss did not care about such things. After all, he had already antagonized the entire Spirit Nidus.
No matter how special the Spirit Treasure Domain might be, it was unable to escape from the Ascendant Hall’s influence. Since the Grandverse Manor was already enemies with the Ascendant Hall, they were also enemies with the Spirit Treasure Domain. There was little difference.
"You are insulting me," Lu Yin calmly stated. There was neither joy nor anger in his tone.
The small group blocking his path grew puzzled. How could they have the courage to insult the Third Boss?
Lu Yin continued to stare at the few people. "I said that I would challenge the megaverse’s greatest experts. Can you represent those experts?"
The man in the center replied, "There is no one in the Spirit Treasure Domain that you would be looking for, Third Boss."
Lu Yin laughed loudly. "This time, you are insulting the Spirit Treasure Domain! The magnificent Spirit Treasure Domain has nine Spirit Treasure Grandmasters, as well as the famous Su Shidao, the greatest Grandmaster in the entire Spirit Nidus. Are you trying to tell me that none of the megaverse’s experts in this domain are qualified to fight against me?
"Who gave you such courage?"
The man in the center grew pale. "I never meant to insult the Spirit Treasure Domain."
Beside him, a woman stepped forward, glaring at Lu Yin, though her eyes betrayed a mix of anger and fear. "You… you shouldn't bully people!"
The man at the center quickly pulled the woman aside and pushed her behind himself, all the while keeping a wary eye on Lu Yin.
Lu Yin observed the woman with open interest. "Little Sister, you're quite cute."
"Third Boss, this has nothing to do with her!" the man in the center stated in fear.
The others quickly repositioned themselves so that they shielded the woman behind them.