It was at this moment that everyone listening finally understood what a Young Sancte truly was.
The ability to cross dimensions had never been heard of. Was such an ability real?
Qian Shu’s second hand fell and reached for Lu Yin.
Lu Yin threw a palm strike, but he struck nothing. He was unable to even touch Qian Shu, though the slashes landed squarely on Lu Yin’s body.
Lu Yin was suddenly reminded of someone else he had once faced: Chu Jian, the Great Sovereign’s disciple from the Cyclic Universe. He had been known as the perfect Junior Sovereign, and he possessed an innate gift known as the Nine of Ten Chambers Empty. It was an ability that rendered any and all attacks ineffective. Essentially, Chu Jian’s body occupied only one of the ten chambers, while the other nine were empty shells.
Back when he had faced Chu Jian, despite being far more powerful, Lu Yin had struggled. He had needed to carefully consider how to achieve victory.
Qian Shu’s ability was even harder to counter than Nine of Ten Chambers Empty. He existed in the same universe as Lu Yin, but also another parallel universe. His attacks were able to strike Lu Yin, but when Lu Yin retaliated, Qian Shu was safe in a parallel universe.
No wonder he had been able to enter the Scion Spire.
Everyone stared at Qian Shu in shock. How could anyone fight such a person? No wonder he was regarded as unbeatable.
Qian Shu revealed a savage grin as he glared at Lu Yin. “You’ve forced my hand, so today, you must die.”
Lu Yin merely looked irritated as he stared at Qian Shu. “I was originally pursuing revenge and held no real hatred, but you've annoyed me quite a bit. I was enjoying my time in that 10,000-Character Scripture World, and you had to drag me out.”
When Lu Yin finished speaking, his Karmic Dao erupted. His Wordless Heavenly Book connected with the Investiture of the Gods, and an invisible spiral of karma shot towards Qian Shu.
Qian Shu did not understand what Lu Yin meant, but he could already sense that something was very wrong. He instinctively dodged, sensing that an invisible attack had appeared, and it caused his heart to skip a beat.
He retreated out of pure reflex.
Ying Mei was puzzled by the man’s actions. Given Qian Shu’s ability, why would he ever need to dodge?
Lu Yin waved his hand, and a spiral of karma shot after Qian Shu. Qian Shu dodged it once, but Lu Yin did not even flinch. On the Investiture of the Gods chart his entire life was already mapped out: before undergoing Seed Transfusion, his strength had been limited. Although Lu Yin’s Karmic Dao continued to tighten the spiral of karma, the results were not nearly as extreme as would have been expected.
Lu Yin manipulated the power of karma while reaching out to grab Qian Shu with one hand.
The members of the Autumnspring Slip laughed, as it was impossible for Lu Yin to even touch Qian Shu.
Qian Shu himself sneered. “You’re struggling in vain. You can’t even touch me, and yet you think-”
Before he could finish his sentence, Lu Yin had already grabbed the man’s head and slammed it down. No one was able to react at that moment, not even Ying Mei, who had remained vigilant. No one had even considered the possibility that Lu Yin could catch Qian Shu.
In one day, all that they understood to be true had been shattered again and again.
Bang!
Qian Shu was viciously slammed into the ground, struck down by Lu Yin’s overwhelming strength. The man instantly lost consciousness.
Everyone was stunned. Even Qing Yun was startled.
Given Qian Shu’s ability to cross dimensions, he had been qualified to enter the Scion Spire. The entire Nine Odysseys Megaverse acknowledged his strength, and even the Immortal Greater Sancti had recognized the man’s potential. Had he really been struck unconscious so easily? This had to be a joke.
From the moment they had learned of Qian Shu’s ability, everyone had been trying to think of a way to overcome it, but not one person had found a single method.
The power of time? Space? As a peak Dukkhan, Qian Shu was able to see through such powers. Only a genius at the same level as Qian Shu could compete with him, and even then, he was considered unbeatable by those in the Scion Spire.
How had Lu Yin managed it?
Lu Yin casually tossed Qian Shu into his Champions' Stage Purgatory.
“Release him!” Ying Mei screamed as she shot out of the sand dunes. A Blood Tower rose high before crashing down upon Lu Yin.
From behind him, Heaven's Blade sliced out again and stabbed into Ying Mei’s body, pinning her to the ground. Her blood stained the earth red.
Mr. Mo, Master Yi Bai, and the head archivist, all of whom were powerful Dukkhans, watched on in shock.
Ying Mei struggled to rise back up. She spread her arms and sent the bamboo slip flying. Lu Yin failed to grab the Autumnspring Slip, and he was once again drawn into the 10,000-Character Scripture World.
At that moment, the bamboo slip stood upright, right in front of Lu Yin.
“Autumnspring Slip, Suppress!” Ying Mei screamed like a vengeful spirit. A single character, “Suppress,” appeared on the bamboo slip. It shot high into the sky, blotting out the sun before pressing down upon Lu Yin.
He looked up. “Is this the power of this mirebound artifact? Not bad at all.”
He could feel a threatening pressure from this character. It was a unique sort of pressure that was produced by the mirebound artifact.
The “Suppress” character fell with thunderous force.
Lu Yin raised his right hand to stop the character, and the ground shattered beneath him. Shockwaves blasted out in all directions, and all of Ridgeplain was overturned. Everyone was forced to retreat yet again.
Ying Mei’s eyes were blood-red. She leapt onto the bamboo slip and continued to draw “Suppress” characters.
At the same time, Mr. Mo, Master Yi Bai, and the head archivist all ascended onto the bamboo slip, all of them drawing more “Suppress” characters. The power of the character intensified, and Lu Yin was pushed down further.
He was able to resist the “Suppress” character. The pressure he felt did not come from the character itself, but rather from the Autumnspring Slip. He was vaguely able to make out a great tree with various objects hanging from its limbs. There were people moving up a river, going against the current as they approached the tree. One of them had a bamboo slip strapped to their waist. They seemed to be unintentionally moving closer and closer to the tree.
Far away, Qing Yun and everyone else pulled back. They were left breathless beneath the pressure of the “Suppress” character.
The old man from the Luo family exclaimed, “That character is the legacy of the Autumnspring Slip. Senior Wei Qi was suppressed to dust by that exact same character.”
“Senior Wei Qi?” someone cried out in astonishment.
Many turned to look at the old man. He nodded and solemnly explained, “Senior Wei Qi served as the Odyssey Commander of the Sixth Night Pillar in an ancient era. The founding ancestor of the Autumnspring Slip deceived Wei Qi and stole that mirebound artifact. After the Sixth Night Pillar returned to the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, Senior Wei Qi left the Night Pillar. As an independent cultivator, he attacked the Autumnspring Slip, ultimately dying in battle.
“Chunqiu Jia’s founding ancestor was certainly qualified to compete for the position of Odyssey Commander. His cultivation was equal to Senior Wei Qi’s, as they were both peak Dukkhans. However, Wei Qi boasted greater combat strength.
“This ‘Suppress’ character was entirely responsible for Senior Wei Qi’s death. It is the Autumnspring Slip’s greatest foundation, and it is powerful enough to suppress even a Lesser Sancte.”
Qing Yun stared straight ahead at the character that dominated both the sky and the ground below. All of Ridgeplain felt suffocated by the oppressive power of the “Suppress” character. “That character is even heavier than when it was used to defeat Senior Wei Qi. Over the years, generations of the Autumnspring Slip cultivators have poured all of their blood and sweat into strengthening that character.”
Long Yin interjected, “In theory, that character can overpower anyone beneath the Immortal realm.”