Not a single step could be skipped.
Finally, the prerequisite to everything was the reset of a megaverse. Without that, even a peak Dukkhan would not be able to see or capture Immortal matter, let alone comprehend the mysteries of a reset and resonate with it, transferring the rules of a megaverse to their own existence.
Given this understanding, it would be impressive if even one in 10,000 peak Dukkhans succeeded in reaching the Immortal realm.
"Do you intend to break into the Immortal realm by plundering Lifeforce and using Immortal matter?"
"Mighty one, I can sense your indifference. Are you indifferent to the creature that I have taken Lifeforce from, or to my method itself?"
Lu Yin calmly stared at the transparent moth. Its massive compound eyes tried to look gentle, and the voice that reached him sounded like a child’s.
Admittedly, such a voice could easily evoke sympathy, but unfortunately for the moth, it could only assume that Lu Yin had failed to understand it.
Lu Yin understood the creature far too well. What he had observed from its karma had only served to confirm the moth’s cruel nature. It had deliberately chosen its voice to elicit compassion from Lu Yin.
The fact that it understood how to evoke compassion from a human through its voice alone was terrifying. Things only grew worse when one considered that the moth had purposefully hidden the Allsense Megaverse’s Mother Tree and not sown its own flowers in the megaverse’s main universe, only exposing the Allsenses.
The transparent moth was extraordinarily intelligent.
If not for Devourer perfectly countering the Allsenses, the moth would have never been discovered.
"This is how the cosmos functions. Lifeforms are nothing more than vessels for recycling a megaverse’s Lifeforce. Immortals transcend that cycle and thus are above all lower lifeforms. To truly exist in the omniverse, it’s imperative to become an Immortal. Mighty one, you are very, very close. You can try my method. Surely you’ll soon become an Immortal."
Lu Yin asked, "You seem to know a great deal about the omniverse."
The transparent moth gently fluttered its wings. "I simply know the rules for surviving in the cosmos. Remaining hidden is the only reason to exist. Exposed, even an Immortal may die. I once witnessed the death of an Immortal creature. Seeing that frightened me so much that I no longer dare to make contact with any other creatures from any megaverse, no matter how insignificant they may appear to be."
Lu Yin’s voice turned cold. "Then explain this megaverse. Why did you slaughter all life here?"
The moth grew uneasy. "Do you pity them?
"Mighty one, pity is a short path to death. Only by being indifferent can one become stronger. If I hadn’t done this, the Lifeforce here would have become too scattered. Discovery makes survival nearly impossible. The only way to continue surviving is to grow stronger, stronger, and even stronger. The most fundamental rule of the omniverse is avoidance. No one can truly know what kind of beings they might encounter.
"Only Immortals can ignore that rule."
"I want to know how much you know about the omniverse." Lu Yin pressed.
The moth replied, "I’ve stayed in this megaverse for far too long. Before I arrived here, I was not even a tenth as strong as I am now, and I couldn’t possibly understand the cosmos. Still, I do know that there are creatures who deliberately allow themselves to be discovered. If you encounter such beings, run! Flee as far as you can. There are civilizations which specialize in hunting other civilizations, and they will use every means imaginable..."
Lu Yin silently listened. The moth shared its understanding of the Aevum Inch, speaking of civilizations that not even the Nine Odysseys Megaverse knew about. However, according to the moth, any civilization that it saw was already close to death.
"Mighty one, you came to this megaverse to prevent it from being exposed in order to stay hidden yourselves, didn’t you? You must have a basic understanding of the omniverse. Perhaps you belong to one of the powerful civilizations of the cosmos, one which is qualified to hunt other civilizations. May I join you?" the moth pleaded.
Hunt. The word weighed heavily on Lu Yin’s heart.
The first time he had traveled with a Night Pillar, he had accompanied the Seventh Night Pillar to the Orchid Megaverse. During the trip, he had considered the possibility that civilizations might be fishing in the Aevum Inch, but the moth was describing something far crueler. There were civilizations that specialized in hunting down and annihilating others.
The Nine Odysseys Megaverse was not really such a civilization, as they only destroyed megaverses that entered a dangerous range. They did not actively seek out foreign megaverses to destroy.
If there were civilizations that deliberately hunted, or fished, other civilizations, it meant that they were extremely confident and also possessed an incredible desire for destruction. That was an extraordinarily dangerous combination.
Much as Lu Yin had already come to understand, the original springboard was a tool that an unknown civilization had released in order to search for others. According to the transparent moth, the civilization behind the springboard had to be immensely powerful. As it traveled from one megaverse to another, it had stumbled upon springboards again and again. That civilization had spread its springboards across a vast, seemingly infinite region of the Aevum Inch.