Lu Yin, the Nest civilization, the Immortal beast, Obscura, which had once been a forbidden topic, and even the Death Megaverse—simply too much had happened. Not even an Immortal like Ku Deng could sort it all out in short order.
Like many in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, he had failed to truly grasp the crisis that their megaverse faced: the Death Megaverse, Obscura, the Nest civilization’s future attacks, the Immortal beast, and Master Qing Cao’s secret schemes.
On top of all of that, there was the incomprehensible Lu Yin who had recently appeared. Just how did it all fit together?
“I never thought that, after just a few years away, so much would change. Aside from all of this, there have surely been great changes within the Nine Odysseys Megaverse as well,” Ku Deng said with a sigh.
Greater Sancte Awe Gate nodded. “You’ll learn about those matters for yourself after you return.”
Ku Deng’s face grew solemn. “Was it Mr. Lu who guided me here?”
She looked over at the man. “That’s right.”
Ku Deng nodded and stared out into space. “To be able to borrow Greater Sancte Green Lotus’s power and use it across the Aevum Inch to aid the Nine Odysseys Megaverse... Mr. Lu is our benefactor.”
Greater Sancte Awe Gate replied, “There are no benefactors or debts. Everything is for the sake of human civilization.”
“I made a mistake. I never considered that Luo Chan could teleport, which allowed them to escape destruction. Your battle was wasted, and you fought for nothing. Mr. Lu’s efforts were also squandered. What a pity.”
“That’s not your fault. You weren’t here. The only pity is that we cannot find the Nest civilization.”
“We can.”
Greater Sancte Awe Gate stared at Ku Deng in surprise. “What did you say?”
Ku Deng smiled as his eyebrows rose. “I can find that droplet creature. I see the cosmos with the light of the heartlamp. Every creature has their own heartlamp, and so as long as they are within a certain range, I can see that creature’s light.”
Greater Sancte Awe Gate quickly asked, “How great a range?”
Ku Deng considered the matter. “At the moment, I can’t sense it. It’s either gone out of range or been erased. However, it most likely hasn’t been erased. It’s too fast for that to have happened. I’ll need to test it to understand my range.”
“That’s fine. We’ll bring you someone from Whither Peak to test.”
“That will work.”
“Let’s return.”
“If those Nests can spawn bugs so quickly, there must be countless of them still.”
“Not now. Mr. Lu used the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm to deliver a brutal strike. All but the three that fled were killed.”
Ku Deng turned to face a different direction and slowly bowed to the distance. “You have my thanks, Mr. Lu.”
Greater Sancte Awe Gate was speechless. “You’re an Immortal.”
Ku Deng replied earnestly, “Realm means nothing. He has done a great favor for the Nine Odysseys Megaverse.”
The woman just shook her head. “You’re as courteous as ever.”
“In cultivating the Heartrift, reaching the greatest depths is not accomplished outward, but inward. Follow the heart to follow the cosmos. Where the heart reaches, heaven and man become one. If the heart is invincible, nothing can stand against it. Everything begins and ends with the heart.,” Ku Deng said before he started walking towards the Nine Odysseys Megaverse.
...
In the Tianyuan, Lu Yin rested for a full month before he fully recovered.
After that, he immediately peered through the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm to check on the Nine Odysseys Megaverse. Upon finding that things there were calm, he ended his observation session.
“How long have you been here, Senior?” Lu Yin suddenly asked as he looked into a corner.
Master Qing Cao was standing there, like a withered tree, unnoticed for some time.
“It seems that you were truly exhausted, if you were not even aware of my arrival.”
Lu Yin sighed. “Very tired.”
“How did the battle go?”
“The Nest civilization was defeated.”
Master Qing Cao stared at him. “How did you manage that?”
Lu Yin slowly smiled. “Master Ku Deng broke through to the Immortal realm.”
Qing Cao gave the younger man a blank stare as complex emotions flitted through his eyes. “So he succeeded. What a coincidence.”
Lu Yin stared back at the man with equally complex emotions; there was regret, but also something beyond words that was simply ineffable.
Did Qing Cao truly wish to see the Nine Odysseys Megaverse’s destruction? If that was the case, it was possible that the megaverse’s destruction would complete his agreement with Obscura. But in that case, how was the man supposed to deal with the Nest civilization? Or any other civilization that was unconnected to Obscura?
“Do you truly believe that Obscura is humanity’s greatest enemy in the past, present, and future?
“You were willing to strike a bargain with Obscura and make some sacrifices to maintain a good relationship with them, but being on friendly terms is not the same as being protected. Humanity cannot rely on them. If we suffer too many deaths, how will we face other civilizations?
“Obscura’s minimum requirements for you must be the lowest, given their understanding of the cosmos. Is paying such a price truly worth such meager goodwill?” Lu Yin asked.
Lu Yin had never voiced such questions before, but he felt that he could, given that Ku Deng had just broken through. That was because, including Qing Cao, humanity currently had five Immortals. The transparent moth had once mentioned that that number was sufficient for a civilization to survive in the cosmos.
So what if they were targeted by Obscura? Even if they could defeat humanity, they would bleed dearly to do so.
Against any other civilization, five Immortals was enough.
Even if Lu Yin did not understand just how strong a fishing civilization truly was, he still believed that to be true.
Five Immortals.
If the Nest civilization’s Immortal Lord learned that the Nine Odysseys Megaverse was home to five Immortals, would they dare to attack again?
An additional Immortal was enough to change everything.