Star Odyssey

Chapter 2605: The Only Flaw

Lu Yin suddenly remembered the thought that had escaped him: Bai Qian had also once received an invitation from Starsibyl! It was that invitation that had allowed Bai Qian to leave Earth and enter the larger universe. Right, Bai Qian.

There was nothing in existence that was completely flawless. Starsibyl had been able to destroy all of the invitations that she had left in the Origin Universe, but Bai Qian's invitation might be the one flaw in Starsibyl’s plan.

"If I can get you one of Starsibyl’s invitations, will you be able to capture her?" Lu Yin asked Destina.

Destina's eyes lit up as she clenched her jaw. "Absolutely!"

"Good!" Lu Yin laughed. "While I can’t promise that there still is one, we can at least ask. There is a very real possibility that an invitation still exists."

"Is it in a parallel universe?" Destina's eyes positively blazed with excitement.

Lu Yin looked over and nodded.

Destina's breath started to quicken. "Then let’s hurry up and go find it! I need to capture Starsibyl and that Mr. Zhu. How dare they trick me! They're as good as dead!"

"Don't be in such a rush. It won’t be easy to get a hold of that invitation. It's actually going to be rather difficult," Lu Yin said. Bai Qian was being closely monitored by the Transcendent Universe, especially after He Ran had managed to gain the upper hand in their contest. He Ran would never allow Bai Qian to easily interact with other people, and Lu Yin doubted that another incident like Bai Qian’s trip to the Sixverse Academy would repeat.

When Lu Yin had last spoken with Bai Qian, she had passed her understanding of the Three Monarchs Universe onto Lu Yin.

All of this meant that Lu Yin would not be able to meet Bai Qian while she was in the Transcendent Universe, at least not for the time being. Other than Zi Jing, there also was no one in that universe whom Lu Yin could contact. It was practically impossible for him to get in touch with Bai Qian, and getting the invitation from her would be even more of a challenge.

Destina quickly grew anxious. "What's the problem? Even with your abilities as a Dao Monarch, you can't get the invitation?"

Lu Yin replied, "Just be patient. An opportunity will appear."

He absolutely could not risk having Zi Jing get in contact with Bai Qian. If their relationship was ever exposed, he would lose everything. If he was exposed, not only would the three of them have to deal with He Ran’s faction of the Transcendent Universe as their enemies, but also that universe’s ruler, who was the greatest threat.

...

After ten days passed, Lu Yin led Destina to the Voidforce Universe.

"There's nothing special here," Destina remarked as she gazed up into outer space.

Lu Yin explained, "If you cultivated voidforce energy, you would be able to see it permeating every single part of this universe. Lord Xu has the strength to alter an entire universe."

Destina was startled. "Wouldn’t that make Lord Xu as powerful as the Origin Progenitor?"

Lu Yin shook his head. "I can't answer that. Honestly, I don't even understand the full extent of the Origin Progenitor's true strength. In the Sixverse Association, only the Great Sovereign is rumored to stand equal to the Origin Progenitor, and by that measure, Lord Xu still falls short. Besides, he was friends with Wu Tian, which should place him firmly at the same level of strength as the Three Realms Six Dao."

Lu Yin did not try to go into any real details with Destina. Since they were in the Voidforce Universe, their priority was to find the Yin Yang Sword for the Void Yang and Void Yin clans.

Lu Yin and Destina used a few days to carefully hide the Yin Yang Sword before they started making their way to the two clans’ territory.

When they met Destina, who hid herself within white clouds, Xu Heng and Xu Leng both felt rather puzzled. "Junior Brother, who is this?"

“This is the person that I told you about, the one who can help you. Senior Brother, show her a bit of your energy, the part that shares the same origin as the Yin Yang Sword. She can use that to help us find the sword," Lu Yin replied.

Destina's cold voice rang out from within the white cloud, "I can't promise that we'll find what you are searching for. This universe is different from my own."

Xu Heng nodded. As Void Morphora, he and Xu Leng had already considered this possibility.

Neither of them actually harbored any hope of finding the Yin Yang Sword through Xuan Qi’s contact. Still, since she was already there, there was no harm in at least trying her methods.

Xu Heng and Xu Leng quickly combined their energy to release one of Venerable Xuyi's techniques. Only by cooperating was it possible for them to wield this particular power. This ability was also why Xiu Ci had challenged the two. As long as the two clans remained divided, there was no point in him challenging any of Venerable Xuyi’s descendents.

This was Lu Yin’s first time seeing the power of the Void Yang and Void Yin clans.

Xu Heng used a battle technique known as Scorching Sun, while Xu Leng performed one known as Heart Frost. One was hot, the other cold, but the two techniques twined and fused together to form a new power that was neither hot nor cold. Instead, the power leaned closer to the origin of the power the two used, and it reminded Lu Yin of the inscription that he had read on the Yin Yang Sword.

The power of frost is of Yin!

The power of heat is of Yang!

When Yin and Yang converge, the heavens shatter!

The power that appeared seemed able to tear the sky apart while bringing forth the origin of heat.

Earth received energy from the sun. The power that Lu Yin was observing seemed like the sun to Xu Heng and Xu Leng, as it granted their voidforce energy endless possibilities.

Separate, the two were ordinary, but together, they possessed infinite possibilities.

The two powers converge and formed a single line. When Destina touched that line, it shot towards a distant location. "Follow that line."

Destina was then the first to start moving as she started following the line. Xu Heng and Xu Leng glanced at each other, each seeing disbelief in the other’s eyes. Could the sword really be found like this?

The four people followed the line a great distance. Eventually, they arrived at the location where Lu Yin had hidden the Yin Yang Sword.

As they arrived, the line they had been following snapped, and stars of light erupted. The Yin Yang Sword shot upwards, straight for the energy from the fused powers.

Xu Heng and Xu Leng gasped in astonishment. "The Yin Yang Sword?"

Lu Yin exhaled.

Destina remained calm, as it had all just been an act.

Her only real question was just where had Lu Yin found the sword that these people had been searching for for so many years? This was something that Destina could not make any sense of.

There had already been so many times where Lu Yin had accomplished feats that defied all logic.

The combined power of Xu Heng and Xu Leng pressed onto the Yin Yang Sword, increased exponentially, and then radiated out from the sword.

Lu Yin’s eyebrow twitched, and he quickly reminded the two to tone things down a bit. If things continued much longer, the entire Voidforce Universe would learn that they had found the Yin Yang Sword.

Xu Heng and Xu Leng quickly returned to their senses, and they stored the Yin Yang Sword away before immediately rushing over to express their gratitude to Destina. She spoke to them coldly, "There is no need to thank me."

She then turned to Lu Yin. "Don't forget what you promised me. Let’s return."

Lu Yin nodded. "Senior Bother, let me return with her first. I’ll be right back."

Xu Heng immediately stepped forward. "Junior Brother, what did you promise her?"

"Nothing much."

Xu Heng would not relent. "Retrieving the Yin Yang Sword benefits both of our clans. Any promise that you made should be fulfilled by us."

He then turned back to Destina and gave her a deep bow. "Xu Heng, patriarch of the Void Yang clan, thanks you for your assistance in helping us retrieve our ancestral treasure."

Xu Leng also stepped forward. "Xu Leng, matriarch of the Void Yin clan, thanks you for your assistance in helping us retrieve our ancestral treasure."

"Since the treasure has been found and returned to us, any condition that Xuan Qi may have promised you will be borne by our two clans. Please tell us what he has promised you." Xu Heng was fully determined.

Lu Yin quickly stepped forward. "Senior Brother, it really isn’t anything important. I'll explain things to you when I get back."

Xu Heng was very somber as he looked at Xuan Qi. "Junior Brother, you've already done enough. Now that the Yin Yang Sword has been found, the debt that our two clans owe you goes far beyond mere gratitude. We truly don’t know how we can ever repay you, but the cost to pay for inviting this remarkable individual cannot be small. Regardless of whether you are our brother, there is no need for you to sacrifice anything more for us. Leave this much to us."

Xu Leng patted Lu Yin on the shoulder and laughed. "We'll cover this cost, no matter what it is."

Lu Yin gave them a tight smile. Destina had not been born in the Fifth Mainland, which meant that she was unable to locate it from among the countless parallel universes. This meant that Lu Yin had to personally take Destina back to the Fifth Mainland, which was why he had prepared the given excuse. Unexpectedly, Xu Leng and Xu Heng were being very stubborn about this matter.

Destina spoke up, "I will tell Xuan Qi my price. It is time, so I need to go."

Lu Yin hastily tore the void open. "I need to take her back first. I’ll see you both soon."

Xu Heng wanted to stop Xuan Qi from leaving, but Xu Leng spoke up first. "Let him go for now. No matter what price that remarkable person might demand, it won’t be something that we can pay. After all, we belong to the Voidforce Universe."

Xu Heng nodded. "True, but we do owe Xuan Qi an explanation."

"Of course," Xu Leng replied. "However, for the moment, we need to return to our clans. Merging our powers a bit ago loosened the bottleneck restricting my cultivation. Brother Heng, I am about to breakthrough to become a Void Suprema."

Xu Heng's eyes lit up. "I feel the same way."

Thus, the two quickly returned to their clans.

As Xu Heng and Xu Leng were traveling through the Voidforce universe, Lu Yin led Destina to Aeternus Nation, and then on to the Heavens Sect.

"Dao Monarch, those two are good people," Destina mentioned.

"Thanks for your help," Lu Yin said.

"When will you be able to retrieve the invitation?" she asked.

"Don't worry, I'm even more eager to get it than you. As long as the Starsibyl Sect's purpose remains unclear, I won't be able to relax. I will definitely find a way to get that invitation," Lu Yin replied.

Destina then parted ways with Lu Yin, and he quickly returned to the Void Yang and Void Yin clans in the Voidforce Universe.

Even if the Yin Yang Sword had only just been retrieved, news of that event could leak and spread through the Voidforce Universe at any moment. Such an important development might even catch the attention of Xu Wuwei or Xu Wuji, so Lu Yin could not remain absent from their universe for very long.

When he returned to the clans’ territory, he learned that both Xu Heng and Xu Leng had already entered seclusion. Lu Yin had known that the Yin Yang Sword was extremely important to the two clans, but he felt that they depended on it too much. Even so, that was their business, and Lu Yin had no intention of saying anything about it.

With his friends in seclusion, Lu Yin was left free. It had been quite some time since he had last rolled his die, so he planned to go into seclusion as well. However, before he could do so, Xu Lie found him and asked him about some matters regarding the Sixverse Academy.

"Why are you interested in the Sixverse Academy?" Lu Yin asked, surprised.

After losing to Xuan Qi, Xu Lie’s attitude towards the young man had completely changed. She was no longer cold or condescending, and she instead spoke to him in a gentle tone. Her behavior was even more friendly than Xu Leng’s.

"Our clans' strength has undergone a qualitative change after merging. The letter of challenge that Wu Man delivered forced me to realize this. Before we united, Xiu Ci never even looked at us, but now, a peak powerhouse finds us worthy of his attention." Xu Lie spoke with strong emotions, and she looked at Lu Yin as she continued, "This only happened after our clans combined, and I now find that I am more interested in the strength that can be obtained from fusing the powers of the different members of the Sixverse Association."

Lu Yin was impressed. "I'm surprised that you’ve taken an interest in such things. That academy usually only attracts the young. Powerful, older cultivators don’t have any interest in combining the powers of different universes, and they instead prefer to focus and hone their existing powers. As far as most of them are concerned, it’s more important to improve their existing strength than spend time learning and developing powers from another universe. Only the young can afford to sacrifice the time needed for such experimentation."

"Is that your conclusion after your time at the Sixverse Academy?" Xu Lie asked.

"I suppose that you could say that."

Xu Lie stared at Lu Yin. "Am I considered an older cultivator?"

Lu Yin was caught off guard by the question. He had not expected Xu Lie to focus on that point. There was no question that Xu Lie was part of the older generation, as she was at least several hundred or even more than a thousand years old. "All I know is that you do not meet the requirements to study in the Sixverse Academy."

Xu Lie was dismissive of Lu Yin’s comment. "As we proceed down the path of cultivation, the standard of time changes until it no longer becomes relevant for most measures. Right now, the gap in our ages appears vast, but in another 10,000 years, do you think that the difference in our ages will matter at all?"

"Did you come find me to talk about this?" Lu Yin asked, confused by where the conversation was heading.

"Let's take a walk," Xu Lie suggested, "I'm guessing that you don't know much about the Voidforce Universe."

Lu Yin felt that that was a fair assessment and agreed. "Alright."

The two soon left the clans’ territory, and Xu Lie led the way as the two moved through outer space.