Star Odyssey

Skymender sighed. They had failed. One year. They had only managed to stop the humans from taking control of the Extreme Path’s exit for one year. If I’d known how things would turn out, I would have agreed to help Aeternus deal with the humans.

The Astral Beast Domain was about to gain a new ruler.

In the Perennial World, Lu Yin had risked certain death to fight against both the jiao and Xia Shenji. How could he ever allow a mere Astral Beast Domain to remain free from his control? Lu Yin had long since desired to unite the entire Fifth Mainland so that he could face the four ruling powers.

Yao Di still had not regained consciousness. Lu Yin observed the emperor, Hen Xin and Jue Yi standing behind him.

Lu Yin patiently wanted for Yao Di to awaken, as the Astral Beast Domain already belonged to Lu Yin.

The jiao rushed through the Astral Beast Domain, and it arrived very quickly. Lu Yin clasped his hands behind his back, as he had now gained complete control of the Extreme Path. There was no longer anything in the Astral Beast Domain that could threaten him at all.

From behind Lu Yin, Jue Yi’s expression suddenly grew dark, and he abruptly reached out to grab Lu Yin’s neck. At the same time, the man’s death energy formed a scythe in his other hand that slashed at Lu Yin.

Not only was Jue Yi a Semi-Progenitor, but he had also been one of the gatemasters of the Twelve Heavenly Gates from the Heavens Sect’s peak. He was completely incomparable to Xia Ziheng and the other Semi-Progenitors that Lu Yin had faced in the Perennial World. This sudden attack was one that Jue Yi was absolutely confident would kill Lu Yin. The full power of a peak Semi-Progenitor was instantly released, as Jue Yi held nothing at all back from his attack.

After the initial attack was released, Jue Yi even unleashed his inner world, and a burst of death energy surged forth to envelope the entire area.

Not to mention Lu Yin, but not even Hen Xin would have been able to react to such an unexpected attack from such close proximity.

Everything happened in a flash, but it all seemed to occur very slowly. Jue Yi clearly observed the sudden change in Hen Xin's expression as it transformed from surprise to horror, and the man also clearly saw that Lu Yin was still staring at Yao Di in a very contented manner. Jue Yi had attacked without any hesitation. All he could think about was the God of Death’s inheritance and left arm. He wanted both of those things, and they were also his conditions for agreeing to cooperate with Skymender.

This was not actually the moment that Jue Yi had wanted to attack Lu Yin; he had actually been in discussions with Skymender for some time as they had tried to come up with a plan to lure Lu Yin out of the Human Domain and away from where he could access Progenitor Chen's power so that he would be vulnerable to attacks. Jue Hi did not believe that Hen Xin would be willing to join in the attack, but as long as Lu Yin entered the Astral Beast Domain, Jue Yi was confident that he could deal with Lu Yin on his own, even if the youth brought along a Semi-Progenitor guardian.

Unfortunately, everything had changed too quickly for him to keep up with. Lu Yin had suddenly seized control of the Extreme Path, and there was nothing at all in the Astral Beast Domain that could threaten him. With the Progenitor level dragon on its way, Lu Yin would quickly have the entire Astral Beast Domain under his control, including even Skymender.

Jue Yi did not trust Skymender to not betray him, and once their cooperation was revealed, Jue Yi would be done for.

His only option was to win by hitting as hard as possible.

There would never be a better opportunity than this moment. As long as Lu Yin died, Jue Yi did not believe that the jiao would try to seek revenge. If the jiao was truly a Progenitor-level creature, then how could it ever be willing to serve as someone’s mount? The beast might even be grateful to Jue Yi.

Lu Yin had somehow managed to take control of the Extreme Path’s exit and knock Yao Di unconscious. He was still caught up in the joy of being on the verge of seizing control of the entire Astral Beast Domain, but the Progenitor level creature had not yet arrived. Given his incredibly close proximity, Jue Yi felt that there was absolutely no better time than this to make his move. So, he cast aside all hesitation and aimed for a single killing blow.

Jue Yi could not see any possibility of his attack failing, even with unaccounted surprises. The only thing that could avert disaster for Lu Yin was if he had already become a Progenitor himself.

Lu Yin was not a Progenitor himself. Even if he was capable of facing four Semi-Progenitors at once, every last one of those powerhouses had been greatly inferior to Jue Yi. However, Jue Yi did not know about Lu Yin’s various treasures, especially the fact that Lu Yin possessed one treasure that not even Xia Shenji had been able to break or harm: the corpse.

Lu Yin noticed the moment that Jue Yi started moving, as Lu Yin did not trust either of the two men standing behind him, which was why they had been sent to the Astral Beast Domain. If he did not trust them, then how could he ever willingly show his back to them? The fact that Lu Yin had shown his back indicated that he was absolutely certain that he could protect himself.

The moment Jue Yi attacked, the unique power erupted from Lu Yin’s chest, and stars filled the sky. Jue Yi's attack was so fast that not even an ordinary Semi-Progenitor would be able to react, but Lu Yin’s unique power fully manifested itself in time.

As the unique power emerged from his chest, Lu Yin took out the corpse and positioned it to protect his back. Halfway to Lu Yin’s neck, Jue Yi's hand was blocked by the corpse. His death energy scythe also fell onto the corpse, but not a single mark was made.

Jue Yi's pupils instantly constricted. Lu Yin turned around to face the Semi-Progenitor. At some point in time, a small figurine had appeared on Lu Yin’s shoulder. It was God of Flames.

"So you finally made a move," Lu Yin casually commented as God of Flames released a terrifying number of runes. The number was comparable to a Semi-Progenitor, and they forced Jue Yi back. Fury covered the Semi-Progenitor’s face. His sneak attack had failed, so he needed to capitalize on this attack. With this thought in mind, his inner world enveloped Lu Yin. "There is no way for you to escape from my World of Death!"

Jue Yi held nothing back as he revealed the full might of a peak Semi-Progenitor who had been the gatemaster of one of the Heavens Sect’s Twelve Heavenly Gates. The World of Death spread throughout the entire area, enveloping everything. Within its bounds, not even a single single blade of grass could grow. There was nothing but silence and pressure. Any who entered the World of Death would be consumed by it until not even their dried out bones remained.

It was a unique inner world that controlled a region of space.

As soon as the World of Death appeared, even Hen Xin grew wary, and he hastily retreated, abandoning Lu Yin. It was possible that the man did not even see the need to think of Lu Yin’s safety.

Lu Yin's expression grew stiff. He had indeed faced off against Xia Ziheng and three other Semi-Progenitors while in the Perennial World, but none of them had given Lu Yin a feeling of pressure and hopelessness. He had faced both condensed inner worlds that could be wielded like weapons, as well as expansive inner worlds like Semi-Progenitor Chai's, that had enveloped an entire area. Even then, none of the inner worlds Lu Yin had faced had made him feel helpless.

On the other hand, that sensation did appear from Jue Yi’s inner world.

As the World of Death spread out and enveloped him, Lu Yin already knew that he could not confront this power. Even if the unique power in his chest was capable of forcing back Jue Yi’s inner world, Lu Yin’s strength would be quickly sapped away. The effort would be incomparable to when he had faced Semi-Progenitor Chai.

But, why did Lu Yin need to break this World of Death?

It was called the World of Death, and Jue Yi cultivated the God of Death’s death energy. However, Lu Yin was the God of Death’s true heir, and he could control all death energy. There was no one who possessed a more powerful control of death energy than Lu Yin.

Within the bounds of the World of Death, very few could stand up to Jue Yi, even among his peers. Even the other gatemasters of the Twelve Heavenly Gates needed to leave the confines of the World of Death to fight against Jue Yi.

Jue Yi intended to eliminate Lu Yin as quickly as possible and take control of the death energy Lu Yin possessed.

Lu Yin looked up, and a formless stream of black and white energy appeared around his body. It started to swirl around him, creating a tornado. At that same instant, Lu Yin completed the God of Death Transformation, and his appearance completely changed. A massive scythe appeared in his hand as death energy surged higher and higher. Finally, it was all pulled back into his body. The moment Lu Yin completed the God of Death Transformation, Jue Yi’s death energy had become Lu Yin’s power instead. His own power could not harm him.

Lu Yin's body shone with streams of black and white energy as he forcibly absorbed the death energy that had formed the World of Death. "I am the God of Death’s true heir, and yet you want to use my own power against me? How absurd!"

Jue Yi's pupils shrank sharply, and he was not even able to use the visualization method of the God of Death. His scythe fell, but the attack did not use any death energy. After seeing Lu Yin seize all of the death energy from the World of Death, Jue Yi would not make the same mistake twice.

Lu Yin turned his head slightly to glance over at Hen Xin, who did not show any intention of interfering in the battle.

As soon as he noticed Lu Yin’s glance, Hen Xin froze for a moment. He looked at Jue Yi’s attack that was about to land. Finally, gritting his teeth, Hen Xin slashed out with a hand, slicing through the void and destroying the scythe.

Jue Yi whirled around to glare at Hen Xin, enraged at the interference.

Hen Xin frowned. He was much more calculating than Jue Yi, and he saw further as well. Hen Xin had seen Lu Yin's attitude, and that calmness had caused Hen Xin to hesitate. The look that Lu Yin had given Hen Xin had clearly been an order for Hen Xin to declare his loyalties. If Hen Xin had not taken action, and Lu Yin had survived Jue Yi’s assault, then Hen Xin knew that he would be done for.

"If the two of us work together, he won’t be able to escape! Hen Xin, do you really want to submit to a child?" Jue Yi shouted angrily.

Hen Xin did not know how to answer the question. He had truly acted out of almost pure instinct, but looking back, should he have interfered?

A smile pulled at the corners of Lu Yin's mouth, but he said nothing. He acted as though he was enjoying a show.

He had never intended to face Jue Yi in a direct fight. Even with Lu Yin’s control of death energy, he knew that he was not Jue Yi's opponent. Still, most of the Semi-Progenitor’s strength came from his death energy, which meant that it should be impossible for him to kill Lu Yin. Thus, Lu Yin wanted to see just what sort of hidden means Jue Yi possessed.

Jue Yi proceeded to ignore Hen Xin and turned his attention back onto Lu Yin. The World of Death vanished in an instant, and then Jue Yi took a single step to appear right at Lu Yin’s side. The Semi-Progenitor raised a hand and dropped it down upon Lu Yin. It looked like a normal palm strike, but strange whispers could be heard from it. This attack used a power that was completely different from death energy.

Jue Yi had been a gatemaster of one of the Twelve Heavenly Gates for a long time, and he had been famous as one of the most powerful Semi-Progenitors during the Heavens Sect era. Even without access to death energy, Jue Yi was still a top powerhouse.

Lu Yin was taken aback as his transformed pupils stared at Jue Yi's hand. This attack possessed an overwhelming number of runes, showing that, even without death energy, Jue Yi was still more powerful than Xia Ziheng and the other Semi-Progenitors that Lu Yin had faced. Even just this one palm proved that the man was worthy of being one of the Heavens Sect’s gatemasters.

Still, it did not matter how powerful the attack was if it never struck Lu Yin.

Hen Xin stepped up from behind Lu Yin with a raised hand that swatted Jue Yi’s attack aside. The purple-black substance had already appeared on Hen Xin’s hand as he collided with Jue Yi's palm. The void exploded, and the shockwave swept towards Lu Yin, but Hen Xin blocked it so that not even a corner of Lu Yin’s clothes were ruffled.

The single counter attack knocked Jue Yi back, his arm shattered. He stared at Hen Xin in shock. "You-"

How could Jue Yi ever be Hen Xin’s opponent in close-quarters combat? Hen Xin had cultivated battle force, domain, and spiritual force; of those, his battle force had already reached the highest level possible.

"As long as I’m here, it's impossible for you to harm even a single hair on the Dao Chosen’s head!" Hen Xin shouted firmly.

Jue Yi was completely confused. "Why?"

Hen Xin yelled back, "The Heavens Sect has been reestablished, and the Dao Chosen represents the heavens! Both you and I have acknowledged this, but you have joined these beasts and attacked the Dao Chosen! You have betrayed mankind!"

Just as Jue Yi was about to retort, he froze completely. He slowly turned around to be met with a horrifying sight.

The jiao was staring straight at Jue Yi, baring its teeth and its claws. It had arrived in absolute silence, perfectly concealing its aura so that no hint of a Progenitor’s power leaked out. However, this stare left Jue Yi covered with chills. This creature clearly possessed the power of a Progenitor.

Hen Xin's eye twitched. He had attacked so decisively precisely because he had noticed the jiao’s arrival. The beast was clearly strong enough that Jue Yi would never be able to harm Lu Yin even the slightest, which was why Lu Yin had acted with utter fearlessness. Fortunately, Hen Xin’s domain had also reached the void god level, and he had managed to sense a spatial fluctuation that indicated the jiao’s arrival. Without that, Hen Xin might not have acted with such decisiveness.

Many thoughts flitted through Hen Xin's mind. He took a few steps so that he was slightly behind Lu Yin. "Dao Chosen, how should we deal with Jue Yi?"

Lu Yin gave the man a small smile. "That was quite something, Gatemaster Hen Xin. Without you, I might have died."

Hen Xin earnestly answered, "Given your strength, Dao Chosen, no one can harm you. There’s no need for you to say such things."

Lu Yin stared at Hen Xin for a moment before turning back to look at Jue Yi. "You were given an opportunity, but you didn't grasp it."

Lu Yin's words made Hen Xin's heart tremble for a moment. An opportunity? Lu Yin had created that opportunity by deliberately showing them his back in order to see what they would do when faced with an opening. He had also purposely done so in the Astral Beast Domain. He had laid a trap, a truly ruthless one by using himself as bait. Could this be considered self-confidence, or sheer arrogance?