Chapter 2660 – Looking For You
Sage Yuan was well aware that the Fourth Mainland had been dominated by astral beasts. The Heavens Sect had even dedicated an entire continent to these slaves of humanity. The Fourth Mainland had been ruled by one of the Three Realms Six Dao, who had been known as the Wilderness G.o.d. The Three Realms Six Dao had been experts at the same level as the Three Sovereigns, which meant that if Wilderness G.o.d were placed in the Cyclic Universe, he would undoubtedly be ranked among the top five most powerful individuals.
Such an expert could not be underestimated, not even by one of the Nine Sages.
"Is this the metal that brought disaster to the Fourth Mainland?" Sage Yuan was astonished.
Arch-Elder Zen held the piece of Devourer up. The metal writhed incessantly, creating spines that sought to pierce the man’s skin and absorb his blood and flesh. However, how could even an Enhanced Devourer that was as powerful as a one-tribulation Envoy harm Arch-Elder Zen?
Sage Yuan stared at Arch-Elder Zen. "Even so, you shouldn"t have left the battlefield in the Three Monarchs Universe without permission. Do you realize the crisis that your departure created?"
Arch-Elder Zen put the Devourer away. "According to my understanding, someone in the Three Monarchs Universe just reached the level of a Progenitor, which means that, even without me, there’s no lack of powerhouses to protect that universe. Why should I guard their universe for them?"
Sage Yuan’s tone grew harsh. "This is the agreement I made with Lu Yin. If you"re not willing, then get him to take your place. No matter what, the Heavens Sect must have a Progenitor fighting on the battlefield in the Three Monarchs Universe. If not, don"t blame the Sixverse a.s.sociation for retaliating."
With that, the Sage left.
He had primarily wanted to look into whether Arch-Elder Zen"s sudden absence was connected to what had happened at the pa.s.sage, but from this conversation, Arch-Elder Zen had most likely left because he was unhappy with his situation. The Three Monarchs Universe’s Chen Le had broken through to the Progenitor level, but Arch-Elder Zen was still expected to stand at the front lines of their universe and protect them from Aeternus. As for the matter with the Devourer, Sage Yuan did not believe any of Arch-Elder Zen’s excuse.
Still, it was almost certain that the man had no connection to the attack on the entrance to the pa.s.sage.
No one believed that the Heavens Sect had any sort of connection to Aeternus. It was simply inconceivable. If the Heavens Sect was cooperating with Aeternus, then the Origin Universe would have fallen long ago, and Aeternus would have opened up the pa.s.sage to the Three Monarchs Universe. These facts simply made that possibility zero.
Even Xia Shenji, who hated Lu Yin more than almost anyone else, did not consider it possible.
It could be a.s.sumed that Aeternus was too aware of what was happening in the Sixverse a.s.sociation and that they had timed their attack according to when Arch-Elder Zen left.
After leaving the Origin Universe, Sage Yuan returned to the Three Monarchs Universe to share his conclusions with Monarch Luo.
"Could it really just be a coincidence?" Monarch Luo remained skeptical, as the timing was simply too convenient. The ones who benefited the most from Mu Shang"s death were the Heavens Sect, and more specifically, Dao Monarch Lu Yin. However, the Heavens Sect was the organization that was the least likely to collude with Aeternus. So just what had happened?
Regardless of what happened in the world outside the bureau’s courtyard, no one disturbed Lu Yin.
He returned to his quarters and looked outside at Cang Bi, who was faithfully maintaining his vigil. The man was a Demi-Monarch, but he still was not qualified to get involved in the current matter. When had the status of a Semi-Progenitor been reduced this far?
Lu Yin needed to come up with a plan to help raise every Semi-Progenitor in the Heavens Sect to become Progenitor realm. Only then would the Origin Universe be able to negotiate with the Sixverse a.s.sociation on equal footing.
If only Lu Yin could acquire the power of the Great Sovereign, who was able to bestow Progenitor-level power to whomever he wished. How wonderful would that be? Lu Yin would make all the Semi-Progenitors into Progenitors, and then he would fear no one.
The Three Monarchs Universe finally saw peace once again. Monarch Luo and the others continued to look into the reason why Mu Shang had been targeted by a corpse king. Arch-Elder Zen also returned to the rainbow wall. Both Monarch Luo and Xia Shenji questioned the man further, but they were unable to learn anything from Arch-Elder Zen.
Lu Yin also doubled down on his mission to undercover spies, and he put on a big show of investigating the information broker. Xuan Qi’s behavior and actions aligned perfectly with what everyone expected from him.
During this time, a woman that Chen Le had never met before arrived to see him. She was merely as strong as an Envoy, but seeing her put a solemn expression on the Monarch’s face.
"Mr. Daheng sends his greetings and congratulations to you, Senior Chen Le, for your breakthrough to the Monarch realm. You have established your place as a legendary figure and are destined to be remembered throughout history," the young woman stated. Despite her una.s.suming appearance and rather average strength, this seemingly ordinary individual managed to erase any trace of emotion from Chen Le"s face.
He had not expected Mr. Daheng to initiate contact with him.
After the door within him was successfully removed and his ascent to become a Monarch, Chen Le had believed that Mr. Daheng would lose all interest in him. After all, Chen Le had overcome Mr. Daheng’s door without the man’s a.s.sistance, which had freed Chen Le of Mr. Daheng’s control. Logically speaking, Mr. Daheng should not have reached out again, and he might have even become an enemy.
"Are you surprised, Senior Chen Le?" the woman asked, her eyes sparkling as she stared at the powerhouse.
Chen Le somberly regarded the woman. "Did Mr. Daheng say anything else?"
The woman maintained a respectful tone. "Mr. Daheng merely sent his congratulations to Senior Chen Le and instructed me to listen to whatever Senior Chen Le wishes to say."
Chen Le frowned. What did he want to say? What could he even say? "We are now enemies."? He would never dare to say such a thing to Mr. Daheng. Even after becoming a Monarch, Chen Le did not have the courage to oppose Mr. Daheng. However, if Mr. Daheng was not an enemy, then just what was he to Chen Le?
A moment pa.s.sed. The Monarch simply had no idea what to say.
After becoming a Monarch, he had not antic.i.p.ated any further contact with the Liberation Palace. There was no doubt that Mr. Daheng was reaching out because of that stone. The man had an excessive interest in that stone. If Chen Le was holding it, he would have simply handed it over to the woman and been done with the matter.
He was not afraid that the Liberation Palace would say anything to Monarch Luo, as doing so would only place the Liberation Palace in a precarious position. Chen Le had a.s.sumed that, after being ensnared by Xuan Qi, the entire matter of the Liberation Palace would simply fade and be forgotten. It was completely unexpected that the Liberation Palace would rekindle their connection with him.
"What is it that Mr. Daheng wants from me?" Chen Le asked again.
The woman merely repeated herself and said that she was to listen to whatever Chen Le had to say.
In the end, Chen Le said nothing at all. Before leaving, the woman said, "Mr. Daheng said that, if you had nothing to say, you can look for him at this location."
Apparently, the women’s true purpose had been to deliver this location to Chen Le.
The man stared at the information he had been given. Should he go or not?
If he did not go, he might truly become an enemy of the Liberation Palace, which meant being an enemy of the terrifyingly powerful Mr. Daheng. If Chen Le did go, what could he possibly gain from the trip? He glanced down at himself. Could he be freed from Xuan Qi"s control? Would he simply be controlled by Mr. Daheng once again? There were no answers to be had.
Chen Le had escaped Mr. Daheng"s control by destroying the door without the man. If he met Mr. Daheng again… Chen Le hesitated. He struggled with the dilemma for half a month before finally paying Lu Yin a visit.
Lu Yin had not expected Chen Le to take so long to visit him again. In fact, Lu Yin had expected Chen Le to return the moment the matter with the pa.s.sage was resolved.
"Just what happened? Why did some Aeternal kill Mu Shang?" Chen Le demanded. He was the only one with some knowledge of the situation, as no one else was aware that Lu Yin had been responsible for Mu Shang’s death.
Lu Yin confidently replied, "Why is Aeternus allowed to manipulate spies against us humans, but I"m not allowed to manipulate them?"
Chen Le stared at Lu Yin. "You manipulated Aeternus?"
Lu Yin retorted, "What? Did you think that I was a spy? You"ve already guessed my real ident.i.ty, right? Why are you still so suspicious?"
Chen Le"s eyes flickered. "We already have an agreement, so remove your controls from me."
Lu Yin nodded. "I"ve actually been waiting for you."
As Lu Yin spoke, Mu Xie appeared and stood just a few meters away from Chen Le.
Chen Le was instantly nervous, as he was almost entirely certain that both of these men were from the Origin Universe’s Heavens Sect. It was no wonder why that sect was capable of opposing the likes of Xia Shenji. The Heavens Sect had more than one Monarch-level expert, and even Sage Yuan was only able to question the sect, as he was incapable of forcing them to do anything.
"Freeing you is possible, but I need you to do something," Lu Yin said.
Chen Le"s eyes narrowed. "That’s not what we agreed on. We said that, when the pa.s.sage was dealt with, you would free me. Are you reneging on our agreement?"
"What I need from you will only benefit you, and it won’t harm you in any way at all. Why not first hear me out?" Lu Yin asked calmly.
All that Chen Le cared about was his freedom, and he did not want to get entangled with any further complications. However, with a glance at Mu Xie, the Monarch understood that the chances of him obtaining his wish without at least hearing Xuan Qi out were slim.
It was possible to threaten the young man into releasing him, but that would be nothing more than a threat. It would not be an act of true desperation.
If the two men refused to give in to Chen Le’s demands, then the situation would devolve into a lose-lose scenario. For the moment, Chen Le only needed to listen.
"Fine, speak," Chen Le stated as his expression fell.
Lu Yin lifted his hand, revealing the Peaks and Rivers Rock in his hand. This was what Mr. Daheng had wanted so desperately. Seeing it completely stunned Chen Le.
"I would like to ask you to personally deliver this stone to Monarch Luo, Senior," Lu Yin stated.
Chen Le felt he must have heard wrong. "Give this to Monarch Luo? Are you asking me to deliver myself to my enemy?"
Lu Yin laughed. "Feel free to use whatever excuse you want, as long as you deliver this stone to Monarch Luo. He doesn’t know the importance of this stone, and truthfully, neither do we. It seems that only Mr. Daheng is aware of that information. So with that in mind, giving it to Monarch Luo should not create any problems."
"Why?" Chen Le asked, baffled.
"Surely you don’t believe that the Liberation Palace has actually given up on you?" Lu Yin asked.
Chen Le’s brow rose, and he warily glanced at Lu Yin. Had this young man been monitoring him?
Lu Yin blinked. "Judging by that reaction, you’ve already been contacted by someone from the Liberation Palace, haven’t you?"
"How did you know?" Chen Le stared at Lu Yin, his caution mounting.
Lu Yin chuckled. "You"ve been a part of Mr. Daheng"s plans for years, and he even made it a point to block your potential breakthrough to the Monarch realm. Everything was done because he needed to recruit more people to search for these stones. Senior, you already dealt with the Bai clan, which suggests that you should have already found this stone. How could Mr. Daheng let you go now?"
Chen Le furrowed his brow. He was fully aware of Mr. Daheng"s interest in the stone, but Chen Le had become a peak powerhouse himself.
Normally, if a peak powerhouse and a mere stone were evaluated, the former would undoubtedly be regarded as far more important. However, from Xuan Qi’s words, it seemed possible that Mr. Daheng viewed the stone as even more valuable than a peak powerhouse.
"If someone from the Liberation Palace has already contacted you, Senior, you won"t be able to get rid of them. Why not hand the stone over to Monarch Luo? Mr. Daheng seems to want to maintain a low profile, and he most likely will not disclose your previous cooperation with Liberation Palace. Also, since Monarch Luo is unaware of what happened, why not let Mr. Daheng deal with him? It would be even better if he mistakenly comes to the conclusion that you joined the Liberation Palace on Monarch Luo"s orders, though the chances of that happening are slim. Regardless, we’ll divert Mr. Daheng"s attention over to Monarch Luo. That should help you break free, shouldn"t it?" proposed Lu Yin.
Chen Le"s eyes lit up, as this certainly seemed to be a viable strategy. If the stone was Mr. Daheng"s greatest concern, then Chen Le could simply give it to Monarch Luo.
Chen Le had once tested Monarch Luo, only to find that the man knew nothing about the stone’s significance. In that case, there was no reason not to give the stone to Monarch Luo and have Mr. Daheng focus elsewhere. As long as Chen Le avoided further contact with the Liberation Palace, he would be safe.
The only problem remaining was the danger of running into someone from the Liberation Palace while on the Endless Frontier.