Chapter 2679 – The Hand Behind The Scenes
The Invest.i.ture of the G.o.ds was put away. Lu Yin opened his eyes and calmly looked over at Cloudflow. He had spoken at length to convince Cloudflow to be conferred as a G.o.d. If the man had not been completely willing, the process would have failed. The truth was that, if Lu Yin had genuinely wanted to control Cloudflow, he could have simply asked his senior brother to handle the matter. Then, there would have been no reason for him to spend so much time trying to convince the man.
However, Lu Yin’s efforts had finally paid off, after more talking than he had wanted.
The fact that Cloudflow was willing to be conferred into Lu Yin’s Invest.i.ture of the G.o.ds indicated that he had no other motivations when dealing with Lu Yin, as the powerhouse believed that the Invest.i.ture of the G.o.ds was a means of controlling those who were conferred.
"I will do my best to try to help you save your world, and I will also help you get your revenge," Lu Yin promised.
Cloudflow let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you very much."
After that, Lu Yin shared more information about his own status in the Origin Universe, as well as details concerning the Heavens Sect. Cloudflow was stunned by all that he learned.
Lu Yin’s startlingly high status went far beyond the man’s expectations, as well as the fact that more than one Progenitor was supporting him. On top of that, this youth had infiltrated the Sixverse a.s.sociation and become someone famous in that alliance of parallel universes as well. In fact, everything that Lu Yin had done simply left Cloudflow confused by the series of events, and A-Mei felt the exact same way. Were such actions even possible?
Since Lu Yin had first encountered the Cloudflow Universe, he had felt that the people of that particular universe were too simple. The regular cultivators were so focused on the research facility where Cloudflow was being held captive that they had not even realized that they had been deceived and were being used by the Transcendent Universe, and Lu Yin had seen the same simplicity and stubbornness in Cloudflow himself. It was no wonder why the Cloudflow Universe had been tricked. Cloudflow himself was the same, as they were all too stubborn. It was no wonder how these people had been conquered by the Transcendent Universe.
"When I first discovered the pa.s.sage that connected my universe to the Transcendent Universe, I went through it without much thought. The Transcendent Universe was also friendly enough at first. Who could have expected that when I agreed to let one of their bestowal art carriers enter the Cloudflow Universe, it would lead to an irreversible change?" Cloudflow shared the story of his universe’s fall.
The more Lu Yin heard, the more convinced he became that Cloudflow and his people were not particularly intelligent. At the same time, he was increasingly grateful towards Gu Yue for sealing the pa.s.sage between the Fifth Mainland and the Three Monarchs Universe. With only Semi-Progenitors, how could the Fifth Mainland have stood a chance against the Three Monarchs Universe? Even just their Mo Courtyard would have been enough to sweep through the entire Fifth Mainland.
After all, the Perennial World did not care if the Fifth Mainland was completely destroyed.
"You mentioned that you’re skilled with the saber, right? Does that mean you’ll be far more powerful if your limbs are healed?" Lu Yin asked.
Cloudflow replied, "Of course, though it is not actually that difficult for me to heal myself. After all, I am a true powerhouse, so all I need is a bit of time, and I will regain my previous strength. In my prime, I was even able to defeat those people who control black energy converters."
Lu Yin nodded. "Let"s go. Starting today, you will be the Heavens Sect’s third elder."
The first two elders were the Progenitor of Bloodlines and Arch-Elder Zen, of course.
Cloudflow was clueless to the fact that the Invest.i.ture of the G.o.ds could not control him, and Lu Yin did not correct the man’s misunderstanding. With this, the Heavens Sect had gained another Progenitor-level powerhouse, and while Cloudflow was not as powerful as the masters of the Nine Mountains and Eight Seas, he would be the Heavens Sect hidden trump card. Lu Yin was certain that the man’s presence would serve as a wonderful surprise for the four ruling powers.
A-Mei was taken to Heavens Sect along with Cloudflow, whom she continued to follow.
***
As for the Transcendent Universe, they were completely shocked by the fact that Cloudflow had escaped, and even He Ran lost her composure.
First, Shao Qingfeng had disappeared, and then Cloudflow had vanished. On top of that, the You family had pledged their support to Bai Qian. Everything seemed to be turning against He Ran all at once.
In the ruins of the hidden research facility, Xiao Hai and others had already regained consciousness, only to be completely terrified by the sight of destruction that surrounded them.
When Xiao Hai woke up, he immediately started writing a report about how he had noticed an energy that did not belong to the Cloudflow Universe, or to the Transcendent Universe. However, before submitting the report, Xiao Hai happened to notice the writing on his palm, and what he read caused his expression to change drastically. Instantly, his report became a closely guarded secret, and he did not even consider revealing it to anyone.
Several days pa.s.sed as many people from the Transcendent Universe investigated the research facility, trying to determine what exactly had happened there. Unfortunately, that was impossible, which was startling in and of itself.
The powerhouse with the black energy converter who had responded to the trouble at the research facility had not seen Lu Yin, as Lu Yin had escaped with A-Mei as soon as the expert arrived. The man had also killed everyone from the Cloudflow Universe, which meant that not a single witness had been left alive. This detail infuriated He Ran, and she cursed the powerhouse for his stupidity. Well, she cursed him behind his back.
She suspected that the You family was responsible, but she failed to unearth any evidence to support that a.s.sumption. You Fang had not left the Ziyou Realm during Cloudflow’s rescue, and You Teng had remained at the Sixverse Academy. Without any evidence, He Ran could not accuse the You family of anything.
For some time, she had felt that there was a hidden hand secretly controlling everything, but she could not determine where that manipulator might be.
Who was it? Who could it be?
Lu Yin secretly visited the Ziyou Realm to meet with You Fang.
"If I hadn"t reacted quickly enough, I would have been killed! Fortunately, I managed to leave before that person with the black energy converter arrived," Lu Yin fearfully recounted.
"Where is Cloudflow? How did he escape?" You Fang asked while looking at Lu Yin with great suspicion.
Lu Yin replied, "How should I know? I was looking through the research information on the sixteenth floor. I have no idea what happened further below."
You Fang frowned. "Is it possible that Cloudflow escaped on his own?"
Lu Yin looked at the man. "You can’t possibly think that I took Cloudflow, do you? I’m not capable of that. Cloudflow is a peak powerhouse, no matter how much he might have been weakened. Before I reach that same level myself, I don’t dare to get involved with such experts.”
You Fang looked back at Xuan Qi as the youth spoke. The way that the events had played out felt like too much of a coincidence to the You patriarch.
If Xuan Qi had actually managed to take Cloudflow away, he would naturally keep it a secret, but that was also impossible. No matter how well Xuan Qi might have hidden his strength, it was impossible for him to be a peak powerhouse.
This meant that there was another explanation: another peak expert had taken action to rescue Cloudflow.
"Anyway, Cloudflow"s disappearance doesn’t have anything to do with me. I merely destroyed half of the base so that I could find the information I was looking for, but I left everything else completely untouched," Lu Yin stated.
You Fang"s heart skipped a beat; he destroyed half of the base?
You Fang was aware that the Bestowal Art had been used to imprison Cloudflow, as his family was the one who had arranged the cage imprisoning the man. In order to maintain the prison, the Bestowal Art required a constant source of energy. When Xuan Qi had destroyed the research facility, could he have damaged the power source and caused the Bestowal Art cage to fail?
That was not completely impossible.
However, that was also not important. "What are Zi Jing and the Energy Research Group studying? Did you find out?"
Lu Yin shook his head. "I couldn’t find anything about that."
You Fang felt quite disappointed.
"However, while searching around there, I did see a few words that might be related to their research," Lu Yin said after making a point to carefully consider the matter. "Sequence particles."
The words startled You Fang. "Sequence particles? Are you sure that those are the words you saw?"
Lu Yin nodded. "Definitely."
He intended to make use of You Fang"s power and influence, so it only made sense to share the Energy Research Group’s field of study with the You family. After all, even if Lu Yin did not tell them, the You family would eventually find out, given You Fang"s abilities.
"Are these sequence particles important? Your reaction was pretty strong."
You Fang"s expression grew solemn, unprecedentedly so. "This is a research project that was proposed by that person a long time ago but never implemented. My You family’s ancestor left instructions for my family that, whenever that research is initiated, we absolutely had to be part of it, and we could not hold back any of our abilities at all.
"I don"t know what these sequence particles are, but I trust my ancestor’s words, and I and my You family have to carry out his will."
You don’t know what sequence particles are? Lu Yin did not believe a word of this. As the patriarch of the You family, how could You Fang blindly obey some instructions left behind by the founder of the family? However, as long as You Fang said nothing, Xuan Qi could not ask.
"I never expected He Ran"s pet research project to actually be about sequence particles. No wonder it was hidden even from me." You Fang"s expression grew dark.
"What should we do now?" Lu Yin asked.
You Fang remained completely somber, "Xuan Qi, Zi Jing"s situation is more complicated than I expected. She is studying sequence particles, which is not something that He Ran can be behind. That person must be supporting her as well."
Lu Yin commented, "I know that. You already told me that, without that person, Zi Jing would have never been able to hide from you and your family."
"I underestimated the seriousness of this matter." You Fang let out a long breath. "Head on back for now. I need to think about what to do next as this research is far too important."
Lu Yin nodded and left the Ziyou Realm.
He did not know what You Fang intended to do next. The truth was that neither You Fang nor He Ran had ever truly cooperated with Xuan Qi. Both of them had their own goals and motivations, just as Lu Yin did himself. It all came down to who was able to outmaneuver the others. At the moment, Bai Qian appeared to be the cleanest person involved. She was caught up in this vortex, but she was essentially all alone. No one could imagine that, not only did she have her own allies, but she was also being secretly supported by the Origin Universe’s Heavens Sect.
The effect of Cloudflow"s disappearance grew increasingly serious, and word spread throughout the Transcendent Universe until everyone who had been aware of Cloudflow’s imprisonment learned that the man had escaped and was missing. This dealt a heavy blow to He Ran"s side.
The biggest blow came from Zi Jing’s teacher, the leader of the Energy Research Group.
While the old man appeared to be nothing more than a team leader for the research project, in truth, he was the one in charge of the entire research group. This research concerned the most advanced aspects of reality as humans understood it, and at least as far as Lu Yin was aware, they were essentially studying the underlying rules that governed the universes themselves. The project leader definitely was not nearly as simple as he appeared to be.
At the base of the stairs, He Ran was not standing high above others, but rather with her head somewhat bowed as the old man ranted and raged for half an hour. Not even Uncle Mo dared to interrupt the man.
"Elder, please calm down. I promise that I will find Cloudflow, and I promise that you will be able to obtain the best data possible," He Ran stated in a very polite manner.
She did not dare to offend this old man. She knew how important it was to tread lightly around him.
The old man glared at He Ran. "You better do just that, or else don’t blame me for no longer being polite. I can decide your victory or defeat with just one sentence. Even if Lord Wei were here himself, I would say the same thing."
He Ran"s face turned pale, and she bowed low. "I know. If you will calm down, Elder, I will make sure to handle this matter properly."
"Humph!" The old man turned around and left.
No one knew that the eccentric old researcher, who appeared somewhat insane and who usually spoke so politely to He Ran, actually had a status so lofty that he could directly reprimand He Ran. That was something that not even You Fang could do.
Once the old man left, He Ran heaved a sigh of relief. "Have He Shu get in touch with Chu Jian immediately. Bai Qian will never be able to threaten me!"
Uncle Mo quietly asked, "How do you intend to quell the elder"s anger?"
This question gave He Ran a headache. If she wanted to quell the elder"s anger, it was necessary to both find Cloudflow and compensate for the losses that had occurred. However, where was He Ran supposed to find Cloudflow? She did not even know who could possibly be responsible for his disappearance.
She could only prevent that old man from also supporting Bai Qian at the moment. If that man interfered in He Ran’s compet.i.tion with Bai Qian, he would instantly decide the victor and the loser.
That was how much influence the old man held.
The crazy-looking old man was rather inconspicuous and did not appear to have much power, but he had lived longer than anyone else, and he had even been alive when energy converters were first developed. Even Yu Fang had to bow when he saw the old man.
Everyone in the entire Transcendent Universe needed to respectfully call the crazy old man elder whenever they saw him. He was the most privileged person in the entire Transcendent Universe and was able to directly influence the ruler’s decisions.
"Could the You family have done this?" Uncle Mo asked.
This was what they had suspected from the very beginning, but there was no proof at all.
Given that she was facing a genuine threat, He Ran decided that it was time to talk to You Fang in person to try to resolve their grudges.
She could not understand why You Fang had suddenly started supporting Bai Qian. Was it because of what had happened with Monarch Luo? However, before that, He Ran had taken a few actions against the You family as well, and they had never cared.