Chapter 2403: Att.i.tude
Since it was just Lu Yin and Bai Xian’er approaching the Python Ancestor, the only thing Lu Yin needed to worry about was the Python Ancestor suddenly listening to Bai Xian’er. However, Lu Yin refused to believe Bai Xian’er had any way to control the Python Ancestor. If the snake actually obeyed her commands, Lu Yin knew that he would have died long ago.
As soon as they found the right direction, the two started moving towards the Python Ancestor’s head.
“Big Brother Xiaoxuan, do you remember the times when we explored the Higher Realm together in our younger days?” Bai Xian’er asked with a fond, nostalgic look in her eyes.
Lu Yin replied, “I’m curious. Given your talent, why weren’t you ever considered one of the Seven Heroes back then?”
Bai Xian’er blinked. “That’s something that you should be asking yourself, Big Brother Xiaoxuan.”
“Ask myself?” Lu Yin was stumped. He had no memories of any such thing.
Bai Xian’er explained, “Back then, I was not included in the lineup when the Seven Heroes were first established. Though, at that time, Big Brother Xiaoxuan liked me a lot and spent much more time with me than them.”
Lu Yin found the entire matter to be rather strange. “Then who stopped you from becoming one of the Seven Heroes?”
Bai Xian’er shook her head. “No one stopped me, but no one ever mentioned the possibility to me, either. Tu Qiming kept begging you to let him become the Eighth Hero, and all of you agreed to it. However, when it came to me, no one ever brought it up.”
As she spoke, she lowered her head.
Lu Yin retracted his gaze. “How did we lose our memories?”
Bai Xian’er gave a small smile. “That is my biggest secret. You’ll have to guess, Big Brother Xiaoxuan.”
“Was it really you?” Lu Yin was dumbfounded. Aside from him, Wan Zhiyi, Master Shan, and many others had also had at least some of their memories removed, and some of them were Semi-Progenitors. Given Bai Xian’er’s level of strength at the time when the Lu family had been banished, how had she managed to do it?
Bai Xian’er denied nothing.
“What about the seal on my body?” Lu Yin continued asking.
Bai Xian’er maintained the same slight smile. “Isn’t living a simple life good enough? Big Brother Xiaoxuan, you could have enjoyed a safe and stable life in the Forsaken Land. There was no need to burden yourself with this part of the universe. Don’t you think that that is also a good way to live? Why return here?”
“Answer the question.” All traces of amus.e.m.e.nt vanished from Lu Yin’s face.
Bai Xian’er calmly met his gaze. “When I see you again, you will die. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it once again: Big Brother Xiaoxuan, you will soon die. Let me know if you need me to help you fulfill any of your last wishes.”
Lu Yin’s hand shot out to grab Bai Xian’er’s neck, only to be blocked by some invisible power. An influx of runes from the Champions’ Stage reinforced his efforts, battering against the barrier as Lu Yin lashed out at Bai Xian’er with a Progenitor’s strength.
“Are you going to kill me?” Bai Xian’er suddenly asked.
The surge of runes allowed Lu Yin’s hand to break past her defenses, and he grabbed the woman’s delicate throat. He felt as though he could snap it at any moment.
Bai Xian’er stared at Lu Yin with a serene expression. “Can you kill me?”
Lu Yin’s eyes narrowed. Killing Bai Xian’er would mean breaking the truce. Bai w.a.n.gyuan would become absolutely obsessed with getting revenge. Lu Yin was not capable of handling such consequences. Furthermore, he refused to believe that Bai Xian’er could die so easily.
When the Sea King had broken open the Upper Three Gates, Bai Xian’er had pressed a Semi-Progenitor to death with a single finger. Lu Yin simply could not see the full extent of this woman’s strength, but he would not at all be surprised if she was actually comparable to a Progenitor.
While Lu Yin felt like he was currently holding her life in the palm of his hand, in reality, she most likely wanted him to feel that way.
He took a deep breath and slowly breathed out as he suppressed the temptation to snap the neck in his hands. Lu Yin pulled his hand back, turned around, and then continued moving towards the Python Ancestor’s head without saying another word.
Bai Xian’er stared at him from behind, her expression calm and impa.s.sive, terrifyingly impa.s.sive.
This was not Lu Yin’s first time seeing the Python Ancestor’s head. In the past, Long Xi had taken Long Qi to meet the Python Ancestor, and at that time, Lu Yin had seen the snake’s head from below, though he had not seen its entire body. This time, Bai Xian’er and Lu Yin both stood in the sky, and it was possible to see the unbelievable size of the python’s body that filled the entire sky. Lu Yin’s fingers grew slightly numb. There would be no escape if this ancient beast decided to bite at him.
“It looks like it’s sleeping,” Lu Yin said.
Bai Xian’er replied, “Blood.”
Lu Yin glanced at Bai Xian’er. Runes from the Champion’s Stage shot out and enveloped her body. “If anything happens to me, you won’t survive either.”
While he was not certain that he could actually kill Bai Xian’er, if he was going to die, then he was absolutely capable of dragging her down with him. Of course, the chances of something happening were not very high. The Lu family had led the Fifth Mainland for many years, which meant that the Python Ancestor had only been allowed to live in the Lower Realm because it had been able to coexist with the Lu family.
Bai Xian’er remained silent.
Lu Yin cut one of his fingers and watched as his blood dripped down.
He saw the Python Ancestor’s head in front of him twitch. Then, the beast opened its eyes. The color of the sky and ground both changed, and every single creature in the entire Lower Realm prostrated.
Some distance away, Xia Shenji’s clone grew pale. He turned to stare at the Python Ancestor’s head in a daze. The man was frozen stiff.
The same thing happened to Liu Shaoge.
Whether human or creature, everyone was forced to stop moving the moment the Python Ancestor opened its eyes.
It was an inexplicable feeling. Lu Yin had seen many giant creatures throughout his life after he started cultivating, but none of them could even begin to compare to the Python Ancestor.
When faced with this overwhelmingly immense creature’s stare, Lu Yin felt as though the heavens themselves were staring at him. A soul piercing fear that far surpa.s.sed what he had felt when Xia Shenji had tried to kill him overcame him.
No matter how strong Xia Shenji might be, he was still a human. However, the Python Ancestor was a completely different species, and it far surpa.s.sed humans.
The Python Ancestor’s colossal eyes looked as though they were able to pierce through and examine every inch of the entire Lower Realm. However, Lu Yin knew that the beast was staring straight at him. Its gaze was focused on him.
“Excuse me.” Lu Yin’s voice rang out after a long moment of silence.
In this situation, anyone would struggle terribly to act normally. Forget speaking—even the smallest of movements were impossible. The fact that Lu Yin was able to say anything at all was an incredibly impressive feat.
The Python Ancestor lowered its head towards Lu Yin.
Lu Yin’s pupils constricted, and he unconsciously glanced sideways at Bai Xian’er.
The woman’s expression was as indifferent as ever. There was no trace of any emotions whatsoever.
Lu Yin felt a sudden impulse to make a break for it. This was too much pressure for him to handle. He felt as though he was an ordinary human facing a Progenitor.
Lu Yin clenched his fists tightly as the Python Ancestor continued moving closer to him. Finally, he could not endure any longer, and he blurted out, “Can you eat Undying G.o.d?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, Lu Yin’s heart stilled in suspense. He tightened his jaw in agitation as he waited for the Python Ancestor’s response.
The Python Ancestor continued to stare at Lu Yin without giving any reply. Lu Yin could not determine the beast’s expression from its eyes, as they were simply too ma.s.sive. However, he felt that the Python Ancestor was certainly sapient.
Suddenly, the Python Ancestor’s head rose far above Lu Yin and Bai Xian’er. Then, there was a wet sound as something left its mouth. Lu Yin looked upwards in a daze, only to see a ridiculously large glob of saliva that seemed capable of covering the entire Lower Realm falling towards him. There was no mistake; the Python Ancestor had just spat at him.
Lu Yin had never imagined that the Python Ancestor would spit at him. He reflexively started to form a barrier above his head with the Progenitor-level runes that he could borrow. Once the spit fell on him, it would be no different than having an entire ocean dumped onto him. The Lower Realm would be completely inundated.
Far away, Xia Shenji and Liu Shaoge also happened to be within the affected area. The two of them were instantly submerged in the Python Ancestor’s saliva.
Countless other people and creatures suffered the same fate.
To the Python Ancestor, it was just a bit of spit, but to everyone else, it was an entire ocean.
“What’s going on?” Lu Yin was baffled. The absurdity of being spat at had shaken him out of his near paralyzed state.
Bai Xian’er pursed her lips. “Bring out the Origin Progenitor’s sword.”
“The Origin Progenitor’s sword?”
Bai Xian’er explained, “This snake was raised by the Origin Progenitor. If you want it to obey you, you"ll need to use the Origin Progenitor’s sword.”
“Why did it just spit at me?” Lu Yin asked.
Bai Xian’er shook her head. “I don’t know. That’s something between your Lu family and the Python Ancestor.”
Lu Yin was lost for words. Did this beast actually respond to people from the Lu family by spitting at them?
“Back then, Uncle Qi said that the Python Ancestor had some sort of rapport with the Lu family, and I believed him. It looks like he was just bluffing,” Bai Xian’er said as she pouted.
“My father, Lu Qi?”
“Hurry up and bring out the Origin Progenitor’s sword,” Bai Xian’er urged, no longer replying to his questions.
Lu Yin frowned. “So this was your goal all along.”
Bai Xian’er glanced over. “Just one of many. The Python Ancestor was raised by the Origin Progenitor. It’s only possible to get it to listen to you by using the Origin Progenitor’s sword. Or are you saying that you don’t want to kill Undying G.o.d?”
Lu Yin took a deep breath, still hesitating a bit.
At that moment, the saliva struck.
Lu Yin was now quite upset. No one had ever spat at him before, but this old snake clearly had no intention of stopping. Just who had p.i.s.sed it off so badly? If it wanted to get revenge, then it should go find the person who was actually responsible. Why take things out on an innocent descendant?
As Lu Yin’s annoyance reached its limit, he pulled the Origin Progenitor’s sword out from his cosmic ring.
The moment the Origin Progenitor’s sword appeared, nothing seemed to change in anyone else’s perspective. It was no different from how no one in the Fifth Mainland had sensed anything from this sword when it had appeared. However, the Python Ancestor instantly froze.
As Lu Yin got rid of the saliva above his head with runes, the Python Ancestor’s head gradually dropped back down. It stared at the Origin Progenitor’s sword in Lu Yin’s hand and let out a low hiss.
Although it was just a hiss, Lu Yin could hear the beast’s nostalgia. The Python Ancestor was yearning for this sword, or rather, it was missing the sword’s owner.
Bai Xian’er also turned her attention to the Origin Progenitor’s sword. This sword represented the greatest heights that humanity had ever reached in this part of the universe.
“Why did you spit at me?” Lu Yin asked.
The Python Ancestor completely ignored Lu Yin. Its attention was fully occupied by the Origin Progenitor’s sword.
Lu Yin put the sword back away, and the snake’s attention reverted to Lu Yin, though it seemed a bit confused. Suddenly, Lu Yin looked up, as he felt another gaze fall upon him. He could not see whom the eyes belonged to, but he guessed that the eagle was staring at him.
Since the Python Ancestor had been able to feel the Origin Progenitor’s sword, the eagle was capable of doing the same.
The Python Ancestor remained dazed, as though trapped within its own memories. Lu Yin quickly decided to explain the plan while the beast remained in such a state. After saying his piece, Lu Yin left with Bai Xian’er. He had no idea whether the Python Ancestor would agree.
“Why didn"t it ever say anything?” Lu Yin found the entire matter rather confusing.
Bai Xian’er shrugged. “I don’t know.”
Lu Yin’s brow furrowed. Even astral beasts with the strength of an Explorer were capable of speech and taking on human form. Surely, the Python Ancestor and the eagle were capable of the same, so why had it not replied? It seemed similar to the situation with the jiao. Perhaps the larger and more powerful the creature was, the more difficult it was to overcome its species’ natural limitations.
Even without a reply from the Python Ancestor, Lu Yin intended to give the plan a shot. At the very least, Undying G.o.d would be seriously injured. As for those dried up corpses, the four ruling powers had already spread word to the rest of the Perennial World to only capture the corpses and not destroy them since Bai Xian’er had exposed the truth behind their existence.
One year ago, Lu Yin had returned to the Fifth Mainland, which had granted the Perennial World a year of peace. The four ruling powers had thought that they would be able to enjoy an extended period of calm. Even if Lu Yin returned to the Perennial World, they did not expect him to immediately make waves, nor for him to try to overthrow them right away.
They had severely underestimated Lu Yin’s abilities.
But the moment that Lu Yin arrived, Undying G.o.d had forced his way into the Perennial World, and the Seven SkyG.o.ds had launched a ma.s.sive a.s.sault on the Dominion Realm. The eagle and the Python Ancestor had both been forced to take action, and the fighting that raged on the rear battlefield reached a scale that had not been seen in dozens of years. It was as if Lu Yin’s mere appearance had triggered the entire Perennial World.
However, no one blamed Lu Yin. While his presence had catalyzed these battles, it was to humanity’s benefit. At the least, the Perennial World had obtained a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to truly kill Undying G.o.d.