Chapter 2448 – Lu Sanctum’s Treasury
Several days pa.s.sed without anyone contacting Lu Yin. Finally, after ten days pa.s.sed, he received an update from Qiong Xi"er: "The four ruling powers have agreed."
"Mhmm. Restore their wireless jincans," Lu Yin instructed.
"Their current priority isn’t the wireless jincans, but rather the cloud stone mines."
"In that case, sell them. This entire transaction was a one-time opportunity. Trying this again in the future will accomplish practically nothing. The Perennial World’s losses will be limited to monetary ones," Lu Yin said.
Qiong Xi"er said, "Financial losses won"t have much of an effect on the four ruling powers, but you seem to consider this very important, Dao Chosen."
Lu Yin had been left with no choice. Even if he did not repair the Origin Progenitor"s sword, he was still in dire need of funds. His die was absurdly expensive to use.
As he had once mentioned to Qiong Xi’er, the current situation was a scheme that could only be used once. Three years ago, Qiong Xi"er had suggested the idea, and Lu Yin had agreed, believing that it would likely be better than just taking the profits as they came in. Fortunately, the scheme had yielded substantial returns three years later.
With the plan being successful, fully restoring the Origin Progenitor"s sword did not seem too far away. He only lacked another four trillion at most.
Lu Yin let out a sigh. The question was, where could he acquire such a sum?
As for the latest scheme, the four ruling powers did not appear to be too enraged by what Lu Yin had done.
"It"s quite laughable to see Lu Xiaoxuan resorting to such methods for mere star essence," commented Xia Shenji.
w.a.n.g Fan added, "The rumors are certainly true. Lu Xiaoxuan holds star essence in exceptionally high regard."
"While it"s true that all members of the Lu family consume ma.s.sive amounts of resources to cultivate, it’s rare to see someone so unscrupulous," noted Progenitor Long.
Bai w.a.n.gyuan chimed in. "Since he likes it so much, let"s give it to him. I"m quite curious to see just how much he can handle."
…
In a single stroke, Lu Yin had managed to obtain 2 trillion star essences from the four ruling powers. He had just 4 trillion more to go.
It might be possible to acquire this amount from the Fifth Mainland if he wished, but the consequences would be terrible. Even if it was possible to gather this amount, it would cause the Fifth Mainland’s entire economy to collapse.
Obtaining the remaining funds from the Fifth Mainland was not an option. Lu Yin looked around, realizing that the Perennial World was his only bet.
At that moment, Nong Yi approached. "What trouble are you creating for the four ruling powers this time? All of the wireless jincans have started malfunctioning."
Lu Yin silently stared at Nong Yi.
Nong Yi felt a chill crawl up his spine from Lu Yin"s scrutiny.
"What does your Seed Garden lack?" Lu Yin suddenly inquired.
Perplexed, Nong Yi asked, "What do you mean?"
"What do you need? If the Fifth Mainland possesses it, we can negotiate a trade," Lu Yin elucidated.
Nong Yi exhaled deeply. "So you are truly in dire need of money."
At that moment, the man’s wireless jincan trembled, and Nong Yi answered the message. After a brief conversation, he ended the transmission and looked back at Lu Yin with a peculiar expression. "Why do you require such an exorbitant sum of money?"
"You know about that?"
"The wireless jincans that stopped working suddenly returned to normal. The four ruling powers purchased a significant number of cloud stone mines, and the rumors are claiming that everything was orchestrated by you. Are you truly that desperate for money?"
Lu Yin sighed, but then admitted it. "Very much so. In that case, how much can Seed Garden lend me?"
Shaking his head, the Progenitor replied, "My Seed Garden isn’t wealthy. At best, I can lend you a few billion star essence."
"You"re that poor?" Lu Yin exclaimed involuntarily.
Nong Yi was clearly irritated by the comment. "Seed Garden has always been self-sufficient."
"Then where can I get more money?" Lu Yin inquired.
Nong Yi contemplated for a while. "Of all the families in the Perennial World, the Lu family always possessed the greatest wealth. The members of the Lu family consume a tremendous amount of resources for their cultivation, and as a result, the entire Perennial World offered tribute to the Lu family in the form of monetary wealth. They had the family’s treasury within their territory, and if you can find that, you should no longer need to worry about your finances."
Lu Yin"s eyes blazed. "The family’s treasury?"
"The Lu Sanctum’s treasury was used exclusively for the Lu family’s cultivation resources. They allocated resources based on each individual"s apt.i.tude, tasks completed, and so on. n.o.body knows the exact quant.i.ty of star essence in that treasury. I suppose that only a few of the Lu family"s Progenitors were privy to that information," Nong Yi sighed.
Lu Yin eagerly asked, "Where can I find the Lu Sanctum’s treasury?"
Nong Yi shook his head. "I don"t know. After the Lu family was exiled, the four ruling powers, our Nong family, the Liu family, and Specter Abyss all searched for it, but to no avail. Nevertheless, no one is too concerned, as the Lu Sanctum’s treasury mostly holds resources such as star essence, which isn’t vital to the four ruling powers. After more than a decade of fruitless searching, everyone gave up, and the matter has long since been forgotten."
Lu Yin felt a sense of disappointment.
"How much longer do you plan to remain a guest of my Seed Garden?" Nong Yi asked.
Lu Yin looked back towards Big Face Tree. "I"m going to keep listening to it. Perhaps I’ll gain some valuable insights."
Nong Yi responded, "That"s fine with me. Our Nong family has always encouraged our descendants to listen to Big Face Tree. Our greatest hope is for it to help us gain insights into the ancient Heavens Sect era. Unfortunately, very few individuals possess the ability to fully comprehend its words."
"As long as you don"t chase me away, I"ll continue to stay for now," Lu Yin replied nonchalantly.
Nong Yi cautioned, "Don"t push the four ruling powers too far with your schemes. It"s better to hold back until you are absolutely certain that you can deal with them."
The four ruling powers would never let Lu Yin go. As for Lu Yin, he would not spare them either. Although the two had agreed to a temporary truce to avoid a major conflict, the day of their clash was inevitable.
Everyone was worried about this conflict.
No open conflict had broken out ever since the truce had been agreed to, but the two were constantly at odds and struggling against each other. Nong Yi did not want his Seed Garden to be entangled in the situation, and he sought to avoid the eventual confrontation as much as possible.
As Nong Yi left, Lu Yin watched the man’s retreating figure.
Some ideals could never be realized.
Unless Nong Yi himself died and his Nong family was scattered, it was futile to hope that Seed Garden could escape the upcoming conflict.
…
Lu Yin spent two months in Seed Garden, during which he frequently went to visit Big Face Tree and learn about various events that had occurred on the Third Mainland.
However, he had only scratched the surface of the history of the Third Mainland’s war. For instance, why had Dao Monarch Gu Yizhi betrayed humanity and become Ancient G.o.d? How had Progenitor Yōu Ming been deceived by Ce w.a.n.gtian, who had also hailed from the Third Mainland?
However, during these two months, Lu Yin did hear some tales regarding parallel universes.
Big Face Tree mentioned that cultivators hailing from universes beyond the Third Mainland had also partic.i.p.ated in the War of Turtledove River. These cultivators had possessed the ability to fill Turtledove River with trees. When Progenitor Yōu Ming split Turtledove River apart to kill one of the Seven SkyG.o.ds, the Third Mainland had not been fully split apart. Instead, the two pieces had been connected to each other by a forest of trees that spanned the entire Mainland, and that had held it all together.
The cultivators who had used this forestry technique had come from parallel universes. Lu Yin had instinctively asked about the people’s origins, which had prompted Big Face Tree to restart his entire narrative from the top yet again.
Lu Yin had only been left with a throbbing headache.
"Do you really intend to keep listening to it? The Nong family is grateful that you are sparing them from all this torment." Bai Xue smiled as she poured tea for Lu Yin.
Lu Yin replied, "Tell them that I’ll continue to frequently visit in the future."
"Are you leaving?" Bai Xue asked in surprise.
Lu Yin stared off into the distance and casually responded, "I’m just stepping away for a bit."
Just a short while later, Lu Yin headed towards Huaiyuan.
At the moment, Skymender was on a Cloud Shuttle, apparently calm. Standing beside him was an elderly woman. Her face was wrinkled and weathered, and her expression was weary and sorrowful. "You will meet him soon. Even if Shenwu"s Sky discovers you, they can"t do anything any longer. You belong to the Lu family, and the four ruling powers won"t turn on the Dao Chosen for now."
The old woman"s name was Lu Xun, and she was an elder of one of the Lu family branches. She had once been a powerful Semi-Progenitor, but her inner world had been destroyed and her cultivation had been ruined. She had been imprisoned beneath Shenwu"s Sky for many years.
It had only been thanks to Xia Xing that she had been able to leave that place.
More than four years ago, Lu Yin had made an agreement with the four ruling powers, and part of that agreement was for all surviving members of the Lu family and their va.s.sals to be released into Lu Yin’s custody. As long as people identified themselves as such, the four ruling powers would not hara.s.s them unless first provoked.
Members of the Lu family and their followers were able to openly walk about the Perennial World.
However, Lu Yin had never believed that the four ruling powers would actually release every single member of the Lu family that they had captured. If he were in their position, he would not do so either. Some people were definitely still hidden away.
Lu Xun had been a powerful Semi-Progenitor of the Lu family who had been kept hidden in Shenwu"s Sky.
Xia Xing was the reason why she had been able to regain her freedom.
Lu Yin had a bit of leverage against Xia Xing, which allowed him to control the Xia family’s patriarch. Even so, it had taken nearly four years for the man to release Lu Xun from Shenwu"s Sky’s underground prison. As for the methods that the man had used, Lu Yin had no interest in learning them.
Lu Xun became agitated. "The young master has truly returned."
Skymender nodded. "We have agreed to a truce with the four ruling powers. From now on, you can enjoy your years in peace."
Lu Xun had never expected such a day to come. "Peacefully enjoy my years? No, we must seek revenge! The Lu family should not have died in vain. The Lu family is the true ruler of the Fifth Mainland!"
As the two spoke, the Cloud Shuttle continued to descend, and members of the Smokecloud Sect approached them to conduct an inspection.
Skymender soon took Lu Xun away from the Cloud Shuttle, and they headed towards Huaiyuan. There, Lu Xun met Lu Yin.
The moment the old woman laid eyes on Lu Yin, her eyes grew bloodshot, and she dashed forward, completely fl.u.s.tered. Lu Yin quickly reached out to support the woman.
"Young Master, it really is you!" Lu Xun"s body trembled out of excitement.
Lu Yin apologized, "I"m sorry I took so long."
Lu Xun quickly stopped him. "Don"t blame yourself, Young Master. Your accomplishment has already brought solace to the departed souls of the Lu family.”
Lu Yin said, "I’ve lost my former memories, so I don’t remember you."
Lu Xun nodded and immediately introduced herself. "I understand. My name is Lu Xun, and I am an elder from the Qin Mountain branch of the family. Back then…"
Lu Yin listened attentively, and Skymender stood a short distance away.
As time pa.s.sed, Lu Yin was able to slowly piece together Lu Xun"s status and position. The Lu family was composed of both direct and branch lines of the family, and Lu Xun had been a Semi-Progenitor who was an elder of a branch family.
Only someone of such importance warranted being imprisoned by the four ruling powers.
After a while, Lu Xun"s emotions gradually calmed down.
Lu Yin took out his wireless jincan and contacted Xia Xing.
"Have you received her?" Xia Xing asked.
"Is she the only one?"
"It was just her. If you have any doubts, you can ask around. Shenwu"s Sky no longer holds any members of the Lu family. She was the last and the most important one," replied Xia Xing.
"The most important?" Lu Yin asked, puzzled.
Xia Xing paused for a moment before replying, "Do you know how I managed to get her out? It was through deception. I lied and said that Lu Xun was already dead and that she had been buried deep underground. I had to report that the person who met with you is not Lu Xun, but rather some common old woman. This matter has exhausted all of the favors that Xian Su once owed me. In the past, I spoke up to save him, but he has now returned that favor. We no longer owe each other anything."
"That sounds like a lot of effort on your part, using the favor of a Semi-Progenitor," replied Lu Yin. He was familiar with Xian Su, as that was the name of the Semi-Progenitor who presided over Shenwu"s Sky"s underground prison. They had met three years before, when Lu Yin had collected the Sword Monument. "Why is Lu Xun so important?"
Xia Xing answered, "Because she most likely knows the location of the Lu Sanctum’s treasury."
Lu Yin"s eyes instantly grew large. "The Lu Sanctum’s treasury?"
"Exactly. Of the Lu family’s various branches, the Qin Mountain branch enjoyed an exceptionally high status. Whenever resources were distributed to members of the Lu family, the people would always gather in Qin Mountain. The Qin Mountain branch was responsible for allocating funds to the members of the family, which suggests that the Qin Mountain branch was the only line of the family, aside from the main family, that had access to the Lu family’s treasury. You can judge her importance for yourself. Lu Xiaoxuan, I have already delivered her to you, so I hope that you will honor your promise," Xia Xing explained.
Lu Yin responded, "Rest a.s.sured, I will no longer bother you."
"I certainly hope so." Xia Xing breathed a sigh of relief and ended the conversation.