Chapter 2853: Kicked Down
The moment Big Sis entered the river of time, she had recovered her previous cultivation. It had been taken by time, and she had found it once again in the river of time.
But even if she had found it, so what? Progenitor Yōu Ming had been incapable of reversing time, and the attempt had caused her cultivation to be stolen by the river of time. She still had no way to get herself out.
What had changed was that she was not alone this time. She had family, and a younger brother, who had pursued her into the river of time, ignoring the risk of death.
For her family, she would fight even to the death.
"The abyssal flower blooms, crossing over to the other side." The enormous black image of the woman behind Big Sis raised its hands, and black flowers blossomed all around her. They bloomed within the river of time and actually stopped the river from flowing for an instant. This was the power that Progenitor Yōu Ming had reached after a lifetime of cultivating.
A cultivator who had reached the pinnacle of power was capable of harnessing limited aspects of the power of both time and s.p.a.ce. Even if Progenitor Yōu Ming had never specifically developed those powers, she was still capable of doing this much.
She had been one of the most powerful individuals on the Second Mainland and had been considered a guest of honor by Gu Yizhi.
Lu Yin’s hands clenched tightly as his Lightstream flickered, throwing both himself and Big Sis out of the river of time.
Lu Yuan"s eyes flared, and he waved a hand to swat his Champions’ Stage away. The river of time disappeared.
The entire process felt incredibly short, as just a moment had pa.s.sed for Lu Yin and Big Sis. However, the rest of the universe had experienced the pa.s.sing of half a year. A full half year had pa.s.sed.
Time did not target people or a single species, but rather entire universes.
If time possessed awareness and consciousness, then it would think of humanity as nothing more than a flash in the pan.
There were some people who believed that everything in the universe was relative. To them, without human consciousness, outer s.p.a.ce with all of its meteorites, astral phenomena, stars, and more would not exist. In this belief, even time was included.
How could anyone determine if time existed if there was no one to track it?
At the moment, Lu Yin and Big Sis were both quite confused about time.
They had only spent a moment or two in the river of time, but everyone else had experienced the pa.s.sing of half a year.
For that half a year, Ancestor Lu Yuan had continuously suppressed the river of time with his Champions’ Stage, preventing it from disappearing. It was only because of this that Lu Yin had been able to escape with Big Sis. If not for Lu Yuan, how else could Lu Yin have escaped within that narrow window of time?
s.p.a.ce could chase time, but Lu Yin’s strength was not enough for him to rise above the river of time.
During the six months that Lu Yin had been in the river of time, the Heavens Sect, the Lu family, and all of the Origin Universe’s Progenitors had gathered, worried that he would not be able to escape. Even if he did, they feared how long it would take him to do so.
Even people like Chen Le, who did not care about the Heavens Sect, were concerned. After all, without Lu Yin, Chen Le would have a very difficult time staying in the Origin Universe.
Fortunately, after half a year, Lu Yin had returned, and he had even brought back Big Sis.
Panting for breath, Lu Yin"s arms were shaking. It had not been a simple matter to escape from the river of time. His Lightstream had the power of s.p.a.ce, which essentially meant that Lu Yin had overreached his own abilities when it came to the power of s.p.a.ce. If he had not successfully become a Semi-Progenitor, what he had just done would have been completely impossible.
Big Sis suddenly grabbed Lu Yin"s clothes and gave him a fierce glare. "Who asked you to save me? You think I need you to save me? Huh?"
Lu Yin looked back at Big Sis, who was staring at him.
"Big Sis, your image..."
Big Sis coughed and let go of Lu Yin. "So I didn’t tell you before. If this impacts my chances of getting married, I’ll skin you alive."
Lu Yin was speechless. Your chances of getting married were abysmal in the first place...
Some distance away, Ancestor Lu Yuan let out a pent up breath. Fortunately, this had not happened during the Heavens Sect era. During that era, it would have been impossible for anyone to remain in the river of time for so long. The kid is too impulsive, but he exemplifies the Lu family in everything he does.
Lu Qi hurried over, nervous, and his face quite pale. "Little Seven, are you okay?"
Upon seeing Lu Qi"s obvious concern, Lu Yin felt rather apologetic, and he quickly spoke to the man.
Highsage Leon and many others had been present and waiting since a long time ago. When they saw two people emerge from the river of time, they rushed over. They felt as though they had been the ones to survive the crisis.
Big Sis laughed and cursed with them, joking that the river of time could do nothing to change her. Highsage Leon kept patting her on the shoulder.
Lu Yin laughed. Big Sis had already recovered her memory and cultivation as Progenitor Yōu Ming, but her personality had not changed at all, and neither had her relationship with Leon’s Armada. It was possible that her personality had been exactly the same even during the Heavens Sect era.
Lu Yin did not have many people whom he considered family, but Big Sis was unquestionably one of them. As long as it was within Lu Yin’s power, he would protect his family.
"Little Seven, don"t do anything like that again. That was too dangerous," Ancestor Lu Yuan spoke up.
Lu Qi immediately echoed his ancestor. "That’s right. Little Seven, there are things in the universe that you can’t touch, not even after you become a Progenitor. They’re just too dangerous."
Lu Yin nodded and then looked at Ancestor Lu Yuan, quickly thanking the man, "Thank you for your help, Ancestor. She’s my sister, and I just couldn’t watch as she disappeared."
Lu Yuan stared off into the distance as a smile appeared on his face. "Progenitor Yōu Ming is your sister... That’s interesting. During the Heavens Sect era, she didn"t like my Lu family, and we never had any interactions with her. I never thought that, after so many years of a cold relationship, she would eventually become one of the people closest to one of my descendants. It truly is impossible to predict things."
Big Sis arrived and bowed to Lu Yuan. "Progenitor Yuan, it"s been a long time."
Lu Yuan looked at Big Sis. "It certainly has been. I can’t even remember the last time we met."
Big Sis gave a teasing smile. "It was when I insulted your Lu family in front of Progenitor Mavis."
Lu Yin blinked.
Ancestor Lu Yuan was startled. "You were insulting us back then?"
Big Sis nodded. "Back then, there were many people who looked down on your Lu family, including that despicable and shameless b.a.s.t.a.r.d, Ce w.a.n.gtian. I remember that someone from your Lu family said something."
She paused, still looking at Progenitor Lu Yuan, before quoting, "’I love how you look at me with clear distaste, yet are unable to do anything to me.’"
Lu Yin looked over at Ancestor Lu Yuan. Whoever had said that really deserved a beating. But then, why did Lu Yin feel like he had had similar thoughts himself?
"Didn’t I say that? Have we met before?" Lu Qi asked in confusion.
Lu Yin was speechless.
Progenitor Lu Yuan laughed awkwardly. "I made that saying famous. So, it was because of that that you didn’t like my Lu family."
Big Sis shrugged. "It wasn’t just me. That saying caused many people to dislike your Lu family, but things are different now. Those people are all dead or missing, while your Lu family is still alive and well. Progenitor Yuan, your famous words have endured from the Heavens Sect era to the present era. I can admire that."
"Hahahaha, whoever doesn"t like my Lu family should just die. They’re none of my concern," Progenitor Lu Yuan said with a laugh.
Lu Yin smiled bitterly. No wonder so many people hated his Lu family. If their ancestor behaved like so, then the rest of the family would act the same. Even Lu Yin’s own father, Lu Qi, had spoken the exact same words as their ancestor.
While it was true that the four ruling powers had rebelled against the Lu family, some of their anger towards the Lu family may have been justified.
Before long, everyone dispersed.
Ancestor Lu Yuan quickly left, returning to study a way to revive Progenitor Ku.
Lu Qi also left. He was the one responsible for overseeing the 100,000 currents.
Lu Tianyi had not come, as he was standing guard over the Perennial World.
Soon, only Lu Yin and Progenitor Yōu Ming remained. Even the members of Leon’s Armada had moved far away.
Big Sis shifted about awkwardly, clearly upset. "I really owe a huge favor this time. I can’t even think of how to repay it."
Lu Yin smiled. "Just come work for me."
Big Sis glared at him. "When did I ever say that I owed you? I owe the founding ancestor of your family."
Seeing Lu Yin"s confusion, Big Sis rolled her eyes. "Do you think that it"s that easy to stay in the river of time? He paid a price, and it was even steeper than if he had faced off against someone as strong as himself."
Lu Yin had already learned that, during the Heavens Sect era, Ancestor Yuan had been unable to save his own son. While things had changed since that era, the river of time remained very difficult to deal with, let alone holding it in place for half a year.
Progenitor Yuan’s strength meant that there was no need for him to use his innate gift, unless he was facing someone as powerful as the Three Realms and Six Dao. However, in order to restrain the river of time, he had used his Champions’ Stage, which could be viewed as the man revealing some of his strength that was normally kept hidden. Indeed, Progenitor Lu Yuan had paid a steep price to save Lu Yin.
"Big Sis, you don"t need to repay any favor. I asked my ancestor to help," Lu Yin replied.
Big Sis just sneered at Lu Yin. "Right, is this how you’re going to choke your sister? Am I the kind of person who doesn"t repay the money that I owe? Bah! Are you trying to say that I don’t repay favors? Do you think that I need you to take care of me? Are you looking down on me? That’s what this is, isn’t it? Since I couldn’t help you wipe out the four ruling powers, you don’t take me seriously anymore, do you?”
Lu Yin grimaced. "Of course it’s not that. It"s just-"
"It"s just nothing! I"ll repay my own debts. As your beloved Big Sis, what do you owe on my behalf? I"ll help you repay it." Big Sis thumped her chest. She was quite proud that her former cultivation had returned. In the current universe, few had the strength to contend with Progenitor Yōu Ming.
Lu Yin grew very somber as he fell deep into thought about something.
Big Sis did not bother him.
After a while, Lu Yin looked at Big Sis. "I want to save Yan"er."
This comment startled the woman. "You haven’t asked Progenitor Yuan?"
Lu Yin repeated what Ancestor Lu Yuan had told him.
Upon hearing that, Big Sis grew embarra.s.sed. "Actually, I still haven"t quite recovered my full strength. After so much time has gone by, well, this is how it is."
Lu Yin gave a bitter smile. "I understand, Big Sis. After all, you don’t have the same strength as the Three Realms and Six Dao."
Big Sis’ face flushed red. Her hand rose, and she patted Lu Yin"s shoulder in a somber manner. "Little Seven, don"t worry. I will work hard, and once I’m confident, I will do my utmost to help my family."
Lu Yin nodded.
"By the way, what happened to you in the past? How did you end up in such a situation, Big Sis?"
The question instantly roused Big Sis’ anger. "Undying G.o.d was absolutely right! I was tricked by that b.a.s.t.a.r.d, Ce w.a.n.gtian."
Lu Yin asked, "Exactly what happened?"
Big Sis gritted her teeth, clearly furious. "During the fiercest fighting in the war on the Third Mainland, a big tree appeared. It was the big tree that can take people to the Immemorial Citadel, which is a place where many people want to go. Ce w.a.n.gtian, me, and a few other powerhouses from that era tried our best to grab hold of the big tree, but that b.a.s.t.a.r.d, Ce w.a.n.gtian, schemed against me and kicked me off of the tree. How could he be so unreasonable? The d.a.m.n b.a.s.t.a.r.d."
The woman’s anger did not diminish. "I didn’t have any way to get there on my own, and while I didn’t have a problem risking my life on the Third Mainland, I would only do so if it was my choice. I would not allow that b.a.s.t.a.r.d Ce w.a.n.gtian to block my way."
At this point, Big Sis coughed before she continued to say, "That b.a.s.t.a.r.d wanted to go to the Immemorial Citadel without me. I obviously refused, so I immediately tried to reverse time by a second in order to avoid being kicked off the tree by Ce w.a.n.gtian."
She let out a deep sight. "You should already know that, during that era, reversing time was exceptionally difficult, essentially forbidden. My attempt caused me to fall into the river of time, and I couldn’t escape. I was lost, and my cultivation and my memories were all stripped away. All that was left were my instincts when I fell out and ended up in this current era.”
"The river of time is an all-encompa.s.sing concept. Any power lost in the river of time might reappear in the past, or in the future. The Impious Sutra appeared long ago, and you know what happened after that."