Chapter 3089: Restart
Many universes had already fallen prey to Aeternus"s schemes, so the Nine-Star Civilization"s caution was understandable.
Lu Yin’s current problem was proving that he was Mister Mu"s disciple.
If he could not do so, Lu Yin had no doubt that the old man would risk everything in a fight. It was readily apparent the man was prepared to do so.
"Master gave me a jade slip to contact him with, but I"ve already used it. Thus, I can offer two points of proof," Lu Yin stated as he locked eyes with Kakawen. The veins and blood vessels of the old man’s eyes could be easily seen. "First of all, I have three senior disciple brothers. Second, my master has two ultimate techniques, and I have inherited one of them."
Kakawen shook his head. He appeared as if he were growing calmer as Lu Yin spoke, but that actually made things even more unsettling. "We are not familiar with Mister Mu"s techniques, nor do we know anything about his disciples."
Arch-Elder Zen interjected, "The entire Origin Universe knows that our Dao Monarch is Mister Mu"s disciple."
Kakawen remained unmoved. He was questioning whether or not the three men were even from the Origin Universe at all, and he saw no reason to believe their claims. Furthermore, he did not intend to verify anything he was being told.
If Lu Yin and his companions had been sent by the Aeternals, they would have already put measures in place to deceive anyone from the Nine-Star Civilization who accompanied them to the Origin Universe. Kakawen was being extremely cautious.
Lu Yin sighed. "Master always makes time stand still when he appears. Does that count?"
Kakawen froze for a moment, and then he smiled. "You really are Mister Mu"s disciple."
Lu Yin was stunned. He had only mentioned the matter casually.
Mimina was equally shocked. Was it really that simple?
Arch-Elder Zen and Leng Qing found this to be quite strange as well. Was it truly so easy?
Kakawen explained, "The legends in our Nine-Star Civilization regarding Mister Mu have only been pa.s.sed down by Babal and myself, as we are the only ones who have ever seen the man. The fact that Mister Mu freezes time whenever he appears is something we have never mentioned to anyone."
"Isn"t that information too easy to acquire? What if the Aeternals are aware that Mister Mu likes to appear in that manner and also used it as proof?" Lu Yin himself found this to be quite peculiar.
Kakawen replied, "How could Aeternus know that we would use this matter to verify that someone is Mister Mu"s disciple?"
That was true. Lu Yin chuckled. Such a means of confirmation was so casual that Aeternus would never predict it. No one would ever imagine that the Nine-Star Civilization would accept such a comment as proof.
If Lu Yin were part of Aeternus, he would have never considered trying to pose as one of Mister Mu"s disciples by acting as he had. At the very least, it would be expected for his disciples to possess some sort of token or something more concrete. The actual test almost seemed childish.
However, oftentimes, the more one overthought, the more that would go wrong. Sometimes, simple was best.
As Kakawen looked at the expressions of the other people in the room, he gestured for Mimina to clean up the shards of the broken teapot. "Our Nine-Star Civilization respects Mister Mu very deeply, but respect is one thing. I cannot risk the entire Nine-Star Civilization. If we fail, how can we ever hope to repay Mister Mu for his help? Therefore, I am sorry, but we still cannot join forces with you."
Lu Yin was puzzled. "First, you refused because you didn’t trust us, but now you are still refusing. Why? How would joining forces potentially destroy the Nine-Star Civilization?"
Mimina could not hold back. "The enemies we face are too powerful. Even if we use our full strength, we can only barely maintain the current balance. What the Aeternals are actually wary of is Mentor"s possible death. If we ally with you, they might be willing to sacrifice everything to kill Mentor."
"What do you mean?" Lu Yin still did not understand.
Mimina glanced at Kakawen, who nodded. There was a hint of pride on his ancient face.
"Our Nine-Star Civilization measures power by star levels. The attacks you"ve seen me use, such as the Arrow of Light and the Wall of Ether, are at the two-star and five-star level, respectively. Senluo’s Light of Annihilation is at the six-star level. Above that, we also have seven-star, eight-star, and nine-star attacks.
"The only reason why the Aeternals have not sent an all-out attack against us is because they fear that Mentor could release nine-star power, which would erase this entire universe, leaving absolutely nothing behind. Not even Aeternus is willing to pay such a price.
"However, if we ally ourselves with you, Aeternus might decide that the price is worth it, if it means gaining the upper hand."
Kakawen proudly added, "Right now, Aeternus is waiting for this old man to die of natural causes. They don"t want to fight me to the death. The current balance only exists because both sides have something at stake. The moment that balance is broken, the Aeternals will go all out. I might be able to take some of their powerhouses with me, but the Nine-Star Civilization would ultimately be destroyed."
The old man stared at Lu Yin. "The Nine-Star Civilization shouldn"t be wiped out because of this."
Lu Yin was intrigued. "Nine-star power? Does it require a life to be sacrificed?"
"Can it erase an entire universe?" Arch-Elder Zen was astonished.
Kakawen smiled. "Yes, it"s our most powerful attack. The seven-star technique is "Ancient Key," while the eight-star technique is "Against All Will." Our nine-star technique is "Restart."
"There is only balance because both sides fear something. Aeternus is willing to wait for me to die on my own, while we await the next mentor, who will also be capable of wielding nine-star power. Right now, everything comes down to who can wait longer. The current balance cannot be upset."
Lu Yin sighed. "Balance. So it’s another case of balance. You aren’t the only one facing such a situation, as the Origin Universe, the Sixverse a.s.sociation, and every other civilization I"ve seen currently maintains a certain balance with Aeternus. However, if we fail to break this balance, Aeternus will, and when that happens, they will still gain the advantage.
"You need to understand that pa.s.sively accepting such a balance is simply suffering a slow death."
Kakawen was startled. Accepting the current balance was no different from dying a slow death?
Given how long the man had lived for, he understood such a thing in principle, but he lacked the means to break the balance without risking the very survival of his entire civilization.
Lu Yin glanced at Mimina. "The enemy you face is merely Aeternus"s Second Scourge. I can tell you that Aeternus has six Scourges."
"Six Scourges?" Mimina was shocked.
Kakawen"s fingers trembled. "So, you already know."
Lu Yin and Kakawen exchanged glances, each seeing surprise in the other"s eyes. Lu Yin immediately understood. "So that is what you are so concerned about."
"Mentor, what do you mean?" Mimina was confused.
Lu Yin was the one to explain, "Senior Kakawen isn"t just worried about your current enemies, Mimina. I told you earlier that I would share our information about Aeternus, but please keep this to yourself. For most, the truth is too much to handle."
Lu Yin then gave a brief overview of Aeternus"s full strength.
He spoke of the Six Scourges, the most powerful experts of the First Scourge, the Seven SkyG.o.ds, the Three Pillars and Six Skies, and the powerhouses who had partic.i.p.ated in the Divine Selection. Kakawen had known about a portion of Aeternus’s power, but even his knowledge was not as comprehensive as Lu Yin’s.
The information that Lu Yin shared shocked even the old man.
The Nine-Star Civilization had already feared Aeternus and had not dared to upset the established balance. Lu Yin"s information only heightened their caution, but it also made it clear that cooperation between human civilizations was essential. It was also readily evident that Lu Yin felt the need for total transparency.
Kakawen and Mimina were both left dumbfounded.
"How can Aeternus be so strong?" Mimina could not believe what she was hearing.
Lu Yin sighed. "This is exactly why I"m trying so hard to establish alliances with other civilizations. Do you believe that I don’t understand Aeternus?"
Kakawen let out a long breath. The wrinkles on his face deepened. "In our Nine-Star Civilization, only Babal and I know about the existence of the six Scourges. No other civilization we’ve ever encountered, including people from the Origin Universe, were ever aware of this.
"This is a secret that can easily send humanity to the brink of despair."
"So, you"ve been refusing to ally with us because of this, and you also didn’t want to scare us so badly that we would be unwilling to continue to fight Aeternus. That’s why you kept it to yourself, right?" Lu Yin asked.
Kakawen nodded.
Lu Yin felt grateful to the old man. "You were considering what is best for us. Honestly, until about a decade ago, I did not know about the six Scourges myself. The people at the top always hide certain information in order to protect those below them. This isn"t merely a matter of retaining control, but also about protection. It was overwhelming when I first saw the six Scourges with my own eyes. We were unable to stand up to even the First Scourge. The strength of the Seven SkyG.o.ds is unfathomable, and they are practically invincible. On top of that, Aeternus has even more hidden powerhouses.
"At the moment, I didn"t know what to do. However, humans have emotions, which is both a weakness and a strength. Our resilience is one of our strengths. No matter how powerful Aeternus may be or how many invincible powerhouses they might have, as long as humanity survives, we have hope of counterattacking.
"I have searched beyond my own universe in order to forge alliances with one civilization after another, as my master wished. He gave me access to universes that are home to civilizations he deems worthy, which is how I found you.
"Senior, you respect my master, Mister Mu, not only for his strength, but also because of his character. If that is true, then you should trust that he would not try to harm you."
Kakawen remained silent, as did Mimina.
A long while later, Kakawen finally sighed. "I still don"t know what to call you... Mr. Lu?"
Lu Yin smiled. "Anything is fine."
"Alright then, Mr. Lu. If you were unaware of Aeternus"s true strength, I would have never even considered cooperating with you, no matter what you said.”
Lu Yin became overjoyed. "Senior, are you agreeing to the alliance?"
Kakawen somberly corrected the younger man. "Cooperation, not an alliance."
"What"s the difference?" Leng Qing asked.
Kakawen glanced over at Leng Qing and Arch-Elder Zen. "We can end a simple cooperative agreement at any time, while a formal alliance is different. An alliance means living and dying together. I"m sorry, but I won"t drag the Nine-Star Civilization into such danger."
Leng Qing remained impa.s.sive. As far as he was concerned, the fact that the Aeternals were already targeting the Nine-Star Civilization made the people extremely vulnerable. Their unwillingness to a full alliance seemed overly cautious.
On the other hand, Lu Yin understood Kakawen"s concerns. The old man’s civilization was a rather conservative one, much like their rigid and standardized battle techniques. Everyone had their own worries, and that did not make them wrong.
Finally, after a great deal of discussion, Kakawen had finally relented. This allowed Lu Yin to heave a sigh of relief.