Chapter 476: Intractable Feelings
This rule was first proposed by the Souldream Tribe, but the Sword Sect, Daynight clan, and other powers soon agreed in succession. Finally, it became a general rule that all the different powers recognized and followed. No one wanted to work hard only to receive no reward, especially the weaker powers whose higher level cultivators could not compare to the Sword Sect and the others’. Such groups were afraid that their disciples would luckily chance upon a pyrolyte mine only to have their profits stolen in the final stretch.
As for whether or not the disciples on the planet needed to refrain from using the pyrolyte ore there, no one made any suggestions. When faced with a crisis, no one would be foolish enough to not use a potential weapon that was in their hands. Even if a rule was implemented, it would have been of no use. Also, impure pyrolyte ore had a greatly reduced destructive strength compared to refined ore.
Just this one Planet Pyrolyte had attracted many powers from the Innerverse, and Northcastle Weave that lay closest to Planet Pyrolyte had also attracted quite a few powers from the surrounding weaves. At this moment, attention from the entire universe had converged on this place.
Finally, the reinforcements from the Blaze Realm arrived. Xi Yue was no longer the strongest Limiteer on Planet Pyrolyte since the Blaze Realm had mobilized elite Limiteers like Jared and Craynor and sent them all to Planet Pyrolyte.
All of the powers were currently focused on transferring their strongest Limiteer disciples to this planet, and the various Limiteers were being forced to put down whatever they were doing and head towards Planet Pyrolyte, even those who had been cultivating within the Astral Combat Academy like Kuang w.a.n.g and Liu Xiaoyun. Naturally, experts from the Ten Arbiters Council were sent in as well.
Mira’s s.p.a.cecraft raced through s.p.a.ce towards Planet Pyrolyte. She looked at her gadget and was deep in thought while within the vessel. She then raised her hand to tap on her gadget and contact Lu Yin. At this time, the entire universe had been forced to admit that Lu Yin was the strongest Limiteer. After his battle against Mu Rong, his status as the strongest had been cemented in place. Even the Cosmic Sea’s Ye Xingchen was not thought to be his opponent, as countless experts had voiced their opinion, confirming that Lu Yin would win if the two ever came face to face.
Also, many experts still held reservations concerning whether or not Lu Yin had used his full strength against Mu Rong. This uncertainty made Lu Yin appear even more mysterious, and many wished to know what the true limits of his strength were.
If he decided to partic.i.p.ate in this contest on Planet Pyrolyte, it would be nothing less than the arrival of a boss monster.
While traveling through outer s.p.a.ce, Lu Yin and Hai Qiqi frequently bickered back and forth. Since becoming acquainted with her, Lu Yin had realized that his tongue had also become sharper. It was almost as if he had gained the power to shoot his mouth off. When he realized that Mira was calling him, he activated his gadget and picked up. “Long time no see, Miss Mira.”
“Who is it? Mistress number three or four?” Hai Qiqi came over.
Lu Yin felt helpless. “Can you not use such terms? Besides, we don’t even have a relationship.”
Hai Qiqi rolled her eyes and then returned to staring out at the pa.s.sing s.p.a.ce.
On the other end of the call, Mira was sitting on her chair with her long, snow-white hair flowing behind her and her long legs folded in an alluring manner. “Unless my guess is completely wrong, the one with you must be the Sea King"s daughter, Hai Qiqi.”
“How did you know?” Lu Yin was surprised. Am I being monitored?
“Mich.e.l.le told me. She said that the Sea King"s daughter has a very fiery personality. Brother Lu, are you still at the Sea King"s Dome, or have you come out?”
“I left.”
“Headed back to Frostwave Weave?”
Lu Yin acknowledged with a nod of his head. “With such a big matter affecting my home, I can’t not go back.”
“Will you be of any help if you do go back? Or are you bringing the Sea King’s influence along with you?” Mira smiled and lifted a foot, showing off her exceptionally beautiful freshly painted red nails.
Lu Yin directly asked the woman, “Miss Mira, did you contact me just to ask about this? Is there no other matter? Or rather, does Arbiter Wen have something for me?”
Mira muttered to herself for a moment before standing up and walking towards the transparent metal viewport. She gazed at the black scenery pa.s.sing by outside her vessel, and her expression turned solemn. “Do you know about Planet Pyrolyte?”
Lu Yin was lost. “What’s Planet Pyrolyte?”
He had only learned about pyrolyte’s existence and that the various powers were gathering in Northcastle Weave since it had been reported that a large amount of pyrolyte was discovered nearby in the Astral Wilderness. Could it be that this cache of pyrolye was on this so-called Planet Pyrolyte?
Mira briefly described the current situation at Planet Pyrolyte to Lu Yin, while Hai Qiqi’s eyes lit up next to him. “That sounds like fun! And only Limiteers can enter! I want to go, I want to go! Lu Yin, let’s go there and play!”
Lu Yin’s back was facing her, and he only responded to Mira. “You want me to go?”
“With your strength, it’ll be a waste if you don’t.”
“Are you representing the Ten Arbiters Council, Arbiter Wen, or the Erudite Flowzone behind Arbiter Wen?”
“Is there a difference?”
“I’m just asking. However, I probably won’t go.” Lu Yin quickly declined.
“Because of the Great Yu Empire?” Mira asked.
Lu Yin fell silent, taking a moment before finally replying, “To you people, Frostwave Weave is an insignificant ant. As soon as I take part in the contest for pyrolyte and provoke certain people, the Great Yu Empire will be in mortal danger, and I can’t protect it with my current power. You should know that there are already people who have acted against Frostwave Weave. I can’t be in two places at once.”
Mira sighed, as her charming eyes flickered. “What if Arbiter Wen promises to protect the Great Yu Empire?”
Lu Yin did not reply right away.
“Give it some thought.” And with that, Mira ended the call.
“Eh, why not go? Are you worried about your home? I’ll get Father to speak up; I can promise no one will dare touch that place,” Hai Qiqi spoke expectantly.
Lu Yin shook his head with a bitter smile. It was not that simple; although it was true that the Sea King could protect the Great Yu Empire, the weave would become the Sea King’s property if that happened. Unless the situation devolved to where he had no other option, Lu Yin was not willing to do such a thing. It was like how an ant entering a great storm was asking for a narrow brush with death.
Given Lu Yin’s sense of caution, he would avoid partic.i.p.ating in the scuffle for pyrolyte as far as he could. As for Hai Dashao telling him that the betrothal gift had to be pyrolyte, Lu Yin would just act as if he had not heard anything, as he could not afford to take such a gamble.
Before much more time pa.s.sed, an alarm sounded out within the s.p.a.cecraft. Lu Yin and Hai Qiqi looked in front of them and saw that a battle had broken out in their path. Countless battleships littered the region, and there were still quite a few s.p.a.ce-exploring powerhouses fighting against each other.
An aftershock from their fight rippled out, causing their s.p.a.cecraft to shudder from top to bottom.
Lu Yin’s face changed. “If this is the aftermath of a Hunters’ battle, then we’ll have to reroute.”
Hai Qiqi stared at the clamor in front of them. This was interstellar warfare, and it was her first time witnessing such an event. The entire area was constantly being bombarded with all sorts of attacks, causing the occasional stray s.p.a.cecraft to explode and even stars were destroyed every once in a while. When that happened, a blackhole would form that then swallowed everything nearby.
A war and a battle were fundamentally different; as the saying went, all was fair in love and war. When Hai Qiqi saw a Cruiser casually destroy a planet and then borrow the energy from the collapsing planet to annihilate a fleet, she suddenly felt like she had comprehended a deeper meaning of that particular saying.
There were corpses floating about in s.p.a.ce, but they were quickly burned up by the remnant energy from various stray attacks. The constant explosions of the astral bodies also shocked her. How many people lived on a habitable planet? She felt like she could hear the screams of countless humans being extinguished.
Hai Qiqi suddenly thought of the Sea King"s Dome. If one day warfare erupted there, would it also look like this? She turned to Lu Yin. Is such a war taking place in his home?
Lu Yin looked at their route, which had suddenly become five days longer than originally projected. Their estimated time of arrival had been twenty days, but now, it was twenty five.
As expected, there were too many variables when traveling through the universe. Just a delay of five days was actually acceptable.
“Has such a war happened in your home?” Hai Qiqi could not help herself from asking.
Lu Yin nodded, and replied with complex emotions, “It’s actually more troublesome than this, as this is just a small battle within an Outerverse weave, whereas my home is being coveted by many great powers of the Innerverse. As soon as a war breaks out, the scale will greatly surpa.s.s this battle, and the outcome will be much more bitter.”
Hai Qiqi fell silent. It was not that she was insensitive, but rather that she had never been directly exposed to war before, only now experiencing what true warfare was. “I’ll ask Father to come and protect your home.”
Lu Yin looked at Hai Qiqi with astonishment. This was the second time she had said this, but the first time had merely been because she wanted to play. Right now, Lu Yin could feel the sincerity in her offer.
He smiled. “There’s no need. The universe is much more complicated than what you think it is. If the Sea King intervenes, then it would make the situation even messier. That’s the final resort, so we don’t have to rush straight to that point.”
Hai Qiqi nodded, and gave Lu Yin a serious look. “Since you look so ordinary, I couldn’t tell that you have some wisdom after all.”
Lu Yin turned around so that his back was facing Hai Qiqi. Was this brat complimenting or criticizing him? He couldn’t tell.
After they circled around the battle zone, the s.p.a.cecraft continued on peacefully. Hai Qiqi fell asleep, and Lu Yin received a communication request from Lily Anne. Naturally, since Mira had contacted him, Lily Anne would not go down easily. It was also possible that more people would contact him; Lily Anne was not the first, nor would she be the last.
Compared to Mira, who represented the Wen family, Lily Anne represented Northline Flowzone, which was a much weaker power.
“Brother Lu, have you left the Sea King"s Dome yet?” Lily Anne asked.
Lu Yin replied, “Yes, I’m rushing back to Frostwave Weave.”
“Frostwave Weave’s situation has already stabilized. The Second Grade Hall enlisted various independent cultivators to attack the various weaves south of Northcastle Weave, which incited a great deal of anger. The independent cultivators can no longer enter these weaves, and since Frostwave Weave has not partic.i.p.ated in gathering any pyrolyte, it’s very stable at the current moment. Brother Lu, you can rest a.s.sured of this,” Lily Anne informed him with a smile.
Lu Yin smiled, “Miss Anna, thank you for telling me about pyrolyte and Frostwave Weave’s situation. However, I must make things clear in advance: I won’t be partic.i.p.ating in the contest on Planet Pyrolyte.”
Lily Anne fell silent for a moment. “It sounds like someone has already sought out Brother Lu’s aid before us.”
Lu Yin did not conceal it. “It’s a friend, but I’ve already rejected her. The Great Yu Empire is too small, and my partic.i.p.ation would immediately spark conflict and leave me as a condemned criminal in my home’s history annals. Miss Anna, you should understand this point.”
Lily Anne sighed, “It’s the tragedy of the weak, I get it. Alright, but I still have to tell you Northline Flowzone’s conditions for Brother Lu to help us. First, Northline Flowzone’s younger generation will recognize Brother Lu’s position on the Ten Arbiters Council, which means acknowledging Brother Lu’s authority to supervise and judge the younger generation. Second, Northline Flowzone is willing to establish interstellar trade relations with Frostwave Weave, and the Barthe Jacques family is also willing to give financial aid to the Great Yu Empire to help restore its economy. Third, as long as it’s within reasonable limits and does not infringe upon Northline Flowzone’s benefits, Granny Chan is willing to help act on behalf of the Great Yu Empire a single time.”
Lu Yin was amazed, Northline Flowzone’s proposition was extremely generous. The first condition was nothing much, as even if Northline Flowzone did not acknowledge his authority, he could openly defeat Northgate Lie and force them to recognize him. However, the weight of the second and third conditions were on another level, especially the second one. The Great Yu Empire urgently required economic aid, or else they would not be able to finish unifying Frostwave Weave.
Lu Yin already knew that he could trust the economic prowess of the Barthe Jacques family, which could easily satisfy the Great Yu Empire’s most urgent need.
The third condition represented the att.i.tude of the Lily family. Although the so-called “reasonable limits” had not been clearly laid out so as to not place any binding constraints on Granny Chan, since Lily Anne had proposed such a thing, it showed the Lily family’s sincerity. If there was such a need in the future, then Granny Chan would help our the Great Yu Empire. After all, she was an Enlighter.
These three conditions made it very hard for Lu Yin to decline her offer.
“I know that Brother Lu has a high chance of becoming the Sea King’s son-in-law, and so, you might not really care for my Northline Flowzone. However, even external relatives may find that they are required to borrow strength. As long as Brother Lu is willing to help out, my Northline Flowzone will become your friend,” Lily Anne intoned with an expectant gaze.
Lu Yin breathed deeply and ultimately resisted the temptation. “Miss Anna, your proposed conditions are very sincere. However, I must give my apologies. Under the premise that I cannot sacrifice the Great Yu Empire, I’m unable to make such a deal with you. Otherwise, if the Great Yu Empire were to be eliminated, those conditions would just be for show.”
His status was fake, but his feelings for the Great Yu Empire were genuine. Earth, Undying Yushan, the Zishan family—his relationship to all of them could not be so easily dismissed.
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