Star Odyssey

Chapter 3109: Chance

Mist drifted through the mountains and twined about a bamboo forest, creating a serene and elegant atmosphere. A breeze stirred nearby, and Lu Yin turned to gaze at a flowing river.

He was in the Mirari Realm.

He still could not believe that he had suddenly and easily arrived in the place that Mr. Daheng had tried so hard to reach. Still, Lu Yin had been sent to the Mirari Realm by the Origin Progenitor and Mister Mu.

The Mirari Realm... So is this what it looks like?

Lu Yin stood where he was, considering the Origin Progenitor's earlier warning. The Mirari Realm held everything that Lu Yin needed, as well as unexpected dangers. He needed to be cautious of everything he saw.

The Origin Progenitor's warning made Lu Yin realize that this place was far from as serene and beautiful as its facade presented.

Even the mist around him might not be ordinary. He had previously seen a number of things that looked like mist, but were not.

As for the nearby river, Lu Yin was tempted to move closer to it and investigate. He could only make out a blurred image through the mist.

There should be an upstream and a downstream section in a flowing river, as the flow should have a direction. On top of that, water nurtured life. However, while Lu Yin had only been in the Mirari Realm for a short period of time, he had seen no signs of any life.

Suddenly, the wind picked up.

A bit of the mist around him was blown away, revealing a stone monument behind Lu Yin.

He looked at it and read the words carved on it. The monument bore nine characters: “Ascend to the Origin realm. Overcome Dukkha. Gain immortality.”

Could this be the same monument that the patriarch of the Bai clan had seen?

Lu Yin had first heard about the Mirari Realm from Old Dian. The man’s master, who had been the patriarch of the Voidforce Universe’s Bai clan, had accidentally stumbled into the Mirari Realm. After that visit, the man had become obsessed with finding out more about the place, and he had incessantly muttered the nine words.

Later, this man's death had also been connected to the Mirari Realm.

He had been killed by Chen Le, but the order had come from Mr. Daheng.

Mr. Daheng had been searching for a way into the Mirari Realm, and he had repeatedly clashed with Lu Yin because of that.

However, Lu Yin had come to suspect that the one who was truly interested in the Mirari Realm might not be Mr. Daheng, but rather Astral Anura.

The wily toad did nothing if there was no profit in it. He had been supporting Mr. Daheng for a reason, as why else would such a powerful creature care about someone as insignificant as Mr. Daheng?

If the Mirari Realm was able to draw Astral Anura's desire, then the place had to be absolutely extraordinary.

However, why was the Origin Progenitor able to send Lu Yin to this place so easily? Could the Mirari Realm belong to the Origin Progenitor?

Lu Yin had not discussed any of the specifics of the Mirari Realm with the Origin Progenitor or Mister Mu before being sent to the place. It appeared that the two men wanted Lu Yin to discover the details and explore the place on his own.

The only thing that the two men had said to reassure Lu Yin was that the Mirari Realm did not impact time, at least according to Mister Mu. In other words, time was frozen as long as a person was within the Mirari Realm.

Unlike parallel universes where time could flow faster, time simply did not pass as long as one was within the Mirari Realm. It did not matter how long Lu Yin stayed here; not even a second would pass for the rest of the universe. However, Lu Yin would experience the passage of time himself. If not for that, everyone would enter the Mirari Realm and simply become immortal.

As he moved closer to the stone monument, Lu Yin’s hand rose up to touch it.

The monument was ancient, and there was no indication as to who had carved the nine characters into it.

At that moment, another gust of wind blew the mist between Lu Yin and the riverbank away.

He walked towards the river and was soon able to see it clearly. What he saw left him utterly shocked.

He was not staring at a river, but rather at the River of Time.

For a long time, Lu Yin had treated the river of time as nothing more than a concept, a term used to refer to the passing of time. It was not something that actually existed. However, as Lu Yin had slowly started learning to wield the power of time, especially after his Semi-Progenitor tribulation, he had realized that the River of Time was actually real.

Big Sis had lost her power in the River of Time.

It was a shock to learn that the River of Time flowed through the Mirari Realm. Just what was this place?

Could this be what the Origin Progenitor had meant when he had said, "Where there is a river, there is a bank"?

The man had made that comment before sending Lu Yin into the Mirari Realm, but Lu Yin had not understood it. But at this moment, it made sense. If the River of Time was real, then it had to have banks. This even fit with how the power of Destiny allowed her to cross the River of Time and see the future.

It was only natural for a river to have banks and bridges.

But how could ordinary people comprehend such a thing?

Lu Yin stared at the River of Time as it flowed by. Was this the river that the Origin Progenitor wanted Lu Yin to fish from?

"The Mirari Realm is a good place, and it has everything you need, as well as unknown dangers.

“There is a river in there, and any river will have banks. Go there. It's a great place to fish. Use your body as the fishing rod and your techniques as the line. Enjoy some fishing.

"Back in the day, Loam, Blackie, and Lassy all visited that place. I hope that, when you emerge, you’ll be transformed. Good luck."

The Origin Progenitor's words echoed in Lu Yin's mind. Fishing? Fishing in the River of Time? Was this where he needed to focus his efforts?

Fishing in the River of Time did not mean catching fish, but rather catching snippets of the past!

Lu Yin also finally understood the comment about using his body as the fishing rod and his techniques as the line.

After observing for a while, the wind blew the mist closer to Lu Yin. His eyes flickered as he took out a Zenith Mountain from his cosmic ring and pulled out Jue Yi.

Jue Yi had been one of the gatemasters of the Heavens Sect era’s Twelve Heavenly Gates. During that time, he had seen the God of Death and declared himself as the God of Death’s disciple. When Lu Buzheng, Destina, and the others had been released from the frozen sourcebox, Jue Yi had been with them. Over the years, he had worked both with and against Lu Yin, but his last action had been to conspire with the Celestial Demon Emperor against Lu Yin. As a result of that scheme, Jue Yi had been gravely injured and imprisoned in a Zenith Mountain. This was the first time since then that Lu Yin had released the man.

Decades had passed since Jue Yi had been imprisoned, and during that time, Lu Yin had neither killed nor released the man. Despite having once been a gatemaster of a Heavenly Gate, Jue Yi was of limited use to Lu Yin as the man was merely a Semi-Progenitor. However, Semi-Progenitors were not entirely useless. In reality, Lu Yin had basically forgotten about the man.

This was the proper time to use him.

As Jue Yi emerged from the Zenith Mountain, he was initially a bit dazed. After he saw Lu Yin, his expression changed. Nothing was said, and the man simply stared at Lu Yin.

Decades of imprisonment might feel like the blink of an eye for someone with Jue Yi’s level of cultivation, but that did not make it a pleasant experience.

Lu Yin calmly observed Jue Yi. "It isn’t much fun being imprisoned, is it?"

Jue Yi's expression fell. "What do you want?"

He glanced around. Where were they?

Jue Yi had thought that he would be released within the Heavens Sect, where he would be surrounded by people like Lu Buzheng, as well as where Lu Yin could draw on Progenitor Chen’s power. How else could Lu Yin hope to overpower Jue Yi? His injuries had completely healed over the decades of imprisonment.

"Don't worry, we aren’t in the Fifth Mainland. I’m the only one you need to deal with," Lu Yin said as he watched Jue Yi with interest. "You can try to escape."

Jue Yi’s eyes narrowed, and he looked away from Lu Yin to the raging river roaring behind him. The man frowned. This river looked slightly familiar, and he felt like he had seen it somewhere before. All rivers looked somewhat alike, but the River of Time was different. Instead of normal water, a grayish-white fluid flowed through it, which had a completely different feel.

Suddenly, Jue Yi remembered, and his face grew pale with shock as he turned back to stare at Lu Yin. "That’s the River of Time! Where are we?"

Lu Yin said nothing.

Jue Yi trembled. The River of Time was flowing behind Lu Yin. Even a fool would understand that something was wrong. How could Lu Yin be so close to the River of Time? Such a thing had been taboo even during the Heavens Sect era. Jue Yi had only ever read about the river in some ancient texts. Of the Three Realms and Six Daos, some of them had drawn out the River of Time during their Progenitor tribulation.

During the Heavens Sect era, any and all appearances of the River of Time had been significant enough to be recorded down in history. Why was it flowing behind Lu Yin?

Jue Yi glanced around, increasingly nervous. His scalp started to go numb. "Where are we?"

Lu Yin sighed. "You can try to escape."

Jue Yi immediately and decisively refused. "I won’t run. Dao Monarch, I may have been wrong in my actions, but I am still one of the Heavens Sect’s gatemasters. I am willing to accept my punishment."

Lu Yin laughed. The man was no fool.

Seeing the River of Time be physically manifested was beyond abnormal, and the fact that Lu Yin was standing so close to it made Jue Yi even more uneasy. On top of that, the young man was actually telling him to try to escape. Jue Yi was completely certain that, if he tried to do so, he would either be killed by Lu Yin or die in this mysterious place.

Did Lu Yin want Jue Yi to scout around for him?

Seeing the realization dawning on Jue Yi’s face, Lu Yin praised the man. "As expected of someone capable of becoming a gatemaster. Your sense of danger is quite accurate, but regardless of whether you want to run, you have to do so right now. I am giving you one chance. This is your only opportunity to survive and continue serving as a gatemaster. If you manage to escape, I won’t stop you. If you survive, it's simply fate. However, even if you do escape, if you continue to oppose me, you can’t blame me for being ruthless in the future."

Jue Yi gritted his teeth. "I won't run. You can punish me however you want, and you can even strip me of my cultivation, but I won’t run."

"Are you that afraid of this place?" Lu Yin retorted.

Jue Yi's eyes flickered. He had started cultivating as an ordinary human and eventually risen to the Semi-Progenitor realm, and during his journey, he had experienced hardships that others could not even imagine. His sense of danger was extremely sharp.

The River of Time should not be a physical river, and yet that was exactly what was before Jue Yi. This defied his understanding of reality; it was a power he could not comprehend as it was far beyond his level. It would actually be best for him if he could return to the Zenith Mountain, where he would be safe.

Lu Yin had not released Jue Yi with any good intentions in mind.

Seeing that Jue Yi was determined not to run, Lu Yin sighed. "Since that’s the case, I can only force you to try to escape. Jue Yi, we haven’t seen each other in decades. Aren’t you curious about my strength?"

Jue Yi’s eye twitched. "Dao Monarch, I am willing to atone for my past crimes. No matter what, I am a gatemaster of one of the Twelve Heavenly Gates. I am a Semi-Progenitor who might break through and become a Progenitor in the future. I have seen the God of Death for myself and consider myself his disciple. I-"

"Run. You only get this one chance," Lu Yin interrupted. He had no desire to listen to Jue Yi's nonsense. This man did not understand the level that Lu Yin had reached.

The God of Death? The Three Realms and Six Daos might be some of the most powerful human cultivators to have ever lived, but while the God of Death had once been an unimaginable existence to Lu Yin, the young man could finally see how strong the ancient cultivator had been.

The Three Pillars and Six Skies were regarded as comparable to the ancient Three Realms and Six Daos. Lu Yin did not believe that they were actually on the same level, but there could not be too much of a difference. Lu Yin had ambushed and defeated four different experts at the level of the Three Pillars and Six Skies, and he had even killed three of them. He was willing to curse the Great Sovereign, he had survived an attack from True God himself, and he had even spoken with the Origin Progenitor as an equal. Lu Yin’s current level was far beyond anything Jue Yi could imagine.

To Lu Yin, all that Jue Yi had ever experienced was child’s play.

Lu Yin raised a hand and set it on Jue Yi’s shoulder. "If you refuse to fight back, I will simply throw you out. If you don’t want that, then run. You don’t have any other options."

Jue Yi was still unwilling. "Dao Monarch, can’t you give me a chance?"

"This is your chance," Lu Yin stated coldly. Jue Yi had attacked Lu Yin in the Astral Beast Domain and tried to kill him. The Semi-Progenitor should have been executed on the spot. If he wanted to survive now, he needed to seize his current opportunity.