Star Odyssey

Ke Jian nodded as he took a seat. With a smile, he said, "The acting Bureau Director's fame has been rising throughout the entire Sixverse Association in recent days. Madam He Ran sends her regards."

"Share my thanks with Madam He Ran," Lu Yin replied with a smile.

After a bit of small talk, Ke Jian finally got to the purpose of his visit. "Bureau Director, I was wondering, would you be willing to help us persuade the Voidforce Universe to sell resources to us?"

"Isn't that what we agreed upon before? Is there some doubt about things, Senior?" Lu Yin asked.

"Of course not," Ke Jian quickly replied.

It was not Ke Jian who was worried that things had changed with Xuan Qi’s rise in status, but rather He Ran. Xuan Qi had completely transformed the Bureau's status in the Voidforce Universe, and the shift had sent ripples of fear throughout the entire universe. There was nobody who dared to offend the Bureau any longer, and given these new circumstances, He Ran was worried that Xuan Qi would no longer take the Transcendent Universe’s interests into account.

It was a given that He Ran understood that, at the current moment, Xuan Qi was no longer the same young man that she had dealt with in the past. She had once told Zi Jing that, even if Xuan Qi joined the Voidforce Universe or became a disciple of a peak powerhouse, He Ran would still be able to ensure his loyalty to her. However, the woman knew that her previous claim no longer held true. There was not just one peak powerhouse standing behind Xuan Qi, but rather four.

In addition to the negotiations for acquiring resources from the Voidforce Universe, Ke Jian also intended to test Xuan Qi’s attitude while visiting. It was important to see if the young man’s view of the Transcendent Universe had changed in recent days.

However, Lu Yin’s response let the old man to sigh with relief. The youth had not changed his stance at all. It was true that Xuan Qi was behaving more arrogantly, but that was only natural, given his rise in status.

Lu Yin and Ke Jian soon left the Bureau’s headquarters. They made their way towards the Void Yang and Void Yin clans to complete the purchase of the dual-colored soil.

Ke Jian had already noticed that Xuan Qi’s cultivation had risen dramatically. Despite the old man’s shock, he did not mention the matter at all.

Having a peak powerhouse as a mentor made all the difference.

Despite Xu Wuwei merely acting as Xuan Qi’s cultivation guide, the young man could wield Spiral Domain. No matter how people looked at the situation, Xuan Qi was regarded as Xu Wuwei's true disciple.

Xu Wuwei was second only to Lord Xu in the Voidforce Universe.

Ke Jian stared at Lu Yin with unconcealed envy.

The Void Yang and Void Yin clans offered Lu Yin a grand welcome, and Xu Heng and Xu Leng even made personal appearances, which gave Lu Yin a great deal of face.

This also served to give Ke Jian a better understanding of Xuan Qi’s relationship with the two clans.

The sale of the dual-colored soil finished without any issues.

Ever since Xu Leng had become a Void Suprema, the entire Void Yin clan had acquiesced and obeyed her every word. Previous disagreements had completely disappeared, which had greatly expedited the merging of the two clans. At the moment, the members of the clans no longer identified as being from one clan or the other, but as members of a single clan.

Xu Lie had also left for the Sixverse Academy, which she had decided on her own. Xu Leng had done nothing to stop the woman, and she also did not blame Xu Lie for wanting to take her place as matriarch. On the contrary, Xu Leng greatly valued Xu Lie.

The Sixverse Academy was not a school that just anyone could attend, and it was highly unusual for Xu Lie to be given entrance, despite already being close to the Void Morphora realm.

With the sale of the dual-colored soil complete, Lu Yin and Ke Jian left the Void Yang and Void Yin clans. Ke Jian also started showing greater respect for Xuan Qi than ever before. It was clear that the young man’s influence was beyond impressive.

"Senior-"

Lu Yin spoke up, only to have Ke Jian quickly interrupt, "Bureau Director, please don't refer to me as senior anymore. Just call me Ke Jian."

"How could I do that?" Lu Yin said humbly.

Ke Jian answered with a bitter smile. "If you keep calling me Senior, how am I supposed to face Xu Heng and the others in the future?"

Lu Yin nodded. "Alright then. Ke Jian, when will the next transaction with the Origin Universe take place?"

Ke Jian answered, "If you are available now, Bureau Director, we can take care of that right away."

"What about Zi Jing? Is she available?" Lu Yin asked.

"Yes, I can go get her now."

"Then go fetch her. I'll return to the Origin Universe," Lu Yin replied.

Just as Ke Jian was about to leave, Lu Yin suddenly asked, "How many people are aware that I’m from the Origin Universe?"

Ke Jian thought for a moment. "Not many: just Madam He Ran, He Shu, Senior Mo, and myself. There are just four of us."

"Senior Mo? Is he the peak powerhouse who protects Madam He Ran?" Lu Yin clarified.

Ke Jian nodded.

Lu Yin motioned for the older man to leave, and Ke Jian immediately returned to the Transcendent Universe while Lu Yin made his own way to Aeternus Nation before returning to the Fifth Mainland.

Once back in the Heavens Sect, Lu Yin met with Lu Buzheng and several other people. He found that nothing much had happened in the Fifth Mainland during the recent months. Arch-Elder Zen was already in the Three Monarchs Universe, helping to hold back Forgotten Ruins God. Although dangerous, Monarch Luo would also be doing his best to prevent the Three Monarchs Universe from being destroyed, so Monarch Luo, Arch-Elder Zen, and Monarch Xing were working together to endure.

However, Lu Yin had no idea what Xia Shenji was up to.

"There's something that you need to be aware of," said Wang Wen. He accessed his gadget and brought up images of several people. "All of these people are from the Sixverse Association."

Lu Yin was surprised. "The Sixverse Association?"contemporary romance

Wang Wen nodded. "They use forms of energy that don’t match any of the Fifth Mainland’s cultivation methods. It's not that these energies are powerful. Rather, they have never appeared in the Fifth Mainland before, and they are not from any of the six member universes of the Sixverse Association either. Most likely, these people are all from parallel universes that are allied or subordinate to the Sixverse Association."

"None of these people are particularly strong," Lu Yin noted.lights

Wang Wen agreed. "That's just the problem. It’s not easy for people from the Sixverse Association to enter our Origin Universe. According to you, the Three Monarchs Universe doesn't even have the coordinates to reach this universe. Very few people are able to come here, and given these people’s cultivation, there’s no way they could have attracted the notice of those few individuals. The question is, why were these people specifically sent here?

"We've been keeping an eye on them for a long time, but they haven’t been doing anything. They behave just like normal cultivators. In my opinion, they are trying to adapt to life in the Origin Universe."

Lu Yin frowned. The Sixverse Association as a whole did not have a good opinion of the Origin Universe. There was certainly a reason why these people had been sent to their universe, but what could it be?

"Have you captured and questioned any of them?"

"We did, and they gave up everything they knew. Their only task is to adapt to life here in the Origin Universe, nothing more."

"Could it really be that simple?"

"It would seem that their first task is to adjust, and then they will be assigned missions later on."

Lu Yin made a decision. "Then don’t bother with them. I'll do some investigating of my own within the Sixverse Association."

…

The transaction between the Transcendent Universe and Gods' Origin ended with both parties being satisfied. This time, the variety and quantity of materials that were traded far exceeded the first trade.

However, just as things were about to finish, God of Mirrors expressed his desire to visit the Transcendent Universe.

It was a reasonable request.

"The Heavens Sect has already started looking into the missing materials. Although nothing has been discovered yet, problems could crop up anytime." God of Mirrors voiced his concerns.

Lu Yin asked, "Did Lu Yin order the investigation?"

God Taiyi replied, "I went to see Lu Yin some time ago, but he’s been in seclusion. It's not very likely that he ordered the investigation. I'm guessing that either Lu Buzheng or Wang Wen are behind it."

Ke Jian's expression turned cold. "Should we eliminate them?"

God of Mirrors quickly shook his head. "Absolutely not. Those two stay within the Heavens Sect at all times, and the Heavens Sect is not an ordinary place. Even a Semi-Progenitor could vanish without leaving a trace. Only Progenitors would stand a chance."

Killing intent flickered in Ke Jian's eyes. For the Transcendent Universe, gathering the necessary materials was their utmost priority at the moment, and Ke Jian was responsible for overseeing the process of acquiring all that was needed. His orders had been explicit: any problems that arose in gathering the necessary materials or transactions would place him in deep trouble, and he refused to accept such a thing.

"For the moment, everything is still fine. The Heavens Sect doesn’t suspect anything, and the amount that we’ve traded with you is negligible compared to what the Fifth Mainland holds. No matter how carefully they look into things, they won’t be able to trace it back to Gods' Origin. However, I'm also quite certain that the Transcendent Universe needs more than what we’ve provided so far," God of Mirrors stated.

Ke Jian instantly agreed. "Of course. If possible, I would like to acquire all of the Origin Universe's resources."

Such arrogance. God of Mirrors glanced at Lu Yin before whispering, "Which is precisely why I hope to be able to visit the Transcendent Universe. I need to know that I have a way out."

Lu Yin spoke up, "That's a reasonable request. Ke Jian, can you share his request with Madam He Ran?"

Ke Jian replied, "That’s not necessary. We’re finishing our second transaction, so I’d naturally be happy to show them around. Will you be joining us, Bureau Director?"

Zi Jing chimed in, "Let's go together! It's been so long since we last met."

"There's so much happening with the Bureau…" Lu Yin hesitated.

Zi Jing pursed her lips. "Then there's no need."

Lu Yin took a deep breath. "Forget it. I could use a break. I'll tag along."

Zi Jing laughed. "Good!"

Ke Jian watched the exchange before leading Lu Yin, Zi Jing, God of Mirrors, and God Taiyi to the Transcendent Universe.

Throughout all of the negotiations, while God Taiyi had never said very much, Ke Jian had never underestimated the young man. God Taiyi was known to have a good relationship with Lu Yin, and his status in Gods’ Origin was also equal to God of Mirrors’.

Lu Yin knew very little about the Transcendent Universe. Even though he had been taken there with Zi Jing, Lu Yin had spent most of his time participating in the war in the Cloudflow Universe. He had barely seen the Transcendent Universe itself, and he lacked even a basic understanding of the universe.

As Ke Jian played tour guide, Lu Yin finally got a glimpse of the Transcendent Universe’s people and culture, and he witnessed for himself the prosperity of a civilization built on cultivation technology.

God of Mirrors and God Taiyi also expanded their understanding of the megaverse, and they were especially shocked when they visited a bestowal art carrier. The sight of such power left the men silent for a long time.

Ke Jian was pleased with their reactions. He had the same view of the Origin Universe as most of the Sixverse Association, despite the trades with Gods’ Origin and his superficial show of respect. The man could not care less about Gods' Origin. Even if they did possess the power to create things from nothing, such power paled in comparison to the Transcendent Universe’s Bestowal Art and energy converters.

Ke Jian led a tour that lasted for several days. This was far from enough to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the Transcendent Universe, but it did serve as an initial overview of the place, and it demonstrated the strength of the universe.

They were able to witness a bestowal art carrier fire beams of destructive power that were at least as powerful as a Semi-Progenitor’s attack. They saw firsthand how energy converters broke energy down to the most basic level that could be used and recycled. They saw the massive power source of the bestowal art carriers that resembled sourcebox arrays. It was a marvel of science and cultivation that impressed even Lu Yin when he saw it all for the first time.

The Transcendent Universe displayed various wonders and the mighty power of their bestowal art carriers. God of Mirrors and others found themselves repeatedly gasping in awe at all that they saw.

Lu Yin had previously only had the most basic knowledge of the Transcendent Universe, but this tour finally allowed him to learn a bit more about the universe.

"Theoretically, our Bestowal Art can become powerful enough to annihilate any being in existence. As long as enough power can be extracted from the sourceboxes, it would even be possible to destroy a portion of a universe," Ke Jian explained. He was not trying to impress God of Mirrors or God Taiyi with the Transcendent Universe’s might, but rather show Xuan Qi that, no matter how high his status rose, he could never ignore the Transcendent Universe. The Transcendent Universe was an official member of the Sixverse Association, which meant that it was a monstrous power that was no weaker than the Voidforce Universe.

After showcasing the strength of his universe, the next thing that Ke Jian planned to do was relax. A favorite pastime of the Transcendent Universe’s denizens was to watch battles in beast arenas.

"Our primary focus is on our cultivation technologies, and we don’t pay much attention to cultivation. However, we do enjoy watching cultivators fight against astral beasts, and these shows are a favorite here in the Transcendent Universe. Bureau Director, after you. Please." Ke Jian had led Lu Yin to the largest beast arena.

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