Star Odyssey-Chapter 4189: The Domineering Cauldron

Forcing someone from Obscura to flee was already highly unusual, and never had two members of Obscura used this particular escape method at the same time. Besides, someone from Obscura would never block their own gate. Even if two members of Obscura tried to escape at the same time, they would leave one after another. How could something like blocking the gate ever occur?

And yet that was precisely what was happening.

Obscura’s gates looked small, but the space around them could be expanded or compressed as needed. It was possible for an entire planet to pass through a gate.

Despite that, the red coffin could block the silver one.

Nothing other than the red coffin could have blocked the gate.

Hui was dumbfounded, unsure of what to do. They simply had no experience to draw upon for this situation.

Lu Yin had only made an attempt on a whim, and yet it had worked perfectly.

He looked past the coffins to Mister Mu. Master, it’s on you now.

Far away, Greater Sancte Awe Gate and Kang Tian Immortal stared, stupified. Mr. Lu’s thought process is... unique.

“How long do you plan to block me for? You can’t hurt me!” Hui shouted.

Lu Yin mockingly replied, "If you're so capable, then go ahead and push me out of the way."

“You-!” Hui was furious.

Lu Yin ignored the creature and looked into the distance. Seeing the nine cauldrons circling Mister Mu, he suddenly remembered something. There had once been an exceptionally powerful mirebound artifact in this megaverse. Mu Zhu had called it a Dominion-type mirebound artifact.

It was a cauldron.

Mister Mu and Mu Zhu had only managed to survive and escape because of that mirebound artifact.

Right, why has Hui kept hunting for Master this whole time? Mister Mu was impressively strong, but he wasn’t an Immortal. He shouldn’t have been important enough for one of Obscura’s Immortals to obsess over for so many years. Could it be because of that cauldron?

Lu Yin looked back at Hui. “How did my master offend you to the point where your Hui-Silver Sky Army has searched for him for so many years without ever giving up?”

Hui stared at him. “You know we were searching for them. How? A Thread of Heaven?”

“I’m the one asking. Give me a satisfactory answer, and maybe I’ll stop blocking this gate.”

“Block it if you want. You can block it for trillions of years, and you still won’t be able to hurt me. However, I will warn you: Obscura has periodic meetings. If I fail to appear, they will know that something’s wrong and come looking for me. You won’t be able to escape then.”

“Thanks for your concern, but you’ll already be dead by then, and no one will even know that we did it.”

“You are underestimating Obscura. When any one of us dies, their killer can be found.”

Lu Yin’s eyes flickered. Really? Does that imply that Obscura has someone capable of something like divination?

He did not want to encounter such a being.

Back when he had first stepped onto the path of cultivation, he had dealt with the Starsibyl Sect’s schemes and plots on multiple occasions. Furthermore, from talks with Zhao Ran and others, Lu Yin had learned just how terrifying any power that could peer into the future really was.

If Obscura truly had such a being, they would be an absolute nightmare to deal with and would unquestionably be a top-tier expert. However, if this was true, then how had Qi Xu’s death been kept hidden from Obscura?

Lu Yin looked over at Mister Mu. Hui was also focused in that direction.

Lu Yin could not get a read on the silver creature’s thoughts.

“You’re searching for the Dominion-type mirebound artifact, aren’t you?” Lu Yin suddenly asked.

Hui’s gaze snapped back to Lu Yin, and their eyes locked.

Lu Yin nodded. “So that’s really it. There’s no other reason for you to keep an eye on this megaverse for so many years. You’ve destroyed plenty of megaverses before, and there was no need to fixate on this one.”

“Let me go, human, and I’ll erase all grudges related to this megaverse. I can even help you suppress Lan Meng, ensuring that they never target you again. I can keep you out of Obscura’s sight,” Hui offered in a low voice.

Lu Yin’s lips curved. “Are you trying to bargain with me?”

“You could say that.”

“Do you think that, if we can kill you, we would still be afraid of Lan Meng?”

“Lan Meng isn’t scary. What is scary is if you keep killing members of Obscura, again and again.”

Lu Yin arched a brow while observing Hui.

The silver creature’s voice grew heavy. “Obscura is not as simple as you believe. If we wanted to destroy your human civilization, it would be easy. We haven’t done so for two reasons: first, we prefer to use civilizations to destroy other civilizations, rather than act directly. Second, you have not touched our bottom line yet.

“However, you have already killed Qi Xu, so if I’m also killed, you’ll cross that bottom line. Lan Meng will undoubtedly continue to target you, as that is their task. If Lan Meng dies as well, that will be three members of Obscura dead at your hands. Do you think that we’ll let you off then?

“Your human civilization will be erased by Obscura itself. It will be total destruction. You won’t have a future.”

Lu Yin believed that. At least, he would have before Obscura extended an invitation to him.

How could Obscura possibly spare their human civilization after several of their own Immortals had been killed?

However, a choice had been offered. From his and Wang Wen’s analysis of the situation, even if Hui died, Lu Yin’s invitation would not be revoked. If anything, Obscura would grow more cautious of humanity. In that case, what was there to fear?

“What if Obscura invited me to join them?” Lu Yin countered.

Hui froze. “What did you say?”

Lu Yin smiled. “What I told you earlier wasn’t a lie. Obscura wants me to replace you.”

“Impossible!” Hui shouted. While they had initially believed Lu Yin because the human wielded Obscura’s power and was a strong enough Aberrant to join, Lu Yin was also that man’s disciple. That man’s hatred towards Obscura ran as deep as the sea. How could he ever allow Lu Yin to join?

Humans were different from other species; their emotions were too important to them. That was their weakness.

Lu Yin patted the red floating. “See this? Still think that it’s impossible?”

Hui stared intently at Lu Yin. “That man agrees to you joining Obscura?”

“That’s why we came here for revenge. You are my master’s enemy, not all of Obscura,” Lu Yin stated bluntly.

Hui clenched their teeth. “Obscura ordered me to destroy this megaverse and take the Dominion-type mirebound artifact! I have only carried out my task!”

“Which means that your mission was never completed, which is why you’ve stayed here. That mirebound artifact is still here,” Lu Yin said.

Hui did not deny it. “Human, if Obscura really does allow you in, releasing me would only benefit you. Obscura is not a single species, but rather a terrifying coalition. You will need allies there. Without them, given that you’re not even an Immortal, you will only be assigned to suicide missions.

“Many powerful experts have died throughout Obscura’s history, many at the hands of fishing civilizations. Do you want to die like them?”

“Obscura has fought fishing civilizations? Which ones?” Lu Yin asked.

“Let me go!” Hui snapped. “Since you want to join Obscura, the grudges of this megaverse no longer matter. Killing me will do you no good.”

Just as Lu Yin was about to reply, the space in a distant part of the universe trembled. The nine cauldrons that surrounded Mister Mu shook as one as they spun around him. They occasionally drifted away and sometimes drew close as the entire universe quivered.

The silver coffin kept slamming into the red one. “Let me through, or else things won’t end well for you!”

Lu Yin did not even glance at the silver creature. He was staring at Mister Mu. There was an indescribable sensation spreading out. It was as if the entire megaverse had... come alive.

The next instant, Mister Mu shouted, “Cauldron, come!”

The universe roared. Massive lightning pierced through the void, as though it was going to cleave the universe in two. Then, a massive cauldron slowly descended, crushing the stars beneath it as it moved towards Mister Mu.

Everyone froze at the sight of the cauldron.

The instant that it appeared, both Lu Yin and Greater Sancte Awe Gate felt an indescribable pressure. It was as if this object was not a cauldron, but rather a megaverse. The cauldron was the megaverse, and the megaverse was the cauldron.

Hui stared at the cauldron with absolute focus. It had finally appeared. After searching for so many years without any success, it had finally appeared. It really had never left the megaverse.

It had always been there.

The enormous cauldron spiraled down, constantly shrinking until it was hovering in front of Mister Mu.

He looked at it, his hand trembling as it rose up and pressed against the cauldron. His eyes flushed red. “Old friend, we meet again.”

At the moment, the cauldron was not glowing at all. It looked plain, heavy, and ancient. The passing of time had left its mark over its entire body. At a glance, it was nothing more than an old cauldron, and even the shocking sensation that its appearance had given off was gone.

In front of Mister Mu, the cauldron withdrew everything it had been radiating and drifted closer to him, like it was greeting a long-lost relative.

Mister Mu nodded, an excited smile appearing on his face. “We can fight side by side again, old friend. I’m an Immortal now. Show me what kind of power you can unleash.”

With that, he pressed both hands to the cauldron, his gaze piercing the universe to look at the silver coffin. He shouted, “Hui, you’ve searched for this all these years! I’ll use it to send you off.”

He drove both hands down. The cauldron trembled, phantoms visibly splitting off from it. One became two, two became three, three became nine. Ninesuns Cauldron Transformation.

Nine cauldrons thundered towards the silver coffin together.

Previously, silver and red had been the most dazzling colors in this megaverse. Now, both were replaced by a single hue, one of ancient austerity, bearing the scars of time itself.

It was the color of the Nine Cauldrons as they tore across the void.

The nine cauldrons streaked across the distance.

Hui stared blankly at the nine cauldrons shooting towards them. They stopped ramming into the red coffin, only able to watch on.

This cauldron should have belonged to them.

The first cauldron slammed down, smashing into the silver coffin and shoving it away from the gate, but it left no mark. The second slammed in, leaving a faint trail that could barely be seen. Then the third, the fourth, and the fifth. One after another, they slammed into the coffin until marks started to appear, spreading and growing noticeably larger.

Hui had no choice but to continue hiding in the coffin, unable to leave at all.

When the sixth cauldron struck, fine cracks appeared on the silver coffin. Through those cracks, Hui looked across outer space at Mister Mu. Scenes of their last battle flashed through Hui’s mind.

Nine was a special number in this megaverse.

Long ago, nine people had burned away the last of their lives in a brilliant burst, just to send Mister Mu and Mu Zhu away.

Those nine had been ants before Hui, and yet they had managed to save a sliver of life from Hui.

This time, nine cauldrons were smashing into Hui, one after another.

The seventh cauldron hit, widening the cracks. Through them, Hui could clearly see the universe. The starry sky was clear, without a single hint of silver remaining.

The eighth cauldron crashed down. A hole had opened up in the silver coffin. Hui felt like they could put their head through that hole, and given that their body was liquid silver, they could easily slip through entirely.

Obscura’s coffin had been broken open.

Had this ever happened before? Maybe. Hui did not know. Anyone whose coffin had been broken must have died. If not even a coffin could protect someone, what could?

The ninth cauldron fell through outer space, closing in on the silver coffin, growing larger and larger and larger...