Star Odyssey-Chapter 3674: The Path Beyond Emotions

Ru Guo did not understand why Lu Yin would ask such a question; how could Heavenspire possibly be a parallel universe?

"What’s the deal with the Spirit Transformation Art?" Lu Yin continued.

Ru Guo replied, “It prevents the aura of the Nine Odysseys Megaverse from being detected by cultivators in the Spirit Nidus. Since everyone cultivates the Spirit Transformation Art, no one in the Spirit Nidus can sense outsiders’ auras.”

“To reach the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, is it necessary to go through Heavenspire?”

“That’s correct, but passing through Heavenspire does not necessarily mean that you will reach the Nine Odysseys Megaverse.” Ru Guo gathered his thoughts for a moment. “You could even go so far as to say that it’s impossible. This isn’t because of the path itself. Rather, even if you are able to see the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, you still won’t be able to enter it.”

“What do you mean?” Lu Yin asked.

Ru Guo solemnly stated, “The Skyward Gate protects the Nine Odysseys Megaverse. No one can break in. Not even those with power like yours or mine. That’s because the gate was made by the Greater Sancti.”

Lu Yin’s expression instantly sharpened. “One needs the power of a Greater Sancte?”

Ru Guo nodded. “All who try to force their way through the Skyward Gate die.”

Lu Yin frowned. “Is it really necessary to do so much just to prevent cultivators from the Spirit Nidus from entering the Nine Odysseys Megaverse?”

“I don’t know the reason,” Ru Guo said. “But since ancient times, only one person has ever broken past the Skyward Gate, and he is the one who stands at the pinnacle of the Spirit Nidus. Aside from him, no one else has ever succeeded.”

Master Qing Cao’s image appeared in Lu Yin’s mind. Only an Immortal was able to pass through the Skyward Gate. Lu Yin was not nearly strong enough.

“However, aside from the Skyward Gate, there’s another way to enter the Nine Odysseys Megaverse,” Ru Guo continued.

Lu Yin’s eyes lit up. “The Morrow Behemoth’s palm.”

Ru Guo nodded. “The Morrow Behemoth is a massive beast that the Nine Odysseys Megaverse uses to monitor the Spirit Nidus. It possesses immense power, similar to that of a springboard. Its strength can fling a person directly into the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, essentially allowing one to sneak in. However, this method also has a flaw: you must have a set of coordinates in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse for the Morrow Behemoth to target. Without those, the Morrow Behemoth will throw you to a random location in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse. You might even directly appear in front of a Greater Sancte. It’s not impossible.”

“Does Yue Ya want the Morrow Behemoth to send me into the Nine Odysseys Megaverse?”

“Precisely. He has coordinates he can use to draw the Morrow Behemoth’s aim. If you are thrown into the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, you will appear where Yue Ya is. That is also exactly the reason why I want to cooperate with you, Seraph Lu.”

Ru Guo stared at Lu Yin, his expression turning serious. “Help me rescue my Ru family. I’ll return to the Nine Odysseys Megaverse and prepare target coordinates in a safe location that will draw the Morrow Behemoth’s aim. If the day comes when your Boundless can no longer remain in the Spirit Nidus, you can try using the Morrow Behemoth to go to the Nine Odysseys Megaverse. Regardless of whether you trust me, this is another way for you to survive.”

Lu Yin stared at Ru Guo. “Yue Ya is also capable of preparing target coordinates. In fact, the Nine Odysseys Megaverse must have prepared plenty of them just to counter this exact kind of infiltration, haven’t they?”

Ru Guo chuckled. “You’re overthinking things. Anyone who is capable of sneaking into the Nine Odysseys Megaverse with this method is no ordinary person. Not everyone in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse is as strong as a Lesser Sancte. This method naturally weeds out the weak. In fact, only the truly powerful even know of it. Traps are meant to catch weaklings, not those like yourself.

“The Greater Sancti don’t have time to keep an eye on this. Of the Lesser Sancti, Dan Jin can’t be bothered with such things, Xing Fan has no time, and neither does Yue Ya. The only thing you need to worry about is if Yue Ya has already prepared target coordinates to capture you. However, if you are truly forced to escape, this may be your only choice.

“The fact that the Morrow Behemoth has been stationed in the Spirit Nidus should be enough for you to trust its defenses. As long as Boundless can reach the Morrow Behemoth’s hand, not even the High Seraph will be able to do anything for a time.”

Lu Yin would never fully trust Ru Guo, but if Boundless really was pushed to the brink of destruction, then this man was indeed offering a viable escape path.

“Aside from these two methods, is there no other way to enter the Nine Odysseys Megaverse?” Lu Yin asked.

Ru Guo looked up at the starry sky. “You’ve seen the third method.”

Lu Yin’s face fell. Fishing, huh? The third method... is really rather intriguing.

“What do you want me to do?”

Ru Guo had demonstrated ample sincerity and had said everything that needed to be said. He had even taught Lu Yin Ru Shi's Wayfinder Sutra. As long as the request was not excessive, Lu Yin was willing to lend the man a hand.

However, if everything was being manipulated from behind the scenes by Yue Ya, then even if Lu Yin was willing, the High Seraph would not allow things to proceed.

“Stave off the High Seraph and allow me to return to Heavenspire and save the Ru family,” Ru Guo said.

Lu Yin was taken aback. “What does that have to do with the High Seraph?”

Ru Guo sneered. “Do you think that the position I obtained by selling Ru Shi's Wayfinder Sutra can be taken away so easily? Yue Ya destroyed my Ru family, committing a terrible crime, and he will undoubtedly be punished for it. If I succeed in rescuing my family and can return to the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, Yue Ya’s crime will be reduced. That is not something that the High Seraph wishes to see.

“He won’t allow me to rescue my family that easily. His hatred for the Ru family runs deep, and this is also a chance for him to eliminate me.”

Lu Yin’s eyes lit up. “Have you not considered that I might be the same as the High Seraph, hoping to see Yue Ya fall?”

Ru Guo smiled. “You are not the same as the High Seraph. Because he has destroyed my Ru family, Yue Ya can’t escape from the Greater Sancti’s punishment. There is even a chance that he could lose his title of Lesser Sancte, depending on which Greater Sancte steps forward. However, if there’s even the slightest chance, then the High Seraph will take that risk. Losing his title of Lesser Sancte will also stop Yue Ya from being a threat.

“As for you, unless Yue Ya dies, he will never let you go. Even if he loses his title of Lesser Sancte, what of it? If seen from a different angle, if he loses his title, he will be able to act with even greater recklessness, as there will be less pressure preventing him from personally descending into the Spirit Nidus.

“Don’t assume that the title of Greater Sancte is something gained by climbing up step by step. If even an ordinary human suddenly becomes an Immortal in an instant, they will still be granted the title of a Greater Sancte. To Yue Ya, the title of Lesser Sancte may not be particularly important. He can lose everything in his bid to obtain the title of Greater Sancte. His aim is the Immortal realm.”

Lu Yin nodded. “That’s true.”

Ru Guo fell silent as he awaited Lu Yin’s response.

“I find something strange. Is the Ru family really that important to you? Of those who have survived, the only one you truly care about is Ru Mu, isn’t she?”

“Cultivators may dismiss their emotions as unimportant, but our Ru family is different. If a person truly has no emotions, my brother would have never been able to create the Wayfinder Sutra. Only emotions can allow one to comprehend that sutra and master it.”

Lu Yin stared off into the distance, lost in thought. He personally found the idea of cultivators being emotionless completely absurd. If a person was truly emotionless, what would be the point of living? To merely exist throughout endless, unseen years? Even if one observed the passing of time, they would only do so because they wanted to. Desire indicated some level of caring, and that indicated the presence of emotions.

While Lu Yin believed that to be true, he was not so certain that Ru Guo felt the same. In fact, Lu Yin felt like Ru Guo was just doing what he needed to in order to cultivate the Wayfinder Sutra.

The Wayfinder Sutra required emotion. If Ru Guo abandoned the Ru family, including his own daughter, he would also abandon his emotions, putting an end to his entire life’s worth of cultivation.

Yue Ya was able to threaten Ru Guo precisely because he had seen through this.

“How far have you cultivated the sutra?”

“To the second level: when the body moves, the mind does not.”

“And your elder brother?”

“The third level: when the mind moves, the spirit does not.”

“And your brother was fully confident that if he reached the final level, he would be able to defeat the High Seraph?”

“There is no question about it. When they fought, the High Seraph did not seize victory easily.”

“Why does the Ru family want the Ark Domain?” Lu Yin abruptly changed the topic, catching Ru Guo off guard.

The man hesitated briefly. “As a way out.”

“To the Consciousness Megaverse or the Tianyuan Megaverse?”

“It doesn’t matter, so long as there is a path of escape.”

Lu Yin chuckled softly. He turned away from Ru Guo and walked to the edge of Boundless, staring out at the busy Ark Domain. “You clearly sold off the Ru Shi's Wayfinder Sutra for status, so why are you still so unstable?”

Ru Guo gazed at Lu Yin’s back. “This is not a path to survival, but rather a path to preserve our cultivation.”

Lu Yin rested a hand on the wooden railing. “A path to preserve your emotions.”

Ru Guo was impressed. “Your natural talent is extraordinary, surpassing all who’ve come before you.”

The Wayfinder Sutra required emotion, true feelings that lay deep within a person’s heart. As long as a person believes that they possess emotions, they do. The key is to deceive oneself.

Ru Guo's backup plan was to send Ru Mu and the rest of his family away. As long as they left, regardless of what happened to them afterward, Ru Guo would convince himself that he had fulfilled his emotional duty. That would be enough. Even if Ru Mu and the others died, he would still feel that he had honored his emotions.

They were called emotions, but in truth, it was sheer ruthlessness.

Lu Yin turned to look at Ru Guo. “Are you certain that you can leave a path for yourself to keep your emotions?”

Ru Guo grew somber. “Regardless of whether it’s the Nine Odysseys Megaverse or the Spirit Nidus, there are too many eyes watching my Ru family. The Wisdom Domain did not hesitate to betray us. They have no loyalty towards us. Staying here would be even more dangerous for my family. As long as I can achieve the same strength as my brother and truly hold the title of Lesser Sancte, then even if I never advance another step in my life, it will be enough.”

“So, this path of emotions that you’ve chosen can only take you as far as the third level of the Wayfinder Sutra.”

“That’s right.”

“In that case, if Ru Shi had already reached the third level, then what was his path forward?” Lu Yin suddenly asked as he turned around to look at Ru Guo.

Ru Guo was taken aback, but he still met Lu Yin’s intense gaze. “I don’t know.”

Lu Yin’s lips curved. “Could it have been you, his younger brother?”

Ru Guo became lost in his thoughts. “That’s possible...”

Lu Yin smiled. “I’m just chatting, so don’t overthink things. Your brother is already dead, which means that his supposed path forward is also gone. Alright, leave. I’ll be in touch.”

Ru Guo left the Ark Domain. When he glanced back, he realized that, while he had held the upper hand at the start of the conversation, the more he said, especially his last few lines, the more things had slipped from his control. What did Seraph Lu really mean with those last questions?

There were some cultivation arts that involved many requirements. Lu Yin had merely been following Ru Guo’s words. There had been no deeper intent. However, there were some words that would naturally cause people to overthink after hearing them.

This was especially true when dealing with pinnacle experts. It was necessary to constantly keep one’s guard up.

Had Ru Shi really died? Lu Yin would not believe Ru Guo’s words without seeing the corpse for himself.

Lu Yin preferred to assume that Ru Shi was still alive, even if the possibility was quite remote. If not for that, Yue Ya would not have destroyed the Ru family, and Ru Guo would not have been willing to sell the Wayfinder Sutra for a mere title.

Ru Shi's Wayfinder Sutra was in no way inferior to the Nine Heavens Transformation. In fact, when it came to assisting one’s cultivation and mental clarity, the Wayfinder Sutra actually surpassed the Nine Heavens Transformation.

The Nine Heavens Transformation was nothing more than a battle technique, while the Wayfinder Sutra was a path to transcendence.

Ru Guo’s visit provided Lu Yin with a much clearer understanding of the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, but that only raised his wariness. The Nine Odysseys Megaverse was even more problematic than he had initially imagined. However, new information also caused Lu Yin to start perceiving the Spirit Nidus differently.