Star Odyssey

Chapter 3068: Choosing One

Lu Yin spat out a mouthful of blood. He could not help himself from half-collapsing to the ground as he gasped for air.

Di Qiong appeared in the sky above Lu Yin. Aeternus had returned.

The Five Spirits Alliance and the Luna Alliance had clearly been prepared for the attack, which meant that the Aeternals had been betrayed. They had tested all the suspected spies, but this betrayal made it clear that the Sixverse Association had to have a spy in Aeternus. This was not something that could be ignored.

Wu Tian had nearly been rescued.

Di Qiong surveyed the ground below, and he immediately noticed Ye Bo’s crouching form, as well as Fei, who was pinned to the ground. Finally, Di Qiong turned to stare at Wu Tian. Frowning, the man descended to the Wu Tian Observatory.

There, Di Qiong faced Wu Tian.

The man was lying on the platform, staring up at the dark sky. He looked completely exhausted.

Di Qiong asked, “Why didn’t you take the chance to escape?”

“Tired.”

Wu Tian stopped responding.

A cold glint flickered in Di Qiong's eyes. "In this place, you are subjected to constant torture. You are Wu Tian, one of the Three Realms and Six Daos. Are you really content to live like this?"

Wu Tian slowly picked himself up so that he could sit on the Wu Tian Observatory. He looked up at Di Qiong. "You are completely pathetic."

Di Qiong's eyes narrowed. He was clearly upset by this comment.

"How long have you held me prisoner for? You’ve used my strength to rise up to your current position. The Three Pillars and Six Skies are comparable to us Three Realms and Six Daos. We seem to be equal, but are we really?" Wu Tian's voice sounded old and hoarse, yet it was also fearless. "Do you know why I don't leave? I know, and so does Loam, but you don't. You Three Pillars and Six Skies are all ignorant. What makes you equal to us?

"In the grand scheme of things, you are nothing."

Di Qiong suddenly reached out and slammed Wu Tian’s head down. “I’m the one with the knife now, while you’re nothing but a piece of rotten meat! Don’t speak to me of the Three Realms and Six Daos. Just who do you think you are? Do you really think that you’re the same person you once were? Your disciple has become one of the Seven Skygods, betraying humanity. What good are you anymore? If I want, I can kill you at any time. I only keep you alive in order to torture you. Do you really think that you’re the one who created tools and weapons? That was only in your universe.”

Wu Tian’s face was pressed to the floor of the platform. It looked humiliating. He was someone who was constantly being tortured, and yet he forced out a smile. "You really are pathetic."

Di Qiong's pupils suddenly shrank as his anger spiked.

It was at this moment that Lu Yin rose to his feet. "My lord, Mu Ji is the traitor."

Di Qiong continued to stare at Wu Tian, who ignored the man while staring off into the distance. Wu Tian seemed to be lost in thought.

After a while, Di Qiong released Wu Tian and sent him flying with a kick. The man crashed into the ruins of a city wall, and Di Qiong contemptuously said, "I decide when you die. Wu Tian? What a joke."

He suddenly appeared beside Fei and Ye Bo, grabbing them and taking them away.

Lu Yin felt incredibly puzzled. Why had Wu Tian not taken the opportunity to escape? He had chosen to remain at the Wu Tian Observatory.

"What happened here? Explain," Di Qiong demanded coldly. Aeternus had been completely deceived. The Five Spirits Alliance and the Luna Alliance had been well-prepared for the attack, Sovereign Dou Sheng had forced his way into the First Scourge, and Wu Tian had nearly been rescued.

While it was unknown why Wu Tian had not left, Di Qiong became increasingly unsettled by that fact. Wu Tian's refusal to escape was becoming a thorn in Di Qiong’s heart.

Lu Yin shared all that had happened with Di Qiong.

Despite her severe injuries, Fei did not receive immediate treatment so that she could also share her observations with Di Qiong.

Frowning, Di Qiong asked, "So, Lu Yuan entered my Third Scourge using the cosmic door that you were given?"

Lu Yin replied gravely, "Yes. Mu Ji suddenly attacked me, and his innate ability is unique enough that he caught me off guard, and he was able to take control of me long enough to steal my cosmic ring before escaping.

"Was Mu Ji not given a cosmic door to the Third Scourge?"

Di Qiong's expression turned frigid. "Mu Ji? Of course not. He's a True God Guard Captain who was injured in the First Scourge. Progenitor Xi sent him here, but since he doesn’t belong to the Third Scourge, he was never given a cosmic door."

When testing the True God Guard Captains to see if they were moles, Mu Ji had not been given a cosmic door, as if he had been a human spy, he would not have bothered to return to the Scourge even if he had a cosmic door.

Ye Bo had been given a cosmic door because of how well suited he was for the Corpse King Transformation. Di Qiong genuinely appreciated this talent, and since Ye Bo had already cultivated divine energy, Di Qiong had been completely certain that Ye Bo could not possibly be a traitor.

As the events had seemingly proven, Mu Ji was the traitor.

He had stolen Ye Bo's cosmic ring to help Lu Yuan rescue Wu Tian. However, why had Mu Ji not informed the Sixverse Association of the announced attack during that earlier test? How had Mu Ji known that Aeternus was actually targeting the Five Spirits Alliance and the Luna Alliance?

Fei went into seclusion. Her injuries were far too severe, as Lu Yuan had shown her no mercy whatsoever. While it had looked like Ye Bo had also been viciously attacked, that bit had been staged.

This was why Fei's injuries were far more serious than Lu Yin’s.

Lu Yin soon returned to his tower as well. Aeternus was completely certain that Mu Ji was the traitor, and he would never be able to return, as there was no denying that Mu Ji had stolen Ye Bo’s cosmic ring.

Forget the Third Scourge—Mu Ji would never be able to return to even the First Scourge.

To get to the First Scourge, it was necessary to pass through the Endless Frontier and then go past Sovereign Dou Sheng. Would Mu Ji dare to take that risk?

Mu Ji had become Lu Yin’s scapegoat.

However, doing this was quite risky for Lu Yin, as if Mu Ji had the means to contact Progenitor Xi, Lu Yin would absolutely be exposed.

Lu Yin had wanted to rescue Wu Tian and then leave himself, as the identity of Ye Bo would have served its full potential then. Unexpectedly, Ancestor Lu Yuan had not taken Wu Tian from the Third Scourge, and this caused Lu Yin’s plans to change. He wanted to check on Wu Tian after a bit of time so that he could understand what was really happening.

Di Qiong went to visit the First Scourge.

"Where is Gu Yizhi?"

Progenitor Xi stared at Di Qiong. "Mu Ji or Ye Bo?"

Di Qiong felt rather puzzled. "Why would you suspect Ye Bo? He has cultivated divine energy."

Progenitor Xi calmly replied, "Until we know for sure, everyone is suspect."

"Mu Ji."

Progenitor Xi showed no sign of surprise. "It’s true that he was a stronger possibility. What about Wu Tian?"

"He didn't leave. He chose to stay, despite having the opportunity to leave with Lu Yuan."

This did surprise Progenitor Xi. "He chose not to leave? Why?"

Di Qiong shook his head. "That’s what I wanted to ask you."

"You think I know?"

"You should know better than me."

Progenitor Xi shook her head. "You're mistaken. I don't know."

Di Qiong observed Progenitor Xi and then said, "He told me that the Three Pillars and Six Skies can't compare to the Three Realms and Six Daos and that he refused to leave because the Three Realms and Six Daos know something that the Three Pillars and Six Skies don't."

Progenitor Xi became lost in her thoughts, and she stared at a lake of divine energy. "There’s an inherent inferiority."

Di Qiong frowned. "I’m not any weaker than Wu Tian!"

Progenitor Xi replied in an unruffled manner, "It’s not simply about strength. Even if you stand on the same level, you have no path forward, whereas he does."

Di Qiong's eyes flickered. "You should know what he was talking about. You were also one of the peak figures of that era. You were in no way inferior to the Three Realms and Six Daos."

Progenitor Xi shrugged. "But I have fallen."

Di Qiong started to say something more, but Progenitor Xi cut him off. "You can go back now. Even if Gu Yizhi knows, he won't tell you."

Di Qiong stared at Progenitor Xi for a long moment. "I don’t care whether you know or not. Wu Tian's life and death can still be decided at my whim, and he will not get another opportunity like this."

Progenitor Xi said nothing.

Right before Di Qiong left, he suddenly asked, "Has the First Scourge confirmed your representative for the Divine Selection?"

Progenitor Xi spoke while her back remained facing the man, "It's confirmed."

Di Qiong moved away and vanished.

Only after he was gone did Ancient God arrive. "He really tries to compare himself to the Three Realms and Six Daos at every turn."

Progenitor Xi looked over at Ancient God. "Why didn't Wu Tian leave?"

Ancient God shook his head. "I don't know. If Lu Yuan knew that he would refuse, he would not have risked trying to rescue Wu Tian. Something must have been said when they met. If Wu Tian mentioned the same thing to me, I might understand, but without knowing what they talked about, I won’t know. You don't know either?"

Progenitor Xi replied, "Of course not."

"Then none of us know," Ancient God concluded.

…

Di Qiong returned to the Third Scourge with an irritated expression on his face. Not only had he not received any answers from Progenitor Xi, but he also felt like the woman had mocked him.

He steeled his resolve. He was determined to humiliate the First Scourge during the next Divine Selection.

Since the First Scourge was so certain that they were the strongest of the six Scourges, Di Qiong intended to humble them.

He summoned Di Xia and Fei and examined the woman’s injuries.

It was clear that she was in terrible condition, and Di Qiong frowned. “Will you recover in time for the Divine Selection?”

Fei thought for a moment, but then she had to inform Di Qiong that she would need more time.

Di Qiong understood that Fei was essentially incapacitated. In fact, she was lucky to have even survived Lu Yuan’s Hidden Needle.

Like the other Scourges, the Third Scourge did not have very many truly powerful experts. The First Scourge was the only exception, and the Fourth Scourge had lost all of its most powerful individuals.

Di Xia most likely surpassed the experts that the other Scourges would send for the Divine Selection, but the First Scourge was different. There was no telling how strong their representative would be. Fei’s injuries made it clear that she was not even close to being able to match Di Xia for the time being, and with her incapacitated, Di Qiong’s Third Scourge would fall to a disadvantage for the Divine Selection.

After considering different possibilities, Di Qiong dismissed the idea of sending Xin Wu.

Instead, Di Qiong’s thoughts turned to Ye Bo. Ye Bo had only overpowered Xin Wu once, but that did not mean that Ye Bo was necessarily stronger. However, Ye Bo possessed a phenomenal talent for cultivating divine energy.

What was the Aeternals most potent weapon? Divine energy.

This indicated that Ye Bo might be a suitable replacement for Fei as a representative for the Third Scourge.

Still, Di Qiong was not certain. “Are you sure that you won’t be able to recover?”

“At best, I can regain 80% of my full strength,” Fei replied.

Di Qiong shook his head. That would not be enough for Fei to measure up to the other Scourges’ representatives. He asked another question, “What do you think of Ye Bo?”

Di Xia spoke up, “He was, able to dodge, my attack. Not bad.”

Fei jumped in, “I defeated him at the Marital Viewing Platform before. It will be difficult for him to match me any time soon.”

Di Qiong knew that replacing Fei would be difficult, but he also saw this as an opportunity. It was already extremely unlikely that Fei would emerge victorious during the Divine Selection, so Di Qiong considered using the event to test Ye Bo. If Ye Bo failed to surpass Fei, the Third Scourge would only be able to rely on Di Xia.

Di Qiong’s thoughts circled as he dismissed Di Xia and Fei and went to speak with Ye Bo.

Lu Yin was in his tower, and Di Qiong’s sudden appearance startled Lu Yin, and he almost reflexively fled, afraid that he had been caught.

“How are your injuries, Ye Bo?” Di Qiong asked immediately.

Lu Yin took a deep breath and then respectfully answered, “Thank you for your concern. They are manageable.”

Di Qiong commented, “Surviving one of Lu Yuan’s attacks with such minor injuries is quite the miracle.”

Lu Yin quickly noted that he had been protected by his divine energy, which had allowed him to dodge while Lu Yuan was focused on Wu Tian.

“I know, Fei already told me. She also saved you,” Di Qiong added.

“Yes. Without Fei, I definitely would have died,” Lu Yin acknowledged.

OMA's Thoughts

Translated By: OMA

Edited By: Neshi/Nyxnox

TLC'ed By: OMA