Star Odyssey

Lu Yin’s current physical state was similar to that war spirit with closed eyes. The moment that war spirit opened its eyes, heaven and earth would dim, and the sun and moon would fade. Lu Yin’s physical strength was constantly being suppressed, so once it was unsealed, his strength would reach an extreme. At this moment, he had only released the first grain of Fatesand. 

Lu Yin did not know how strong Lan Si had been as a Limiteer, but he dared to guarantee that the Arbiter’s strength back then could not surpass his current limit. Lan Si’s public record was Thirty Stacks, and Lu Yin felt like it wouldn’t matter even if the true record was Fifty Stacks. He believed that, when he completely unsealed all three grains of Fatesand, he would be able to handle unleashing more than Fifty Stacks. 

The Overlaying Stacks Path became more difficult the further one progressed, and Fifty Stacks was not as simple as just adding another Twenty Stacks on top of thirty. During the Astral Combat Tournament, Lu Yin had used merely Nine Stacks to defeat Nightqueen Yanqing.

“Your physical strength has surpassed my imagination.” Mu Rong was shocked.

Lu Yin smiled. “Just so long as you’re not disappointed. Now, it’s my turn to attack.”

Many thought it strange as this exchange was nearly identical to Ling Que’s battle with Mu Rong—both young men wanted to retaliate as soon as they successfully blocked an attack from Mu Rong. However, Ling Que had been defeated by the farmer boy’s song. Would Lu Yin face a similar outcome? 

Mu Rong shook his head. “I won’t wait for you to attack, and there’s no need to think about resisting my blow; it’s unavoidable.” 

Lu Yin nodded firmly. “That’s right, but I don’t like to take a beating for nothing. You can think of this as my way of defending. Let’s go!”

Lu Yin then charged at Mu Rong with full speed, the Giant Emperor’s third eye gripped in his hand as he took advantage of the fact that Mu Rong’s forcefield had not recovered yet. His eyes filled with star energy, and in that instance, he reached the point where he could use Secret Sidestep.

When Mu Rong played the farmer boy’s song, it brought forth the full strength of his forcefield, but it required time to play. Although it was very quick, Lu Yin had calculated the windup time through videos and determined that Mu Rong needed roughly three seconds to pull off his attack. This brief window of time was his best opportunity to attack. 

To reach the level where he could display Secret Sidestep, Lu Yin needed to meet three of these four conditions: activate his Cosmic Art, his domain, have his eyes filled with star energy, or use a lockbreaking tool. Due to the Sea King’s constant surveillance, he did not dare to display the Cosmic Art, and if he filled his eyes with star energy, he would be assaulted by so many rune lines that he would start bleeding from his seven orifices. However, as long as he didn’t overdo it, he could still give it a shot. 

The moment his eyes filled with star energy, the terrifyingly enormous amount of rune lines entered his eyes, and scarlet blood began flowing out. At this moment, he had already arrived in front of Mu Rong, where he struck out with Thirty Stacks Fiftyfold Shockwave Palm. 

Mu Rong shifted his body back and stared curiously at Lu Yin; this person should know that he could not land an attack on him if he just relied on just speed. However, Lu Yin had still made the attempt, and his eyes were even bleeding. 

Suddenly, Mu Rong felt his back turn cold. The Lu Yin in front of his eyes had vanished only to reappear behind him. This was not just speed, but was instead a high-level movement technique. He had seen it before, as it was the supreme technique revered by all Lockbreakers: Secret Sidestep. Shit! He can use Secret Sidestep!

The sound of an explosion rang out when Lu Yin’s palm firmly connected with Mu Rong, sending him tunneling through the ground. At the same time, Thirty Stacks erupted, causing consecutive shockwaves to burst forth and unleash visible white ripples that spread through the air. Mu Rong spat out a mouthful of blood, and his entire body was forced beneath the lake. 

Lu Yin hurriedly retracted his star energy from his eyes and wiped them clean since they were indeed bleeding. Being able to see rune lines was not always a good thing, as he was susceptible to being injured from seeing them.

At this moment, Halfwillow Lakeside had fallen silent while everyone stared dumbfoundedly at Lu Yin. He had actually struck Mu Rong, which should be the first time Mu Rong had been hit squarely, and it had been with Thirty Stacks at that.

Wasn’t it said that Mu Rong would counter Lu Yin? What was going on?

Most people could not understand what had happened, as only a few had clearly seen the sequence of events. Those rare few people had an indescribable look of shock in their eyes.

“Secret Sidestep—it’s actually Secret Sidestep!” Ling Que was astounded. Secret Sidestep was not just about speed; rather, it was a supreme evasion technique. It was something that any Lockbreaker could use to avoid crises during lockbreaking. It was the ultimate technique that they all wished to comprehend since it would allow them to evade the many dangers that occurred during Lockbreaking. It’s highly sought after quality was a clear indication of Secret Sidestep’s value, and Lu Yin actually could use it. 

Northgate Lie, Qin Chen, Cheng Wu, and the others were all stunned as well. The current generations of Limiteers were too freakish! 

Michelle and the others had not expected Lu Yin to have comprehended Secret Sidestep, as the only ones who knew were those who had participated in the Outerverse trial in the Shenwu Continent and those who had gone to the Savage Ape Planet to unlock the tree-looking sourcebox. Even if they had publicized the information, it would not have spread across the entire universe since most people did not have access to such privileged information. Hence, when Lu Yin used Secret Sidestep here, it caused a great stir among everyone. 

Hai Dashao was also shocked. Even within the entire Lockbreaker Society, there were extremely few Lockbreakers who could use Secret Sidestep.

The Sea King’s Dome had their own Lockbreakers as well, and the value that Secret Sidestep represented to ordinary people could not compare with what it represented in the eyes of Lockbreakers. At this moment, Lu Yin’s position had leaped to new heights in every Lockbreaker’s eyes, and they were all certain that he would become someone of great value to the Lockbreaker Society in the future.

The majority of people could not recognize Secret Sidestep, so they were more concerned with what had happened to Mu Rong. 

Since arriving at the Sea King’s Dome, Mu Rong had never been directly hit. Even the blades of Que’s Mighty Slash had only given him a minor injury, so no one actually knew about Mu Rong’s endurance. 

Lu Yin looked down as the lake water gradually filled in the place where Mu Rong had landed. He wanted to fill his eyes with star energy and see how many rune lines Mu Rong had left, but he didn’t. That knowledge would not make much of a difference because Lu Yin did not believe that Mu Rong would be defeated that easily. This battle would continue on, but being hit squarely meant that, even if Mu Rong had not been severely injured, he would not be very well off. 

At this point in the battle, Lu Yin had already surpassed Ling Que’s performance. After all, Ling Que had never actually harmed Mu Rong. At most, he had been able to break his skin. Lu Yin, on the other hand, had landed a direct attack on Mu Rong.

Of course, this did not necessarily mean that Ling Que was weaker than Lu Yin, as their battle styles were different. Naturally, their results would not be the same.

The lake water gradually returned to its previous state, until it eventually completely filled the area where Mu Rong had crashed. 

The crowd watched on with bated breath; Mu Rong still had not appeared. Were his defenses really that poor? Right, not everyone could easily withstand a strike of Thirty Stacks, which was Lu Yin’s most powerful attack. Even a normal Cruiser would not be able to ignore it. 

Many had neglected the power of Lu Yin’s Thirty Stacks, because even if the Overlaying Stacks Path was even more ferocious, it meant nothing if an attack missed. However, the reality was completely different if the attack landed.

Lan Yu’s eyes flickered. “Mu Rong lost. The might of Thirty Stacks is not something that can be taken by someone with a weak body like him.”

Beside him, Zhang Dingtian held a different point of view. He had been thrown out of the Skyfall Cascades by Mu Rong’s wooden flute, and in that instant, he had made an extraordinary discovery. Mu Rong was definitely not physically weak, even if his strength was not comparable to Lu Yin or Lan Yu’s. 

In the next moment, atop the lake water of Halfwillow Lakeside, long grass began to grow. A similar scene to before reappeared, and Mu Rong’s forcefield once again revealed itself. What followed was not just the image of a farmer boy herding cattle, but also that melodious song. 

The melodious song of a farmer boy floated through the long grass. It was an unbreakable illusion.

Everyone who was entranced by this farmer boy’s song experienced a different feeling.

Ling Que was experiencing the song for the second time now, but he was still shocked to the core when he heard it. His three blades as one had been defeated by this melody. 

Lu Yin inhaled deeply, as the fight had indeed not ended yet. The farmer boy’s song had finally made an appearance. This song was what Lu Yin feared most about Mu Rong, as he was completely confident in being able to defeat Mu Rong so long as this song didn’t make an appearance. Lu Yin’s body was just too powerful. However, Mu Rong’s attack method through this song was just too mysterious. It was his only path to victory against Lu Yin, and hence, it was the only thing that remained as a point of uncertainty for Lu Yin. 

But even though he was not certain, he still had to face it head-on.

From beneath the lake, Mu Rong slowly walked out, the lake water parting automatically before him. When Mu Rong came into everyone’s view, it was plain to see that his clothes were tattered while fresh red blood trickled down from the corners of his lips. His face was pale, but he continued to play his wooden flute. There was even a palm imprint embedded into his chest, and his injuries were clearly not minor. 

Lu Yin landed upon the surface of the lake and listened to the farmer boy’s song that floated into his ears. His star energy was suppressed, and his body was paralyzed. The farmer boy’s song was not a spiritual force attack; instead, it directly took control of one’s body. This was Mu Rong’s innate gift, and it was an utterly terrifying one. 

This was the reason why the Ten Arbiters had acknowledged Mu Rong as an unequaled Limiteer. Others could only break free of his innate gift’s control if they had an innate gift that greatly surpassed Mu Rong’s. Within the same realm, there were virtually none who surpassed Mu Rong. In other words, once he started playing this song, he would be victorious. 

Others had not experienced it for themselves, and Ling Que had not said anything about it, so none of the spectators understood the terror of this song. At this moment, only Lu Yin was directly experiencing it. 

Lu Yin stared at Mu Rong in shock; to his shock, an innate gift that could directly control someone else’s body actually existed. That was too scary. 

Gradually, Lu Yin’s star energy dissipated as it was dispersed by the farmer boy’s song, leaving him as a tragic cultivator with depleted star energy. At this moment, Lu Yin had nothing he could use aside from his physical strength since he had no star energy left. 

Ling Que’s eyelids twitched. Sure enough, Lu Yin could not withstand the farmer boy’s song either. This sort of innate gift was the most terrifying.

During Mu Rong’s battle against Ling Que, at the final section of the video, the Que's Mighty Slash had vanished first, followed by Ling Que’s doppelgangers. At that moment, Ling Que had decisively lost. However, this time, Mu Rong did not act immediately since he wanted to give Lu Yin the opportunity to admit defeat, which was why he had not sealed Lu Yin’s ability to speak. 

“What a terrifying innate gift. It’s no wonder why you’re an unequaled Limiteer,” Lu Yin sighed in admiration. 

Mu Rong continued playing the wooden flute as he looked at Lu Yin.

“You want me to admit defeat?” Lu Yin asked before shaking his head. “However, I want to try and see if I can break through this unstoppable strength.”

After he spoke, the song strengthened, and Lu Yin’s left hand suddenly slammed into his own head. 

Everyone was dazed; was he committing suicide?

Lu Yin’s eyes went wide, and he released the grain of Fatesand from his left arm and merged it together with the grain of Fatesand from his heart. The next moment, his physical strength suddenly erupted once more, and it jolted the void as a visible aura of strength rippled out. Even though they were quite some distance away, the crowd could sense Lu Yin’s raw physical power. Halfwillow Lakeside could not withstand the tremendous force, and it began to split in half. 

This void in this area was also suppressed, and only powerhouses whose power level surpassed 100,000 could destroy the void and cause cracks to appear. But at this time, Lu Yin’s physical strength was actually enough to distort and destabilize the void. 

At this point, not only was Hai Dashao astounded by what he saw, but even the Sea King became shocked. A tiny Limiteer could actually erupt with such powerful physical strength. 

When Lu Yin had faced off against that war spirit with closed eyes, the moment it opened its eyes, it had unleashed a suppression that could not be resisted. At this moment, Lu Yin’s power was in no way inferior to Mu Rong’s; he merely lacked an innate gift similar to the farmer boy’s song. This also meant that when that war spirit opened its eyes, it could similarly crush Mu Rong, which meant that there was still an extreme disparity between them.