Star Odyssey

Chapter 3951: Why Did You Only Come Now?

Jue Rou covered her mouth as she stared fixedly at Shan Lie with powerful hatred filling her eyes. Clear tears flowed from the corners of both of her eyes. She had had an unusual relationship with Jue Huang.

While most people in the Jue family had believed that their ancestor was dead, Jue Rou and her sister had known the truth; the old woman had been their teacher since childhood.

The sisters were much closer to Jue Huang than they were to their own mother, Jue Ling.

Seeing Jue Huang being tortured caused grief and rage to fill Jue Rou’s mind. She leapt forward, shouting, “Let go of Ancestor!”

Jue Ling quickly blocked the girl. “Get back.”

Jue Rou glared at Shan Lie and roared, “Let go of Ancestor! If you want to kill someone, then kill me!”

“Get back!”

Shan Lie’s head tipped back, and he inhaled deeply. “What a pleasant, comfortable feeling. It’s just perfect. This really is humanity. The wails before death, the reluctance, the sorrow, the fear—it’s all so perfect.

“This really is an addictive feeling.

“At that time, I suggested to not kill those people, and leave them alive instead just so that they could continuously offer me the pleasure of emotional torture. It’s just so satisfying! Yes, this is just right. More. A little more, just a little more.”

While speaking, he used one hand to flay Jue Huang’s arm open.

Jue Rou let out a roar like a madwoman, while Jue Ling’s whole body trembled. Her eyes grew completely bloodshot. “Kill!”

She charged straight at Shan Lie.

His eyebrows rose as he lifted Jue Huang up higher. “Don’t come any closer, or else I’ll eat her.”

His words caused Jue Ling to instantly stop, and she stared at Shan Lie in horror. Eat her?

His statement horrified the entire battlefield.

Death covered the entire battlefield, and people had long since lost count of the number of casualties. And yet, hearing that someone might be eaten elevated the cruelty of this war to another level. This was no longer war, but rather prey fighting off a predator.

All of the humans had forgotten that Shan Lie was not actually human. They were fighting against a swarm of insects.

Shan Lie’s mouth slowly curved up to form a cruel arc. He kept one eye fixed on Jue Ling and the rest of the cultivators while the other eye stayed on Jue Huang. He was enjoying the situation, as he took pleasure in human sorrow. The wails, despair, and overall sense of slaughter while he was in control of everything was addictive.

Jue Huang stared at Shan Lie and struggled to say, “Ki- kill me.”

Shan Lie’s smile grew even brighter, and he licked his lips. “That is a very rude request! You’re trying to stop me from enjoying myself. Humans should be polite.”

As he spoke, he suddenly reached to his other side, where Ye Ge had suddenly appeared. A long spear pierced through space, and time seemed to freeze. The tip of the spear connected life and death together. It was an incredible attack, and it was even Ye Ge’s strongest blow. He was certain that this one would bring him victory.

Not even a peak Dukkhan who had reached that level through their own efforts would dare to ignore this attack.

Even so, the spear was stopped by a single hand. Shan Lie’s head slowly turned until he was staring at Ye Ge. “Human, have you forgotten? I am different from you.”

As he spoke, the back of Shan Lie’s head writhed, and another pair of eyes appeared. “I am a Verdant Sage, born with the combined strengths of an entire universe’s creatures! You humans may rule a megaverse, but that does not make you the greatest beings in the cosmos.

“I have more eyes than you.”

There was a ringing sound as the spear shattered. Shan Lie held Jue Huang with one hand while his other hand reached for Ye Ge’s head, grabbing the man’s skull. Suddenly, Shan Lie turned to look in Jue Ling’s direction. The Jue matriarch was about to attack, but the moment that Shan Lie’s eyes fell on her, she felt a bone-deep chill that prevented her from moving.

Behind Shan Lie, the stone cube slowly drifted up.

“Humans, let me continue enjoying this. These two are not enough. I want more! Come! Let me enjoy this moment more! Let me feel your pain and despair!”

“Beast,” someone growled through clenched teeth. They wanted to rush forward.

At this moment, even Yu Jing was barely able to suppress his desire to charge at Shan Lie.

A battlefield separated people into the living and the dead, but never before had the people on this battlefield ever been so humiliated during a war. Their defeated warriors were being tortured. This was just proof that Shan Lie was not actually a human; he was an insect.

Shan Lie laughed loudly. “Still not moving? I’ll give you one more chance.”

Behind him, Longevity Stele cracked open, and Shan Lie tossed Jue Huang and Ye Ge inside. He then motioned invitingly to everyone else. “They’re inside, and I won’t do anything. You can try to take them back. If you succeed, they’re yours.”

Jue Ling charged forward without any hesitation, attacking the stone cube. Right behind her, Yu Jing and the other cultivators attacked as well. Heaven and Earth as One destroyed a vast number of insects, until Shan Lie and the stone cube were the only remaining enemies in the universe.

People simply refused to believe that, even if they all attacked as one, they could not deal with these two opponents.

The universe shattered beneath the countless attacks that rained down upon the cube, and yet it remained completely unscathed. As for Shan Lie, no one dared to provoke him. All anyone wanted to do at this moment was rescue Jue Huang and Ye Ge. They did not dare to make a move against Shan Lie at all.

The humanoid insect cackled wildly. This was exactly what he wanted to see. The humans hated him completely, but they did not dare to even try to touch him, even as he continued to toy with them. He knew that it was impossible for any of the people present to harm Longevity Stele in the slightest, not unless they used that spirit treasure formation again. But were they even capable of doing so?

One day, two days, three days...

Day after day passed with Jue Ling and many others gritting their teeth as they silently attacked the stone cube. The cube did not try to flee, and it willingly fought against Jue Ling’s group. The occasional attack lashed out, slaughtering a number of attacking cultivators. As for Shan Lie, he was fully enjoying the game of fear that he had created.

Jue Rou glared at him with hate-filled eyes. He saw her expression, but she was showing him the exact look that he savored the most at this moment. The more such looks he received, the better. He wondered if he should capture more humans. It would be a pity to just kill them. It would be better to let others try to save them, causing their despair to grow even deeper.

This thought only served to increase Shan Lie’s excitement, and the eyes on the back of his head shone brighter.

After five days had passed, a green lotus leaf appeared in the distance, arriving at the battlefield in an instant.

The leaf’s green glow illuminated the darkness of outer space, attracting everyone’s eyes, as well as Shan Lie’s attention.

His eyes lit up, and he grew even more excited. “Newcomers! More fun has just arrived, hehe.”

Jue Ling and the others who had surrounded the cube watched as the green lotus leaf came to a stop and a number of cultivators stepped off of it. The expressions of those on the battlefield were grim. Who was among their reinforcement? Would more people even matter? They had fought for so long already, and they had come to truly understand just how terrifying the stone cube’s defenses were. Not only that, but Shan Lie still had not gotten serious. No one could imagine someone capable of breaking the current deadlock.

Very few cultivators in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse had the overwhelming power to surpass the combined might of everyone on the battlefield. However, all of those people were either out fighting against the insects on other battlefields or protecting the Nine Odysseys Megaverse itself. Who could reinforce the Consciousness Megaverse?

If only Lu Yin were present. His combat strength made him unmatched beneath the Immortal realm.

Unfortunately, he had already left for the Allsense Megaverse and had not returned yet. Even if he had... Wait, who is that?

Jue Ling’s eyes bulged when she saw who was standing atop the green lotus leaf. It was such a familiar figure, though one which most people in the Nine Odysseys Megaverse were unwilling to interact with much. Is that... Lu Yin?

Yu Jing stared blankly at the green lotus leaf. Lu Yin? How could he be here?

An indescribable feeling blossomed within the man’s chest. There was excitement, ecstasy, pent-up frustration, and even a sense of suffocation that he could not put into words. Everything had built up like embers in his heart and was about to erupt. Sadly, that fire could deal with neither the stone cube nor with Shan Lie. However, someone who could do both had just arrived.

Jue Rou was on the verge of tears. The moment she laid eyes on Lu Yin, countless grievances welled up in her heart. The pain and darkness of her recent days were dispelled by the green glow of the lotus leaf. She felt as if she had been bullied, only for her family to arrive and stand up for her.

Why are you only here now?

All of the cultivators forgot that they were still attempting to besiege the stone cube as they stared blankly at Lu Yin atop the green lotus leaf. His back was facing Shan Lie, who could not even see how the humans’ eyes were lighting up with hope. All of the despair that he had placed there had been dispelled.

The cultivators who had disembarked from the green lotus leaf looked at the stone cube strangely. What is that thing?

Lord Ting Chao’s eyes narrowed. Jue Huang? She’s still alive? How has she ended up in such a miserable condition?

Lu Yin surveyed the battlefield from his vantage point atop the green lotus leaf. He saw the stone cube and the wretched state of Jue Huang and Ye Ge, who were both inside it. He also saw Shan Lie in the distance, a broad smile on his face that looked repulsive and made him completely out of place on a battlefield.

Lu Yin could not understand why someone could show such a smile on the current battlefield. Why is he not helping to attack the cube? That cube’s a bug, isn’t it? How strange.

Lu Yin stepped down and moved over to Jue Ling and the others. “Is this the only insect left?”

Jue Ling opened her mouth to answer, only for Jue Rou to step forward and whisper in Lu Yin’s ear. The younger woman’s eyes were completely bloodshot.

Lu Yin’s expression fell as he listened. His gaze swept past the stone cube to lock onto Shan Lie’s distant form. A frigid killing intent flickered in Lu Yin’s eyes.

Cultivators from Skyveil City had felt Lu Yin’s killing intent once before, but this time, feeling his bloodlust gave them an indescribable sense of safety.

Lu Yin looked away, focusing back on Jue Rou. He raised a hand to wipe away her tears. “I understand. Leave this to me.”

Jue Rou pursed her lips. “Thank you! Thank you! Please, you must save Ancestor. I beg you!”

Lu Yin just gave her a faint smile while patting her head. He then turned to look at Shan Lie. “Do you like to play?”

Shan Lie stared at Lu Yin, looking the man up and down. “You seem a bit unusual. These people are starting to have some hope. Human, what’s your name?”

Lu Yin coolly replied, “What about you? What’s your name?”

“You’re being rather rude. I asked you first.”

“But I’m more interested in learning your name.”

“Why?” Shan Lie was growing increasingly curious.

Lu Yin clasped his hands behind his back. “Because it’s polite.”

Shan Lie stared at Lu Yin blankly for a moment, and then he erupted with laughter. “Human, you’re interesting! I can tell that you’re not afraid of me.”

“Why should I be afraid of you?”

“Didn’t they tell you about me? That crying girl looks at me with the most hate and sadness—I love it! However, your arrival has chased that pleasure away, so you must pay a price.” As Shan Lie continued speaking, his tone grew colder and his expression darker.

Lu Yin nodded. “I agree. So, tell me, how do you want me to pay?”

Shan Lie’s eyes narrowed. His gaze swept the battlefield. Hope. It filled the eyes of the humans in front of him. Not only did this ruin his moment of enjoyment, but it also brought him a sense of unexpected danger.

Humans were not weak. He had been warned beforehand that there were humans present who could cause others to change their attitudes. Clearly, something was off about the situation, so it was necessary to test this man out first.

“Human, you also want to save those two, don’t you? Unfortunately, your arrival ruined my pleasure, so I’ll have to kill one of them.” As he spoke, Shan Lie looked over at Longevity Stele. “Kill.”

Inside the stone cube, countless small cubes instantly formed a sword that slashed at Jue Huang.

Jue Rou’s pupils shrank, and she screamed, “No-!”

The sword fell, though Longevity Stele still looked like a cube on the outside. No matter how Jue Ling and the others attacked, they could not even cause a scratch. Shan Lie stared at Lu Yin. Show me what you can do.

He would use Longevity Stele to force out Lu Yin’s true strength.

If this human was not even able to overcome the stone cube’s defenses, then there would be no need for any further testing, and Shan Lie would be able to resume his entertainment.

Where is he?

In an instant, Lu Yin had vanished from Shan Lie’s sight. The insect’s eyes immediately turned to the stone cube.

Time seemed to slow down. As Shan Lie watched, Lu Yin reached out with a hand. It broke through the stone cube and seized the descending sword, stopping it when the tip was less than a centimeter away from Jue Huang.

Shan Lie could not believe his eyes. Just like that? So easily?