Star Odyssey

Chapter 1344: Laying Down

Lu Yin had been the one to bring Frostwave Weave up to its current level. When looking at the entire Outerverse, Frostwave Weave had become the center.

It was the economic and trade center, the cultural center, and more importantly, the power center.

Lu Yin had single-handedly established the core of the Outerverse, which had elevated the status of Frostwave Weave’s residents to a higher level than the people of any other weave.

In the past, everyone had hoped to become a citizen of Millions City and settled in Millions City, but at present, everyone wished to become a citizen of Zenyu Star.

Prices on the planet had soared to a level that normal people could not even imagine.

Lu Yin left the Champions’ Stage above Zenyu Star before making a public appearance, thrilling countless people across the Outerverse.

Of course, there were also some people who hoped that Lu Yin would be able to help them with their current problems. The most troubling issue facing everyone was that the Outerverse would soon be given over to the Sixth Mainland.

Lu Yin also wanted to settle this issue, but he had not yet been able to come up with any sort of solution.

The Sixth Mainland was entering the Fifth Mainland. This was an inevitability, and no one could stop it. This was not something that Lu Yin could overcome through cleverness or schemes. Typically, the best way forward when faced with an inevitability was to avoid it. As for whether or not Lu Yin would later be able to return to the Outerverse would depend entirely on how high he was able to climb.

However, the Sixth Mainland would not be moving to the Outerverse quickly, and the western weaves had already begun to migrate towards the east. Still, this was a very long process.

On Zenyu Star, Lu Yin summoned the Great Yu Empire’s top officials.

He held a meeting with the Lu Ministry of Staff, the Lu Ministry of Defense, the Imperial Court’s Cabinet, and also with the full imperial court. After all of that, he met with Bei Qing, the captains of the Thirteen Imperial Squadrons, and more. He made his presence well known during this time.

In King Zishan’s palace, Lu Yin took a sip of a disgustingly viscous green drink, though he was clearly looking forward to it.

Lu Yin nodded and smiled. “Not bad.”

Zhao Ran was happy with the approval.

“By the way, Zhao Ran, have you ever heard of Zi Jing?” Lu Yin asked.

Zhao Ran blinked in confusion, and then shook her head. Lu Yin did not press the matter.

Kayze’s voice reached Lu Yin, “Your Highness, Dwayne Daynight is asking to see you.”

“Please, come in!” Lu Yin called out loudly.

Lu Yin had practically toppled Daynight Flowzone, and at the same time, he had rescued the Dayking’s descendants. All of the Dayking clan had moved onto a planet rather close to Zenyu Star. Since Lu Yin had returned to the Outerverse, naturally people from the Dayking clan wished to meet with him, despite his youth. They had arrived quickly.

Zhuo Daynight did not visit, though Lu Yin did not know why.

Before long, Dwayne Daynight left King Zishan’s palace. He had enjoyed a conversation with Lu Yin, and Lu Yin had promised to continue to help and shelter the Dayking clan. In return, the Dayking clan would offer Lu Yin as much support as possible. It was an agreement of mutual exchange.

The Great Eastern Alliance was growing larger and larger, and it had begun to attract more than just the Outerverse’s powers. Many organizations from the Innerverse also want to join the Great Eastern Alliance.

There were many people who asked to see Lu Yin, but Lu Yin did not see all of them, and was selective with his meetings.

When evening fell, he went to the fifth princess’s estate.

Wendy Yushan had been waiting for Lu Yin. “It’s becoming harder and harder to see you.”

Lu Yin showed a bitter smile. “I’m tired. You don’t show yourself at all.”

Wendy Yushan calmly replied, “None of this has anything to do with me.”

Lu Yin shook his head. “I hope you will eventually take over the Great Yu Empire. After all, this empire was founded by your Yu family.”

Wendy Yushan stared at Lu Yin. “the Great Yu Empire’s people won’t agree to that.”

Wendy Yushan did not feel good about the words she spoke. Although she did not particularly care about the Great Yu Empire, let alone any sort of associated political power, the Great Yu Empire had indeed been created by her family, and yet she was forced to rely on an outsider. Even if this outsider was willing to return the empire to her, she would never be able to reclaim the Yu surname for as long as she lived, which was a bit depressing as it revealed the incompetence of her family.

Lu Yin also had no desire to continue this topic of conversation. It was rather heavy.

In fact, everyone in the Great Yu Empire hoped for Lu Yin to stop being the royal regent and to become the emperor, but unfortunately for all of them, he had no such intentions for the time being.

“How is Elder Su?” Lu Yin asked. He was asking about the place where the remnants of the Yu family had secluded themself, and the Yu ancestor Su Lao, who kept himself in cryostasis at all times.

Wendy Yushan said, “I just went for a visit, but he was still in stasis.”

Lu Yin snorted and then went silent.

He left after staying with Wendy for a long time, and he moved on to the pub that was beneath King Zishan’s palace. It was a very non-descript place, but it gave him an inexplicable peace of mind.

The pub was very dark, so there was no need for Lu Yin to hide his appearance, as others were not able to see him clearly.

He could not even remember how many times he had been to this bar to have a drink.

The entire place was still the same; warm wine served with various snacks. It was a very comfortable place.

There was a commotion at a bar in the distance, but the pub owner had remained quite shrewd, and he had refused to sell the land no matter how much he had been offered for the place. He was determined not to sell.

Soon, Lu Yin heard footsteps behind him. A thin figure walked over and sat down at the table next to Lu Yin’s. They called out in a bleak and hoarse voice, “Boss, bring me a pot of wine.”

Lu Yin stopped drinking. This voice had sent him ten years into the past. He slowly turned his head around to see the pale, thin face through the dim light of the pub. It was her, Jenny Auna.

Lu Yin had not expected to meet her in this place.

The originally high-spirited girl had become extremely haggard. It was as if her entire personality had changed.

If Lu Yin had to choose which woman he had been the most cruel to, it would have to be Jenny Auna. Not only had he ruined her wedding, he had also forced her into a position where she could never escape the shadows of her past. She had become a source of shame for the Auna family, and she carried a heavy burden.

It was hard for a person to stand up and continue after enduring such a situation for so long, and yet that was what Jenny Auna had done.

Lu Yin stared at Jenny Auna for a moment. He could not untangle his own emotions; did he regret his actions? No, he did not. If he had acted differently, the humiliation would have ruined him. Jenny was a pitiful woman, but also despicable.

However, after so many years, Lu Yin’s feelings towards the woman had blurred. The hatred he had first felt for her had long since faded, and only pity remained.

Jenny Auna took a sip of wine. She had accidentally discovered this pub. It was hidden, dark, and did not have a great view, but just above her head sat that person’s home.

Jenny had not felt any hatred for Lu Yin for a long time. They were just people with different positions.

Lu Yin set his glass down and looked at Jenny Auna’s eyes. They were calm. Very calm. This woman had come through her ordeal, but it had also totally changed her. She was not the Jenny Auna of the past.

Jenny noticed someone staring at her, and she lifted her head and looked over at Lu Yin. Her entire body trembled. Her hands shook so bad that her wine glass fell to the table.

Lu Yin lowered his head and poured a glass of wine that he handed to her.

She accepted it. “Thank you.”

Watching her drink, Lu Yin suddenly remembered her words from the past:

‘All I want to do is to marry the person I love. Is that wrong?’

‘I like Yan Feng, so what’s wrong with that? The only wrong that happened is that my family promised me to you. Can you really say that you like me, Lu Yin? I can tell that you’ve never liked me. That ring never represented love; it was just a promise between you and the Auna family. In your eyes, I’m just a tool for a political marriage.’

What’s wrong with me marrying someone I love? I never wanted to hurt anyone!’

‘I never wanted to hurt you.’

Each word she had spoken had revealed her desire to chase after love and freedom. Was that wrong? Lu Yin had asked himself this question many times, and the answer he had come up with had always been ‘no’. She had only wanted to pursue happiness, and yet had ended up suffering.

“I’m sorry,” Lu Yin said quietly.

At the next table, Jenny Auna’s body went rigid with shock. Tears sprung up at the corners of her eyes. She set down her glass, stood up, and left.

Lu Yin watched her leave with a heavy heart. Everyone had to pay for the mistakes of their youth.

He sighed and took another sip of wine before leaving. The wine had become tasteless.

A few days later, Lu Yin set off for Earth. He had already accomplished all he had hoped for during his time on Zenyu Star. One thing he had wanted to do was get close to Da Lei again in order to find out what was wrong with Liuying Zishan by viewing Da Lei’s memories. Unfortunately, Lu Yin had learned nothing.

Lu Yin had never forgotten about the strange matter with Liuying Zishen. There were still some hidden dangers on Zenyu Star, but he was not able to uncover anything this time, and he could not stay on Zenyu Star forever.

He also checked with Ban Jiu about getting a better universal armor, but it seemed that if he wanted one, he would have to go to the Technocracy.

Lu Yin traveled from Zenyu Star to Earth, and his vessel was very fast, so it did not take long before a beautiful blue planet appeared in front of Lu Yin’s eyes. It was surrounded by other planets in its solar system, and out of all of them, Jupiter stood out to Lu Yin the most.

Looking at Earth, Lu Yin remembered his old friends. Along the way, Lu Yin had nearly forgotten about one person: Liu Shaoge. How could Lu Yin ever forget him?

Remembering Liu Shaoge, Lu Yin called Barley.

Barley was still Lu Yin’s eyes and ears in East San Dios. He had been the first person in that place to follow Lu Yin, and he had an innate gift that allowed him to read the vibrations in the air to gather more information than normal.

Barley had not been contacted by Lu Yin for a long time, and the difference in the two’s statuses were getting worse and worse. When Lu Yin had become one of the Ten Arbiters, Barley had lost oll courage to contact Lu Yin. He had never expected to suddenly be contacted by Lu Yin.

“Ar- Ar- Arbiter Lu!” Barley appeared on Lu Yin’s screen and bowed low.

Lu Yin was the strongest of the Ten Arbiters, and not only that, he was the strongest youth in the entire human race, even including the Sixth Mainland. Barley’s admiration for Lu Yin had reached indescribable levels.

If Lu Yin had not been looking at Earth and suddenly remembered Liu Shaoge, he would have essentially forgotten about Barley. “Barley, how’s Liu Shaoge?”

Barley felt terrified by this question, but answered, “He’s no longer in East San Dios. He left before ZENITH started.”

Lu Yin’s eyes narrowed. “Do you know where he went?”

Barley shook his head, feeling nervous. Lu Yin had ordered Barley to keep an eye on Liu Shaoge, but how was that supposed to work? Barley had wanted to report that Liu Shaoge had gone missing, but he had not dared reach out to Lu Yin. “I don’t know.”

Lu Yin considered the matter, but did not blame Barley for not being able to keep watch on Liu Shaoge. It had been an impossible task given Barley’s strength.

Liu Shaoge left before ZENITH? Had he been part of ZENITH? There had been so many people participating that it had been impossible to notice every single person.

“Is there anything unusual about East San Dios?” Lu Yin asked.

Barley thought about this question carefully. “Yes. There was a powerful aura that came to East San Dios before ZENITH, but the powerhouse never showed themselves.”

“A powerful aura?” Lu Yin was curious.

Barley remembered for a moment. “They should have been an Enlighter.”

“Could they just have been passing by?”

“Not likely. Their aura was deliberately kept hidden, and I only was able to sense the person’s strength through the vibration in the air. Not even their power level could be detected by other means.”