Star Odyssey

“Captain, headquarters has contacted us again, asking us to not interfere in Armament Weave’s war. The person in charge of Armament Weave, Mo Si, has also indicated that he won’t help the Wei family with transportation related issues anymore, as the Great Eastern Alliance’s pressure is too great,” someone reported. 

Bach was not bothered in the least. “The Great Eastern Alliance? So what? Is my Endless Borders afraid?” 

“Then what about headquarters?” 

“Don’t rush to reply. Just wait until the war’s over. Then tell them that we were in a dangerous area and weren’t able to find the time to reply,” Bach said. 

“Yes, captain.” 

Bach sneered as he looked at the star chart. Only with a deep understanding of Endless Borders would one be able to see that it was truly a colossal creature. Although he was unsure how strong the other three great corporations of the Outerverse were, who cared if some puny Great Eastern Alliance had managed to suppress Aegis before? 

Endless Borders’ greatest wealth was in its secret routes. Even if the Great Eastern Alliance wanted to send out experts to deal with Bach, they had to find him first. These secret routes were nothing like an assassin’s concealment methods. Secret routes were basically isolated parts of the universe, and few could find such a place, let alone cause Bach any trouble when he was hiding there. 

If Endless Borders ever wanted, they could completely withdraw into their secret routes and then target any power they wished while hiding without any fear of retaliation. 

This was the source of Bach’s confidence, as there was no need for him to fear anyone, especially since he knew some secret routes that not even Endless Borders was aware of. Even if the entire forces of the Great Eastern Alliance turned up, they could only dream of finding him. 

He had coerced Mo Si into helping the Wei family transport their troops for a month, and the Great Eastern Alliance had only been able to watch on helplessly. 

As he thought about it, Bach became even more satisfied, and he put a cigarette between his lips to celebrate. The smoke curled up, which was rather irritating. Bach frowned. Is something wrong with this smoke? Why is there so much of it? 

Suddenly, his heart lurched. Not good!

He had forgotten about someone. 

The next moment, the smoke twisted about like a python and entered Bach’s body through his various orifices. Bach was a Hunter with a power level of 180,000, an innate gift, battle force, and multiple power vessels. He had spent years painstakingly cultivating and gathering all of these items and abilities, but at this moment, none of them mattered. White smoke entered Bach’s body, but a red smoke emerged, carrying all of Bach’s blood with it. 

His body rapidly shriveled up, and it eventually turned to a dried corpse that fell to the floor. 

When the other crew members eventually entered the room, they were greeted with a terrifying scene. Bach had clearly died without even being able to retaliate. 

Nobody was able to find the secret routes that Bach had kept to himself, but Smoker was different, and their methods were mysterious. Despite being a Hunter, they had once infiltrated the Blaze Realm, which had multiple old powerhouses with power levels in the several hundred thousands. Although they had not succeeded in their assassination attempt, they had still managed to escape unscathed, and not even the various great powers of the Innerverse had been able to discover their methods. 

Nobody knew how Smoker had done such a thing, no matter if it was infiltrating the Blaze Realm in the first place or their feat of escaping alive. Even powerhouses with power levels of 300,000 or even 400,000 might not be able to do what Smoker had. This was the top ranked assassin in the Outerverse, and they were an unconventional existence that even the Innerverse dared not offend. 

News of Bach’s death spread quickly, and while the majority did not know who Bach was, those who did all had uncommon statuses. 

Many were left speechless, as Bach had died at Smoker’s hands, and everyone had already associated Smoker with Lu Yin. Coincidentally, the Great Eastern Alliance was at war with Armament Weave, and the one who had been helping Armament Weave transport its soldiers, reinforcements, and resources was Endless Borders. 

As long as they were not foolish, anyone could guess that Smoker had been hired by Lu Yin. 

Lu Yin felt better, as Smoker was always extremely reliable, and Lu Yin even considered upgrading his membership once again. Eventually, Smoker would be wrapped up by all the natural treasures that Lu Yin had sent to the assassin, and then, Lu Yin would be able to use the assassin as his own personal club. Of course, it would be better if Smoker just joined the Great Yu Empire. 

After Bach died, Endless Borders immediately put a stop to their cooperation with Armament Weave, and Liuying Zishan immediately deployed more troops to the battlefield. As long as the Allied Forces wiped out the batch of enemies before them, they would be able to quickly advance into the depths of Armament Weave. 

Beep beep beep beep!

Lu Yin looked at his gadget and saw that he was being called by an unknown number. He answered the call, and a voice sounded out. “Alliance Leader Lu, this is Endless Borders’ Chairman Yan.” 

Lu Yin’s eyes flickered. “Boss Yan, are you finally willing to talk?’

“Alliance Leader Lu, what you did was overboard.”

Lu Yin responded in a low voice, “Does Boss Yan understand the importance that this war holds to my Great Eastern Alliance? Your subordinate helped my enemy, the Wei family, and do you know what losses I suffered due to his interference?” 

“Everything that was done, was done within the rules. Endless Borders helps with transport. Be it goods or humans, everything is acceptable.” 

“If that’s the case, then I would like to hire Endless Borders to transport my Great Eastern Alliance’s troops to Myriad Weapons Planet. Name your price,” Lu Yin stated. Myriad Weapons Planet was the ancestral home of the Wei family. 

The opposite party fell silent for a moment and then replied, “Alliance Leader Lu, my Endless Borders has no intention to participate in struggles between other powers, as you should know.” 

“I did not ask you to intervene in this dispute. You said it yourself: transport can involve goods or humans, and safety is guaranteed. My millions of soldiers need to step onto Myriad Weapons Planet,” Lu Yin said. 

“It seems that today’s not a good day to talk. Alliance Leader Lu, being too smart may cause your own downfall, so please take care.” The call then abruptly ended. 

Lu Yin directly immediately called Madam Nalan, and his first words to her were, “Tell me more about Endless Borders.” 

She helplessly held her forehead. “I already know that Bach was killed by Smoker on your behalf.”

“He helped the Wei family transport military resources, which caused massive losses for me. How could I have convinced the masses if he didn’t die?” Lu Yin said firmly. 

She sighed. “Alright, you’ve already offended Endless Borders with this.”

Lu Yin smiled. “Aegis was just the first, and Endless Borders is merely the second. There’s no worries, as we’ll take things slowly. Just so long as I don’t offend you.”

“Oh? And why is that so?” Madam Nalan licked her red lips as she looked at Lu Yin with her bright eyes. 

Lu Yin’s heart sped up under her stern gaze, and he embarrassedly changed the topic. “Quickly tell me more about Endless Borders and what their overall situation is like. Also, why doesn’t their board of directors have any control over their expedition crews? I’ve never heard of such an organizational structure before.” 

“For Endless Borders, I’ve already mentioned that their background is very deep, and they have found numerous secret routes. Even Innerverse powers have tried to take control of those secret routes, but to no success. Endless Borders’ foundation is even able to withstand the great powers of the Innerverse.” 

“That’s too general. I want to know some details,” Lu Yin urged.

She replied, “Actually, Your Highness doesn’t have to be too worried about Endless Borders. Rather than calling it a large corporation or a company, they are more like a guild. Specifically, they are one that existed long ago that was never recognized: the Adventurers' Guild.” 

“A guild?” Lu Yin was astonished, as this kind of organization sounded rather foreign to him. 

She continued her explanation, saying, “The universe is seemingly endless, and there will always be a need for people to go out and explore it. Thus, the Adventurers' Guild rose to the occasion, though that was a very long time ago. Initially, the Adventurers' Guild was a gathering place for cultivators who were passionate about nothing besides exploring, and it could have even been considered a hobby group. But as time went on, many of the rare items that they unearthed were sold for extravagant prices, and their nature changed into more of a profit-driven organization. Despite their successes, they had their own struggles… After many ups and downs, the Adventurers' Guild gradually developed a more structured system, which culminated in the guild taking all of the profits. Nobody, not even their President, can privately take a portion.” 

“Reportedly, the Hall of Honor wanted to take over the Adventurers' Guild, but anyone who joined such a guild did so to preserve their freedom, and they did not want to be supervised no matter what. Hence, the Adventurers' Guild changed its name upon the suggestion of its president at that time, and they became Endless Borders. They expanded into the transportation business and exploited their secret routes. This is the true history of Endless Borders.” 

She paused for a moment before continuing on. “What we see, or rather, what the majority sees is just the surface of Endless Borders. They are still inherently that same Adventurers' Guild from the past, and their main passion is still for exploration and risk-taking. Thus, they are primarily gathered in… the Astral Wilderness.” 

Lu Yin had not expected to learn such a thing about Endless Borders, as he had honestly believed them to be a mammoth corporation. “Why haven’t you ever told me any of this before?” 

She smiled. “I didn’t expect Your Highness to offend them so quickly, but that’s still alright. As I said before, Your Highness doesn’t need to be overly concerned about Endless Borders. They are more relaxed, and they don’t have the same ideologies as other financial powers. This is also the reason why their board of directors cannot restrict their expedition crew captains. You hired Smoker to kill Bach, which will, at most, cause a few people within Endless Borders to be unhappy. However, Bach can only blame himself for his ending, so there should not be any retaliation.” 

Lu Yin felt reassured, as he did not want to create new enemies for nothing. 

“However, Your Highness must still be cautious. Although Endless Borders might not retaliate against you for this matter, if you ever truly become enemies, their strength is rather terrifying in terms of revenge. Aegis was only able to send out Lord Egret, but Endless Borders may be able to send out far more. Nobody knows how much strength is stationed within the Astral Wilderness, and it’s possible that even the Hall of Honor might not know,” Madam Nalan cautioned. 

Lu Yin replied, “I understand. They are able to explore the Astral Wilderness, and that’s something only the great powers of the Innerverse are generally capable of. If Endless Borders has the confidence to do the same and has existed for this long, then their foundations must be incredibly deep.” 

“As long as Your Highness understands. The Outerverse is the weakest region in the universe, but it covers a vast amount of space. Many powers want a piece of this pie, but the four great corporations have long been able to tower at the peak and spread their influence across multiple weaves. Your Highness cannot look at things with a narrow mind, and that even includes the fact that Aegis gave in to you. Nobody knows how strong those assassins who are still in stasis really are.” 

Lu Yin had never underestimated Aegis, and he had always kept them in mind. Granted, he would not underestimate the other great corporations either, especially the Nalan family. They were widely known as the wealthiest family and were ranked on the same level as the other three major companies. Thus, their true face was definitely not as simple as it appeared to be. This temptress was someone from the Sword Sect’s Liu family, and she had married into the Nalan family. But even before she had married into the Nalan family, it had already been known as one of the four great corporations. 

This conversation with Madam Nalan allowed Lu Yin to understand Endless Borders a bit better. In the end, it was an organization that revered freedom. Although this organization might seem scattered and undisciplined, if he was someone who wielded power within the Hall of Honor, he also would not allow an organization with the name “Adventurers' Guild” to exist. 

Freedom was something very important to independent cultivators. If something called the “Adventurers' Guild” was allowed to exist, countless independent cultivators would naturally flock to the organization, and it would invariably become a colossal organization. He understood why the Hall of Honor had wanted to assimilate this organization in the past. 

Since they had rejected the Hall of Honor, that meant that this organization was being supervised. Their strength could not be weak, but it also not be overly powerful. Otherwise, the Hall of Honor would not have let them escape.