Star Odyssey
Chapter 3695: Siege At The Cliff

Chapter 3695: Siege At The Cliff

Shuangdao nodded and exhaled heavily. "I traded a few blows with that man, but I was overpowered the entire time. I was unable to even fight back. If I hadn’t quickly escaped, I would be dead."

As the conscient spoke, he looked at Old Chief. "He possesses immense physical strength, powerful consciousness, mastery over the power of time, and impressive battle instincts. In every manner, I was utterly crushed by him. There is no doubt that he is on the same level as the High Seraph."

This accounting caused Old Chief and the others’ expressions to grow extremely somber.

It was fear of this man that had forced them to leave Yi Rang’s Realm and launch a surprise attack with Endless Road. They had believed themselves successful, only to learn that they had fallen for a diversion.

"The man deliberately lured us away so that he could enter the Willbound Spire, but how did he even know of it?" the woman with the clear, melodious voice questioned.

Gui Shaoqing commented, "The one with him is Emperor Slayer, right? How did he get involved?"

Shuangdao shook his head. "Emperor Slayer suddenly appeared here, drawing me away. Aside from the unknown expert who’s as strong as the High Seraph, there are likely others who have also entered, but I don’t know who."

"The High Seraph," said the only one of the Thirteen Luminaries present who had not yet adopted a human form. Their name was Yu Ye, and they had once spoken arrogantly, fully confident that the trap prepared for the High Seraph would end the man. The conscient despised the idea of taking on a human form. However, at this moment, much of their former arrogance had faded.

The Thirteen Luminaries had lost the initiative. Instead, their assumption that they held the advantage had been used against them.

Old Chief looked towards the hut. How had the High Seraph known that they had left? How had he managed to locate the Willbound Spire? On top of that, why had that unknown expert come straight to the Willbound Expanse? The Thirteen Luminaries had been used, and most importantly, that meant that someone was manipulating their movements.

Everything had started with Xing Jue’s disappearance.

How had the Spirit Nidus managed to seize the initiative? The only answer was that there was a traitor among the Thirteen Luminaries.

"What do we do now? The High Seraph must have avoided our trap and entered the Willbound Spire. Do we wait here for him to emerge?" one of the Luminaries asked.

Old Chief’s expression soured. "We can’t wait... We have to go in. The most valuable thing in the Willbound Spire is the palace at the top of the cliff. Since they’ve entered, their goal is likely that palace. We’ve tried to reach it for years, only to always fail. It’s not that simple to reach it. We’ll wait at the bottom of the cliff. Whoever we see, we kill. That includes the High Seraph."

With evidence of there being a traitor among them, how could he remain passive?

It was highly likely that the High Seraph had known about the trap beforehand, so why would he enter it? There was no point in waiting. It was better to start fighting than to wait.

The most important detail was that the Thirteen Luminaries had failed to reach the palace at the top of the cliff despite countless years of efforts. If the High Seraph was able to reach it, then the conscients might find an opportunity to reach it as well. There was no telling just what they might obtain in the end.

From what Old Chief understood, there was a good chance that the palace hid a path to the Immortal realm.

If he could become an Immortal, then both the Spirit Nidus and the Consciousness Megaverse would be nothing more than fleeting illusions. He would be able to settle everything in an instant.

At this moment, six of the Consciousness Megaverse’s Thirteen Luminaries entered the Willbound Spire, ready to ambush and kill whoever they found beneath the cliff.

With six Luminaries present, they were confident that they could handle even the High Seraph, should he appear. This was also part of their original plan to trap the man.

At this same time, Emperor Slayer looked around inside the Willbound Spire. Where is Lu Yin? That shameless bastard! Didn’t he drag me in here?

The two had been automatically separated the moment they entered the Willbound Spire.

Being alone left Emperor Slayer with mixed feelings.

So far, he had no idea what was going on. After entering the hut, he had experienced an overwhelming gravity and passed out. When he regained consciousness, he had immediately seen Lu Yin, as well as several of the Thirteen Luminaries attacking them. The pressure of their consciousness had been terrifying, and he had only returned to the Willbound Spire as an act of desperation. While it had allowed him to escape from the ambush outside, Emperor Wu still had no clue where he was.

This time, he did not dare to act recklessly. He cautiously looked around. He did not dare to even turn his head too quickly, as he was afraid of what he might see or experience this time.

He even preferred being threatened by Lu Yin. That at least felt safer than being alone in this strange place.

Emperor Slayer’s greatest fear was that Lu Yin and the High Seraph—both of whom were complete bastards—would abandon him and escape, leaving him alone to face the Thirteen Luminaries. How was that any different from condemning him? The more he thought about it, the more bitter Emperor Slayer felt. Still, he did not dare to move. He had not felt so overwhelmed in years.

Gray streams drifted by, and one partially coiled about his arm. When that happened, he started to see memories again. This time, they were all different, and he started to be worn down by the passing of time.

Elsewhere, Lu Yin was surprised to find that he had been separated from Emperor Slayer. While Lu Yin did not particularly care about whether or not he saved the beast, it could prove useful to learn about the Toad Clan. Additionally, Lu Yin was growing increasingly curious about Astral Anura.

The toad was much too weak, being pathetic for his cultivation realm. While Astral Anura was a Dukkhan, he lacked the strength that most Dukkhans possessed. Such weakness gave Lu Yin the impression that the toad’s cultivation had been forcibly elevated to his current level, rather than something he had achieved through diligent effort.

Those thoughts led to further speculation: had Astral Anura cultivated his own strength? Or was it possible that his entire species could naturally mature to a certain level of power?

While it was absurd to consider a possibility that sounded like a wild fantasy, after considering the idea, Lu Yin could not shake the possibility, no matter how far-fetched it might be.

Could there be any species that, simply by living, would reach the level of a Dukkhan? That was simply impossible. Anyone with a shred of common sense would know that it was impossible. Such a thing defied all that was known. Lu Yin believed that even an Immortal like Master Qing Cao would find such an idea impossible to believe. No matter how powerful the Nine Odysseys Megaverse might be, which was the strongest of the megaverses Lu Yin was aware of, such a species could not exist.

However, it was possible that the Nests’ Verdant Sages could reach such a level, that was mostly because they were supported by the Immortal Lord, who was another Immortal.

The real reason why Lu Yin could not drop the thought was the fact that Astral Anura was a toad. Toads were known for being numerous, and they were also capable of changing color.

There were times when inexplicable phenomena in the cultivation world simply mirrored ordinary traits of common creatures. Even if a human became an Immortal, they would not be able to shed their human nature. The same was true of other creatures.

The voice in the memories within the Willbound Spire had eventually pinned their hopes on plants. Unfortunately, plants had also failed, and they had failed precisely because of their very nature.

If Astral Anura really was just one member of an entire species, then it would be unimaginably terrifying.

Emperor Slayer could give Lu Yin an answer, but they had been separated.

As Lu Yin stared at the darkness that surrounded him, he did not know what to do. In this place, he had observed countless memories and experienced the relentless passing of time. The only known way to escape this place was to release his consciousness, which would transfer him to the bottom of that steep cliff, which was also the exit. However, Old Chief and the other Luminaries had already returned. If Lu Yin was in their position, there was no doubt that he would gather his forces at the bottom of the cliff to ambush anyone who attempted to leave.

This was also based on the premise that the only way out of the Willbound Spire was from the bottom of the cliff.

Lu Yin did not move on. He believed that Old Chief and the other Luminaries were there, waiting. On top of that, there was someone else that Lu Yin had not seen within the Willbound Spire: the High Seraph.

Old Chief and the other five Luminaries had indeed entered the Willbound Spire. They were all at the bottom of the cliff, and they had spread out and were prepared to attack any direction at any moment.

They did not wait long when the High Seraph appeared.

The moment the High Seraph appeared beneath the cliff, he glanced over, straight at Old Chief.

"Attack!" Old Chief ordered with a shout. The void twisted under the force of the sudden surge of consciousness. It formed chains that sealed off every avenue of escape.

The High Seraph frowned and immediately brought out Everstone to crush the consciousness. The sequence base spun, snapping all the chains of consciousness as the High Seraph declared, "You are all seeking death."

The Luminaries released their attacks from every direction.

Shuangdao attacked the High Seraph directly with his Frozen Skyblade. However, the blade did not fall fully, but instead sliced into the void, freezing the entire area. The conscient had grown cautious from his encounter with Lu Yin, and for that reason, Shuangdao hoped to avoid close contact with the High Seraph if at all possible.

Directly behind the High Seraph was Gui Shaoqing. His consciousness surged, forming a ripple that swelled forward, roaring as it raced towards the High Seraph’s back.

Consciousness attacks appeared in multiple other directions as all of the Luminaries attacked.

The High Seraph slammed a palm against Everstone. The man’s heart was as unyielding as Everstone, which made him capable of altering the universe and the rest of reality.

All the consciousness surrounding the man instantly dissipated, and as it did so, his other hand attacked Old Chief with Veilparter.

The Luminary’s expression instantly changed, and he pointed a finger forward, causing the edge of a sword to pierce out from the void. "Lower Heaven’s Blade."

A Skyshearer Millstone appeared above the High Seraph’s head and slammed down with tremendous force.

Boom!

Veilparter shattered the Lower Heaven’s Blade, and the High Seraph took a step back. Old Chief’s consciousness was extraordinary. If not for Everstone, the High Seraph would have struggled greatly. Facing these six Luminaries was much more challenging than when he had fought against five of them.

As the Skyshearer Millstone fell, the High Seraph thrust Everstone upwards to meet the descending attack. His Dominion's Mantle was flung out, and it incinerated everything in its path as he targeted Gui Shaoqing. The man’s body shimmered, each flash causing his momentum to rise further and further. This was the Nine Heavens Transformation.

Gui Shaoqing’s pupils shrank as he was struck by an indescribable chill. He could feel the shadow of death fall upon him.

He clenched his teeth and gathered all of his consciousness in the form of an astral beast; specifically, he formed Stillstorm. As the image of the astral beast opened its mouth, his consciousness contracted completely before being unleashed towards the High Seraph in a devastating blast.

The High Seraph countered with Veilparter, but he failed to fully execute the technique. Elsewhere, one of the Luminaries who had yet to attack suddenly started bleeding from all of his orifices. His sudden actions had managed to impair the High Seraph for a single moment.

At the same moment, the blast of consciousness that had shot out from Stillstorm’s mouth slammed into the High Seraph. His eyes lost focus. This was not a physical attack, but rather one that targeted consciousness. When the blast struck, the High Seraph instinctively tried to counter with his own consciousness. Gui Shaoqing’s goal was not to shatter the High Seraph’s consciousness, but rather to induce a brief internal conflict that would daze the man for a moment.

Shuangdao seized the opportunity and instantly appeared, his blade slashing down to strike the High Seraph’s back with a Frozen Skyblade.

At that same moment, the female Luminary stepped forward. Her movements were graceful, and she was holding a flower in her hand as her shadow swept forward, following the finger that she pointed straight at the back of the High Seraph’s head.

All six of the Thirteen Luminaries present had attacked as one. Even with Everstone, the High Seraph found it extremely difficult to fight back against such numbers, and he started to reveal openings.

However, the Frozen Skyblade missed, and the woman’s finger failed to stab into the High Seraph. Shock flickered across every face; where had the High Seraph vanished to?

"Behind you!" Old Chief snapped.

The High Seraph’s image warped. For a moment, it almost appeared illusory, seemingly losing its form and becoming intangible. He looked to be beyond the reach of any creature.

Boom!

Boom!

Both Shuangdao and the woman were blasted back.

"Attack!" Old Chief bellowed.

Again, the six Luminaries attacked in unison. Their consciousness completely filled the area at the bottom of the cliff, producing an incredible pressure.

Even so, their attacks were all held at bay by Everstone.

The High Seraph’s expression turned cold. Everstone was the Spirit Nidus’s third-ranked sequence base, and it also perfectly countered conscients. With it in his hands, the High Seraph was practically invincible in the Consciousness Megaverse. No consciousness could touch him. “So what if there are six Thirteen Luminaries here? All of you will die here today.”

With that, he attacked Yu Ye with a palm strike. They were the only one of the Luminaries present who had not yet taken action.

Yu Ye had never adopted a fixed form. In the High Seraph’s perception, the conscient’s form did not matter. All that mattered was obliterating his target.

"Old Chief!" Yu Ye shrieked.