Star Odyssey

Chapter 3432: Mutual Immobilization

While traveling through the Spirit Nidus, Lu Yin had repeatedly thought back to his interactions with True God, and he recalled one detail in particular: Feng Bo.

Feng Bo had not been from the Tianyuan Megaverse. True God had connections to other megaverses, and it was clear that his knowledge went beyond the three major megaverses. It was very possible that the alliance between the High Seraph and True God had only ever been superficial.

Verdant King had pretended to be under Yan Gang’s control in order to avoid falling under True God’s influence, and he had made it a point to alleviate True God’s suspicions.

In a similar manner, it was possible that True God might have feigned cooperation with the Spirit Nidus while pursuing his own agendas.

Plots layered atop plots.

Boundless changed course, which immediately drew the attention of countless people all across the Spirit Nidus.

No one had any idea what Boundless’s destination was, so they all believed that a change in course might offer some clue.

Many cultivators, including Spirit Ancestors and sequence powerhouses, were secretly following Boundless. Lu Yin even faintly sensed a threat, which suggested that they were also being shadowed by Ortusers. There was no shortage of powerful cultivators in the Spirit Nidus.

After learning about the Lesser Spirit Megaverse and analyzing the High Seraph, Lu Yin had already succeeded in uncovering some of the secrets in the branch stream of the River of Aeons. The vanguard of their invasion force had seemed quite formidable, given that three Seraphs had taken part. However, at the core, the invasion had been hollow. While the Seraphs were quite strong, the Tianyuan Megaverse had already proven itself capable by defeating Aeternus and was definitely able to withstand three Seraphs. The true disparity between the two megaverses lay in the number of sequence powerhouses and peak powerhouses.

With the numbers of such experts in the Spirit Nidus, the vanguard could easily have included several times more sequence powerhouses, making the vanguard an even sharper blade. However, that had not happened. The High Seraph had no intention of actually resetting the Tianyuan Megaverse. He merely sought to suppress its future potential, since Aeternus had failed to accomplish that. That also explained why the first wave of invaders had not been overwhelmingly powerful.

Lu Yin would not underestimate the Spirit Nidus, but fully understanding this place required more time.

“Is the Cai family able to control an entire domain?” Chu Yi asked Cai Jun, curious about this matter.

With Chu Yi focused on him, Cai Jun respectfully replied, “The Cai family patriarch, Cai Sandao, ranks ninth on the White Spirit List. Such strength fully qualifies him to rule over a domain. While the thirty-six domains are fixed in number, the domains and universes themselves are not predetermined.”

Lu Yin recalled when the strongest cultivators in the Origin Universe had merely been Semi-Progenitors. In contrast, Cai Sandao was ranked on the White Spirit List, which meant that he had a 90% chance of eventually surpassing the sequence powerhouse level and becoming an Ortuser. Ruling over a domain was not unreasonable for such a person. After all, he was about as strong as the Seven Skygods.

“Aside from Cai Sandao, what other experts are in the Cai family?”

“The Cai family has another sequence powerhouse who cultivates the thirty-seventh-ranked sequence technique: Mutual Immobilization.”

Lu Yin was puzzled. “Mutual Immobilization? What does that mean?”

Cai Jun shook his head. “I’m not familiar with the details.”

Yuan Qi explained, “If the opponent doesn’t move, I don’t move. If I don’t move, the enemy similarly cannot move. It is a law of the universe that forcibly immobilizes an opponent through the use of sequence particles. Unless there’s a significant disparity in strength between the two’s sequence particles, an opponent won’t be able to break free from Mutual Immobilization.”

“So there are even sequence particles like that?” Ce Wangtian was surprised.

Yuan Qi nodded. “This law of the universe is incredibly effective when used skillfully. In the history of the Spirit Nidus, a sequence powerhouse who cultivated Mutual Immobilization once used the sequence technique to restrain a Seraph for ten breaths’ of time. While that may seem brief, it’s long enough to determine life or death, even if it is a Seraph who is being surrounded and attacked.

“This sequence technique is best suited for ambushes rather than open combat. For this reason, it carries a particular significance among the eighty-eight sequence techniques.”

Lu Yin was impressed. “Is there actually such a law of the universe? It seems it would be quite well suited for a sequence base-”

Lu Yin abruptly stopped speaking, and his head snapped around to look at Cai Jun. “What sequence technique does Cai Sandao cultivate?”

Cai Jun replied, “Mutual Immobilization.”

Lu Yin arched a brow and turned to Yuan Qi.

The Seraph met his gaze. “That’s correct. The Cai family focuses on cultivating Mutual Immobilization because of that ancient expert who once succeeded in immobilizing a Seraph for ten breaths.”

Lu Yin’s eyes narrowed. “Is that how sequence bases are created?”

Yuan Qi nodded.

With its unified cultivation system and spirit seeds, the Spirit Nidus could determine very early on which sequence technique a person was best suited for.

There were eighty-eight sequence techniques, and they varied in difficulty. The ones ranked lower were easier to cultivate, but the megaverse’s ten sequence bases had mostly been formed from the sequence particles of low-ranked sequence techniques. The corresponding laws of the universe were rarely voluntarily chosen by cultivators, due to their limited utility. For example, Mutual Immobilization was only effective in group combat situations. In a one-on-one battle, the law was practically useless.

Given that, why would anyone cultivate such laws of the universe?

It was due to the pressure created by a unified cultivation system. The Cai family most likely did not want to cultivate Mutual Immobilization. Rather, they had likely been forced to do so. The fact that Cai Sandao had managed to be ranked ninth on the White Spirit List proved his extraordinary talent. He was truly among the best in the entire Spirit Nidus. Had he not been restrained by his sequence technique, he might have been ranked even higher.

A unified cultivation system sacrificed individuals for the benefit of the whole.

The Cai family was nothing more than the tip of the iceberg. Throughout the thirty-six domains, countless factions had sacrificed themselves for the Spirit Nidus, dedicating themselves to cultivating sequence techniques that were of little personal use. It was all so that they could contribute to the creation of a sequence base before dying.

The Gate of Laws, which was where sequence bases were constructed, was both the Spirit Nidus’s sacred grounds, as well as its graveyard.

From another perspective, the Spirit Nidus cared little about individual sacrifices. This suggested that there were too many powerful individuals and that their numbers had saturated the system. Introducing even more might lead to chaos.

Lu Yin hoped that his suspicions were not accurate, but everything he had learned so far suggested that he was correct.

The High Seraph’s confidence, as well as the sacrifices made by the Cai family and other factions, all pointed to one thing: the overwhelming might of the Spirit Nidus.

Old Tao glanced at Cai Jun and then at Lu Yin. “Actually, the Cai family has another sequence powerhouse.”

Lu Yin was surprised. “Another one?”

Cai Jun immediately denied the possibility. “That’s impossible. The Cai family only has two sequence powerhouses: Cai Sandao and Cai Keqing. There isn’t a third.”

Old Tao shook his head. “Every family or sect has its own hidden strength. The Cai family is no exception to that, though their hidden power isn’t as strong as Cai Sandao.

“Cai Fei.”

Cai Jun shouted, “Ancestor Cai Fei?”

Old Tao nodded. “Cai Fei is still alive, and he remains in the Cai Domain.”

“How could that be? Ancestor Cai Fei has been dead for many years. No one in the Cai family has mentioned him in a long time. In all my years with my family, I only heard my parents mention him once, and that was when speaking of the distant past,” Cai Jun protested incredulously

Old Tao chuckled. “He’s still alive. We met once, before I went to Beacon City. You shouldn’t be so surprised—Cai Fei’s strength isn’t strong enough to make it onto the White Spirit List, and things are simply what they are. Because he cultivated Mutual Immobilization, he’s restricted to ambushing opponents from the shadows.

“Whenever someone threatens the Cai family, Cai Sandao will take the lead, while Cai Fei and Cai Keqing will attack from the shadows. This is the real reason why the Cai family is able to rule over the Cai Domain. Aside from youths like you, many are aware that the old man still lives.”

“The Gate of Laws hasn’t forced him to go to the Gate Domain?” Yuan Qi asked in confusion.

With a question from Yuan Qi, Old Tao grew respectful. “His time has yet to come. Cai Fei once consumed a peculiar plant, which granted him a vitality that far surpasses his peers. Besides, the Gate of Laws cannot force every dying powerhouse to enter the Gate Domain and await death.”

Yuan Qi sneered. “Cannot? Do you know how sequence bases are made? Count how many sequence powerhouses died to create the ten sequence bases. It’s a terrifying number.”

Old Tao did not argue. When it came to many matters, Yuan Qi was still more informed about the Spirit Nidus than Old Tao, despite the Seraph’s long absence from the megaverse.

It was all a matter of perspective.

“It’s decided. We’ll go to the Cai Domain and seek justice for Cai Jun,” Lu Yin announced as Boundless set a course for the Cai Domain.

At this same time, in the Cai Domain, Cai Junhao, the eldest son of the direct line of the Cai family, was staring at a palm-sized piece of metal in the sunlight, fascinated by it. “I never imagined that that idiot Cai Jun’s parents would leave him something so valuable.”

“What treasure has made you so happy, Brother?” a crisp voice asked.

Cai Junhao never looked away from the metal. “Do you recognize this?”

The newcomer was Cai Junhao’s younger sister, Cai Junyi. She studied the metal. “It’s entirely blue, but it has a shifting crimson glow. Inside, it flows like water: sometimes surging, sometimes calm.

“Is this a crimazure crystal?”

Cai Junhao smirked. “Precisely! It’s a crimazure crystal! A metal that’s regarded as one of the best raw materials in existence. While we can’t use it, we can sell it to the Ascendant Hall or the Daquan Domain’s Chamber of Commerce for an astronomical price.”

Cai Junyi was thrilled. “A crimazure crystal? How did those two get their hands on this?”

Cai Junhao put away the metal. “That no longer matters, as it now belongs to us.”

He looked at Cai Junyi and praised her. “You did well, Little Sister.”

The girl grinned smugly. “That idiot Cai Jun actually thought that he could stand on the same level as us. While his parents were alive, we had to show him some respect, but with both of them gone, there’s no longer any need to pretend.”

The conversation between Cai Junhao and Cai Junyi was just one example of the Cai family’s internal conflicts. Boundless was en route, and such schemes would soon end. Whether or not Cai Jun could reclaim what rightfully belonged to him would soon be determined.