Star Odyssey

Chapter 405: Avery’s Test

Coco softly said, “Sister Zora, it doesn’t sound like he’s lying. Should we tell him about the illusions?”

“Illusions? What illusions?” Wu Da’s ears perked up, and his eyes gleamed. His sense of hearing was extremely sensitive.

Coco jumped in fright and immediately stopped speaking.

Zora looked at Wu Da in an unkind manner. “Don’t think that I don’t know about you. You’ve already become accustomed to being chased every day. You’re probably not afraid of anyone in the Astral Combat Academy, which just makes you a pain in the neck. We have no comments, so you can ask Lu Yin himself if you wish to know more.”

Wu Da’s face soured. “Come on, sister. I can guarantee that whatever you tell me won’t lead back to you.” 

Zora no longer bothered with him after that.

Wu Da’s pleas fell on deaf ears, and his weedling went on for too long because a dozen students suddenly appeared, all intent on killing him. In the end, he could only run away faster than a rabbit.

Wu Da was by no means alone. Everyone else was also curious about what Lu Yin and the rest had encountered. However, Zora and Coco only stood at the shore, silently staring into the ocean without speaking. 

It didn’t take long for Michelle, Darkvoid, Meng Yue, and the other students from Astral-10 to arrive at the shore as well. They were all awaiting the results of Lu Yin’s attempt to cross the Ocean of Death.

Astral-10’s current reputation was completely different from when the students had first entered the Astral Combat Academy. Now, there was no one who dared to act against them. Even if Lu Yin graduated in the near future, Xia Luo and the rest still were not people who should be trifled with.

Far across the Ocean of Death, Kuang Wang used his star energy to form a boat that wobbled on the surface. The water was even more murky here, and a dark yellow color covered the ocean surface.

“The Ocean of Death’s rate of dissolving star energy is increasing,” Kuang Wang spoke solemnly.

Feng Shang frowned. “How long can you last?”

“At this rate, two days tops. If it gets any worse, then maybe not even one.”

“That means that, not counting Lu Yin, we have another three days or so left. Brother Lu, how long can you last?” Xia Luo asked as he turned towards Lu Yin.

Lu Yin muttered, “I”m not sure. The rate of dissolving might still increase. Conservatively, maybe a day.” 

“Four days? Our group has spent around ten days sailing across this Ocean of Death so far, and it would be frustrating if we don’t reach the other side even after all this,” Feng Shang complained in frustration.

A thought flashed through Lu Yin’s mind, but it quickly passed before he could fully grasp it. He was rather annoyed—he was sure that that thought was useful, but for some reason, he could not recall it.

Suddenly, the Ocean of Death quivered, which left them at a loss.

Lu Yin scanned his surroundings, and then finally looked towards the bottom of the ocean. His face drastically changed. “Careful, something’s coming up from the bottom!”

“Impossible! Things can live at the bottom?” Kuang Wang was startled, as he had never heard of such a thing before.

No one could answer him, as not even Lu Yin could tell what would emerge from the bottom of the ocean.

The trembling intensified, and a moment later, a jet of water shot into the sky, forming a pillar beside the small boat. It grazed past Kuang Wang’s shoulder, which burst open, and then fell back into the ocean again. 

They were all stunned; there had been nothing there whatsoever!

Xia Luo glimpsed a smear of red in the water, and as he turned to look at Kuang Wang, his face changed. “You’re injured.”

Kuang Wang was shocked as well. He touched his face and was overwhelmed by what he had just witnessed. The pillar of water had only lightly touched his face, but just that had been enough to injure him. That seemingly non-threatening pillar of water had actually been that powerful. 

Lu Yin’s face changed, and he looked towards the bottom of the ocean again. He used his star energy to adjust the boat’s position as another soaring water pillar rose into the sky, only to also splash apart, oddly reminiscent of a fountain. 

“Senior Kuang Wang, speed up and let’s leave!” Lu Yin ordered sternly.

Kuang Wang did not hesitate in the slightest. He immediately increased the boat’s speed as the soaring pillars of water emerged from behind and chased after them.

After travelling for half a day, the strange water pillars finally vanished.

Kuang Wang panted heavily, and shook his hands. “No more. Feng Shang, take over!”

Feng Shang had no choice but to form a boat with his star energy and take over for Kuang Wang. Their rapid flight from the pillars of water had taken a heavy toll on Kuang Wang.

Lu Yin had an ugly expression, as it had turned out that the Ocean of Death could actually attack autonomously, which was just too devious. He involuntarily turned around, which let him view something inconceivable and even horrifying; he saw a pair of eyes in the Ocean of Death, which were undoubtedly human eyes. There were people in the Ocean of Death. 

Lu Yin immediately raised his hand and unleashed a Spacerender Palm at the Ocean of Death, which caused a giant whirlpool to appear on the surface.

The pair of eyes sank downwards and vanished from sight.

Lu Yin’s heart raced as a chill ran down his spine. He had just seen a human, but that was impossible, as no human could possibly survive inside the Ocean of Death. It should actually be a war spirit, just one that was incomparably powerful and even had a sixth sense for danger. That ability must be an innate gift, or else the war spirit would not have been able to avoid his attack.

“Brother Lu, what happened?” Xia Luo and the others were bewildered as they turned to look at him, and then back at where he had struck the Ocean of Death.

Lu Yin spoke in a low tone. “Those water pillars were not an attack from the Ocean of Death, but rather from a war spirit.”

“A war spirit?” Kuang Wang was alarmed. “That’s impossible! A war spirit wouldn’t let us go after meeting us, and it wouldn’t run from an attack either.”

Xia Luo replied, “Not necessarily. If the war spirit was birthed from someone with a strange innate gift, then it could actually use that to hide.”

“No wonder I keep feeling chilly; so it’s actually the attacks from the war spirit. If it’s in this location, the person who birthed it must have been terribly strong. Could it have been one of the Ten Arbiters?” Feng Shang guessed.

Lu Yin shook his head. “That’s impossible. If it was a war spirit from the Ten Arbiters, then it would have never remained hidden. Instead, it would have immediately moved to take us all out.”

“Brother Feng, please stop scaring us. The Ten Arbiters may have crossed the Ocean of Death, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they formed war spirits. What can we do if we really run into one of them?” Kuang Wang was irritated. 

Those eyes had hidden themselves too deeply, and Lu Yin would never have seen them if not for his eyes being changed after he ascended the Sky Platform. Even so, because the eyes were located too deep in the water, he had not been able to clearly see how many rune lines there were. Even though he couldn’t determine the figure’s strength, it was definitely not a war spirit of the Ten Arbiters.

Lu Yin suddenly thought of Astral-10’s Rain Observatory’s Rain List. With his abilities at that time, he had barely been able to leave his name on the list. The Astral Combat Academy had once been extremely glorious, or rather, Astral-10 had once been incomparably splendid. However, leaving one’s name on the Rain List only represented their degree of star energy control and not their actual power level. However, one’s control of star energy was in and of itself a portion of one’s strength. Lu Yin estimated that the person at the top of the Rain List might not have been inferior even to the younger Ten Arbiters.

He still recalled that person’s name—Shao Chen.

If just Astral-10’s Rain List contained so many powerhouses, then what about the ten great academies combined? There must have been many powerhouses who had attended those places, and some extremely powerful beings must have been among that elite group, and any war spirits formed from those people would be absolutely dominant. 

Although the Ten Arbiters were rumored to be products of the great changes in the universe, the recent universe still had not birthed a member of the younger generation who could rival the Ten Arbiters. Rumors were rumors, and who knew if there had been similarly freakish geniuses in previous eras. Some people were extremely strong as Limiteers, but the power gap between them and their peers would drop after they became Explorers.

Throughout the countless years of the Astral Combat Academy’s history, it wasn’t necessarily the case that none of their students had been able to rival the Ten Arbiters’ strength in the Limiteer realm. 

That pair of eyes had caused a shadow to hang over everyone’s hearts, and since Kuang Wang’s star energy had been exhausted, it meant that they had one less day that they could travel.

However, what lay ahead of them was still the unknown vastness of the Ocean of Death.

Lu Yin was glad that he had brought these people along. Else, even if his star energy was able to hold out, he would end up becoming depressed.

Another day passed, but their journey was peaceful this time. The Ocean of Death’s star energy dissolving rate increased yet again, and Feng Shang was only able to last for half a day. 

“This sort of aimless, endless journey is the worst,” Kuang Wang commented with frustration as he lay in the small boat. 

“Be happy; there’ve been many students who wish to even make it this far. It’s possible that we’ll see the island on the other side at any moment,” Feng Shang replied. 

Lu Yin suddenly spoke up. “Senior Feng, your surname is Feng, so what relationship do you have with the Tempest Flowzone?”[1]

Feng Shang replied, “I’m the third son of the Feng family.”

Lu Yin nodded. “The last name Feng is rather uncommon. I met someone at the border warfront named Feng Tao.”

Feng Shang smiled. “He’s my younger brother, and he actually told me that you two met. He didn’t know how high the skies were back then and even wanted to challenge you and Silver, haha!” 

Lu Yin laughed. Although he had not spent much time at the border warfront, he had formed a rather deep impression of the place. The strange creatures, the iron blooded soldiers, and the emotionless battlefield were all unforgettable. It was a place where men should be.

“Right, Brother Lu, you seem to be especially short on money, right?” Kuang Wang asked. He had interacted with Lu Yin quite a bit over the last few days, and they had become more familiar with each other. Thus, he no longer had any qualms about asking this. 

Lu Yin shrugged. “I’m used to it. Cultivation is related to one’s personal talent as well as obtaining various resources. We can’t achieve anything without money.”

Kuang Wang’s eyes gleamed. “Actually, you could head to the Beast Tamers Flowzone and capture some astral beasts there. There’s always someone willing to buy whatever you catch.”

“Ignore him. A lot of people capture astral beasts every year in the Beast Tamers Flowzone, and they can’t even earn that much. Powers like the Divine Grade Hall, First Grade Hall, and Second Grade Hall all have their specialized hunting teams, so there won’t be much room for outsiders to join in.” Feng Shang mercilessly exposed Kuang Wang’s intentions.

Kuang Wang became rather unhappy. “Is Brother Lu average? With his abilities, he would be able to catch a rare astral beast every few minutes, and selling any one of those would fetch him a fortune.” 

Feng Shang smiled grimly. “You yourself just stated that such beasts are rare. It’s not just a matter of whether one can capture such beasts, but also whether one can even find them.”

“You shouldn’t curse others just because your life is unlucky. Is there any meaning in competing in the ported battles all day and bullying those sprouts?”

“Don’t spout nonsense! I’m there to increase my battle experience. I’ve died multiple times, and I’ve even met an expert from the Top 100 Rankings before.”

“That’s your own efforts.”

…

“Right, Brother Lu, have you ever run into anyone from the Top 100 Rankings in the ported battles?” Feng Shang suddenly asked Lu Yin. Kuang Wang and Xia Luo were very curious as well. 

Lu Yin nodded. “Avery.”

“Avery?” Kuang Wang and Feng Shang cried out as they shot sympathetic looks at Lu Yin. “You must have suffered a tragic defeat and been completely suppressed.”

Xia Luo softly said, “Avery, fourth in the Top 100 Rankings. He has an extremely sturdy defense, and he calls himself the Second War King. He’s from the Spirit Seal Flowzone’s Dire Barbarian Clan and has an innate gift of sound.” At that moment, he looked at Lu Yin with interest. “I’m curious, did he attack you with a sound technique?” 

Feng Shang and Kuang Wang stared at Lu Yin too, as they were also very curious about his answer.

Lu Yin thought about it. “Yes.”

The trio stared at Lu Yin in amazement.

“Brother Lu, your power must have reached a certain level if you were recognized by Avery!” Feng Shang exclaimed.

“Why do you say that?” Lu Yin was lost.

Feng Shang explained, “Avery has a unique way of confronting his opponents. He first allows them to attack him, and he’ll only respond with his sound attack if he recognizes your strength. If the opponent’s power is not to his satisfaction, then he’ll use his physical strength to crush them. Many in the universe call it Avery’s Test.”

[1] The “Tempest” in “Tempest Flowzone” is made up of 2 characters, and the second one is very similar to the “Feng” in Feng Shang’s name.