Chapter 2592: Squeezing Forward
It took more than ten days for Lu Yin and Xu Xiangyin to arrive at the Void Pass.
As they traveled, Xu Xiangyin shared more information about the Void Pass with Lu Yin. This place was essentially a massive storm of voidforce energy, like an ocean of energy in the middle of space. It consisted solely of voidforce energy that pushed outwards in all directions from the center. The challenge of the Void Pass was simple: reach the center. However, that was precisely what no one had ever managed to accomplish.
Regardless of a person’s cultivation level, the more power they exerted within the Void Pass, the stronger the repulsion force on them would become.
"Over six peak experts from the Sixverse Association have attempted to cross the Void Pass, but all of them failed," Xu Xiangyin remarked.
Lu Yin found this quite odd. "What would a peak powerhouse gain from crossing the Void Pass?"
Xu Xiangyin replied, “Mostly just fame. None of them would ask Lord Xu to accept them as his disciple. Everyone who manages to reach the pinnacle has already developed their own unique power. All those from my Voidforce Universe who have reached the peak have developed energies based off of voidforce energy.”
In the Voidforce Universe, their cultivation stages started at Void Ascendia and continued on to Void Brillium, Void Morphora, Void Suprema, and Voidlord. The Void Ascendia realm was equal to the stages of Explorer through Enlighter, while Void Brilliums were the same as Envoys. Void Morphoras were equivalent to Semi-Progenitors, and Void Suprema were equal to Progenitors. As for Voidlord, that title was solely reserved for a single person: the creator of this Voidforce Universe, Lord Xu.
Within the Voidforce Universe, anyone who had not reached the Void Ascendia realm yet was considered a beginner cultivator.
At the moment, Lu Yin had cultivated his voidforce energy to the Void Ascendia level, and this was entirely due to the Voidforce Tide that he had triggered during his time in the Voidforce School. Only that incident had allowed him to draw down the village that was the school’s most powerful voidforce puppet.
Roiling voidforce energy gathered together to create a veritable ocean that filled an entire region of the Voidforce Universe. This magnificent sight completely astounded Lu Yin.
The Fifth Mainland was home to both the Astral River and the Cosmic Sea, but neither of those seascapes were composed of stellular energy. The ocean that Lu Yin was looking at was formed from pure voidforce energy.
Suddenly, Lu Yin asked, "Senior, would cultivating here yield good results?"
Shock instantly covered Xu Xiangyin's face. "Absolutely not! While it might be possible to absorb a bit of voidforce energy here, the Void Pass’s tides would end up stealing all of your voidforce energy, leaving you crippled. Many people have tried cultivating here before, but none of them ever managed to escape that fate."
Lu Yin sighed. That was a true pity.
"Unless you possess enough strength to completely push the tides back, you won't be able to resist their pull. That is something that is beyond even a peak powerhouse," Xu Xiangyin continued to caution Xuan Qi.
In addition to the two men, countless other people were present at the Void Pass. From what Lu Yin had learned from Xu Xiangyin, many people were always trying to cross the Void Pass, each of them hoping to ascend the heavens in a single step. These ambitions remained unrealized, but they were universally shared by all who visited the Void Pass.
"Proceed when you're ready," Xu Xiangyin instructed.
Lu Yin stretched briefly before plunging headfirst into the tide.
The moment he entered the sea of voidforce energy, he felt a wave of pressure relentlessly trying to push him back out. It was an uncomfortable sensation much like how an ordinary person would be helplessly tossed about by ocean waves.
The more he resisted the pressure, the stronger it became. The pressure even came from all directions at once, and he was forced out almost the moment he entered the Void Pass.
Being ejected so quickly would have been completely humiliating. After all, Lu Yin had heard from Xu Xiangyin that people like Xu Ji had already challenged the Void Pass and had even succeeded to reach unseen depths. While they had still ultimately failed, there was a certain level of accomplishment in reaching so far before being defeated.
All who challenged the Void Pass had given up on success before even starting. Instead, they competed with each other over who could endure the longest and travel the closest to the center.
Lu Yin took a deep breath. He felt the pressure battering at his body from every direction.
The only way to proceed through the Void Pass was to find the weakest point in the surrounding pressure, and then use the rest of the pressure to push through that weak point. Essentially, moving through the Void Pass was not like swimming or pushing, but rather squeezing. The way forward lay in finding a path to squeeze oneself forward, though even that squeezing force depended on the pressure of the surrounding voidforce energy. This was why success was solely dependent on a person’s mastery of voidforce energy.
Lu Yin easily found the weak points and then used the surrounding pressure as a vector of force that squeezed him forward.
Xu Xiangyin watched, satisfied with Xuan Qi’s progress. The youth had quickly grasped the correct method. There was no denying that he was extraordinarily talented in voidforce energy. Regrettably, there were other cultivators throughout history with comparable levels of talent, but all of them had failed to defeat the Void Pass. It was universally accepted that it was impossible to defeat the challenge.
Slowly, Lu Yin moved out of sight.
Xu Xiangyin waited calmly. He knew that Mu San must have arrived in the Voidforce Universe by now, and he would be wondering where Xu Xiangyin had taken Xuan Qi. That uncertainty would undoubtedly make Mu San somewhat frantic, and the more anxious he became, the weaker Mu San’s bargaining position would be and the more benefits that Xu Xiangyin would be able to extract for Xuan Qi. Sadly, this was all that Xu Xiangyin could do for the child.
One day. Two days. Three days. Lu Yin continued to advance rapidly. He had reached an impressive level of mastery with Truesight, and he also possessed an incredibly powerful spiritual force and domain. While it was impossible for him to reach a level of speed that could match one of the Voidforce Universe’s Void Suprema, he was not much worse.
Before long, he saw someone up ahead of him. He slowed his pace in order to not attract attention and then moved closer.
The person up ahead was a woman. She was wearing a thin, translucent fabric that barely hid any of her fair skin. She was struggling to squeeze her way forward, and the sight of Lu Yin caused her eyes to light up. "Dear brother, you're moving quite fast! Would it be possible for you to help this little sister move along?"
Lu Yin felt no inclination to help the woman, and he instead squeezed past her. His speed and mastery over the squeezing method inside the Void Pass produced ripples that pushed the woman back a great distance. Her face flushed with anger, and she raged, "Bastard!"
A short while later, Lu Yin noticed someone else trying to force their way forward to his side. It was impossible to move straight towards the center, as no one could control the tides of energy’s movements.
"Brother, you're quite fast," the person called out to greet Lu Yin.
Lu Yin just nodded. "You're not too slow yourself."
The man laughed. "Then why don’t we see who's faster?"
Lu Yin laughed and sped off, startling the man when he was left behind. "Where did someone so impressive come from? With that speed, he must be a Void Brillium at the least. What a monster!"
Over the next few days, Lu Yin continued onwards. His path was erratic, but his aim always remained the center of the Void Pass. At least, he thought that he was traveling towards the center. All he ever saw were the backs of people he met, with a single exception of someone who he met head-on. Both of them had been taken aback by the meeting, each absolutely certain that the other was going the wrong way.
Some people moved quite fast and others rather slow. Some did not want to waste any time. The further along Lu Yin proceeded, the stronger the repulsive force inside the sea of voidforce energy. Some people had reached the point where they were unable to bear the pressure, and they voluntarily left by using the repulsive force to quickly leave the Void Pass. Others tried to endure for as long as possible, all for bragging rights. Ultimately, the length of time that a person could endure was not what really mattered.
Lu Yin was among the faster people moving through the Void Pass. In fact, no one had caught up to him or passed him. Instead, he was the one passing everyone that he met.
After a month passed, Mu Sanye finally found Xu Xiangyin. "You let him challenge the Void Pass?"
Xu Xiangyin replied, "This is the test that Senior Xu Wuwei gave him. We need to see how far he can reach."
Mu Sanye remained skeptical. "Old Xu, enough nonsense. The losses that your universe suffered when the Voidchaos Territory was plundered are too damaging. Allowing Xuan Qi to join your Voidforce Universe will be a complete waste. He might not even be able to find a suitable voidforce puppet. In line with the Sixverse Association’s principles, leave him to my Arboreal Realm. I will owe you a favor for this."
Xu Xiangyin retorted, "Have you forgotten about Senior Xiu Ci?"
Mu Sanye was taken aback. Xiu Ci was a legend of the Voidforce Universe, as well as a pinnacle expert. Despite being born in the Voidforce Universe, he had broken all conventions by not using any voidforce puppets. Instead, he had established an alternative path for many people from the Voidforce Universe. It was a path that did not require them to be forced to follow the traditional path.
“You want Xuan Qi to follow Senior Xiu Ci’s path?”
“Not necessarily. That will depend entirely on him. Besides, the losses in the Voidchaos Territory aren’t that terrible. There are still some powerful puppets there, and it’s possible that one of them will be well suited to Xuan Qi.”
“But the innate gift that he obtained is incredibly important! Have you forgotten about our initial bet? Xuan Qi still has not found his life-bound voidforce puppet, but he has obtained an exceptional innate gift. I’ve already won.”
Xu Xiangyin retorted in a mocking fashion. “You’ve already abandoned Xuan Qi once, and now you want him back? You are truly completely shameless.”
Mu Sanye angrily roared, “Xuan Qi must join the Arboreal Realm!”
Xu Xiangyin remained calm. “Then you need to discuss things with Senior Xu Wuwei.”
Mu Sanye remained furious and wanted to argue, but Xu Xiangyin quickly changed the subject. “Let’s just wait until Xuan Qi emerges. We’ll then see what he decides. I will clearly explain the pros and cons of our two universes to him and will not boast about my Voidforce Universe nor belittle your Arboreal Realm. The choice will be his.”
He stared at Mu Sanye. “However, there is one thing. If Xuan Qi chooses the Arboreal Realm, you cannot mistreat him! I see him as my own son, and not just because of his value.”
Mu Sanye was caught off guard. “I didn’t expect you to see him in such a light. Very well, I agree. We will let Xuan Qi decide.”
Xu Xiangyin turned his head back to stare at the Void Pass, his expression somber. There was no way that Xuan Qi would ever belong to the Voidforce Universe.
At the same time, within the tides of the Void Pass, Lu Yin continued to accelerate forward. He had spotted two figures up ahead of him half a month ago, but despite his best efforts, he had not been able to catch up to them. He had slightly closed the distance, but his progress was very slow.
The two people ahead of him were extraordinary, and they were moving nearly as fast as him.
The two people ahead of Lu Yin were also advancing in a zigzag manner. They moved at practically the same speed and were in what appeared to be a neck-and-neck race.
One was a man, while the other was a woman. The man appeared to be a composed and experienced person. His face contained a mature handsomeness that hinted at how charming he must have been in his youth.
As for the woman, she was stunningly beautiful. She had a pair of beautiful, almond-shaped eyes, though she was occasionally directing cold glares at the man, usually along with a disdainful snort.
“Leng'er, we’ve competed with each other so many times before, but we’ve never been able to determine a clear victor. Why are you so persistent?” the man asked with a deep voice laced with bitterness.
The woman replied curtly, “Without defeating you, how can my Void Yin clan ever hope to thrive in the Voidforce Universe?”
"The grudges of our predecessors have lingered for far too long. Must we, their descendants, continue to carry them?" the man asked.
Unswayed, the woman retorted, "If you're afraid, then apologize on behalf of your Void Yang clan and return the Yin Yang Sword to my clan!"
A bitter smile appeared on the man’s face as he responded, "As I've told you countless times before, my Void Yang clan does not have the Yin Yang Sword. When will you believe me?"
She stared at him. "Men can never be trusted."
He sighed. "Let's drop this matter. Instead, there is someone slowly catching up on us from behind, even though we are already moving at our greatest speed. Do you know him?"
Shaking her head, the woman replied, "I don't. He's very young, and his cultivation is low, though his control of voidforce energy surpasses even our’s. There’s no doubt that he’s an absolute genius."
"Could he be Xu Ji? No, that shouldn’t be. I've met Xu Ji before, and this young man doesn’t look like him. Besides, Xu Ji is in the Sixverse Academy," the man mused as he spoke.
The woman remained silent, focusing her entire attention on proceeding forward as fast as possible.
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