Chapter 3706: Memory

"Then what do you propose?" Shuangdao asked.

Lu Yin looked around. "There’s nothing that you can say to convince me, which leaves only one way to demonstrate your sincerity.

"Teach me those two consciousness swords. Then, not only will I tell you what happened above the cliff, but I’ll also answer any other questions you may have. For example, why we followed the High Seraph here."

"That’s because-"

Old Chief cut off Gui Shaoqing right as he started to speak, "Enough!"

With a sharp glare at Gui Shaoqing, Old Chief turned back to Lu Yin. "You want our two consciousness swords, but how did you acquire Heaven's Blade?"

Wu Wei was the only conscient to have ever mastered Heaven's Blade. Old Chief and the other Luminaries had repeatedly visited the Willbound Spire, attempting to obtain the same memory, but they had always failed.

Lu Yin replied, "I got it right here."

Old Chief was not surprised. He had already guessed as much when he had first seen Lu Yin use Heaven's Blade. The man’s luck was truly extraordinary.

"You desire our two consciousness swords," Old Chief said, "While we honestly hope that you will teach us Heaven's Blade."

Desire flared up in Xi Wen's eyes. Of the three consciousness swords, Heaven's Blade and Lower Heaven’s Blade were the opposite of each other; one cut at the result, while the other severed the process. Only her Middle Heaven’s Blade lacked an impressive ability, which felt intolerable to Xi Wen. However, if she could acquire the other two blades, then it would more than make up for her own technique’s inadequacies.

Lu Yin gave a cold laugh. "Old man, you sure know how to haggle. You want to know what happened atop the cliff, why we followed the Spirit Nidus, and now you even want me to give you Heaven's Blade? Don't you think that you're asking for quite a bit?"

Old Chief replied matter‑of‑factly, "After all, we do have two of the consciousness sword techniques."

"I’ll trade it for your Heaven and Earth Lock," Lu Yin suggested.

Old Chief's expression instantly changed, and he stopped speaking.

The Heaven and Earth Lock was his real trump card. It was far more powerful than his Lower Heaven’s Blade, and Lu Yin was naturally eager to obtain it.

This battle technique had even managed to briefly trap the High Seraph. There was no way that Heaven and Earth Lock was worth less than all three consciousness swords combined. That acquisition would greatly improve Lu Yin's arsenal.

However, it would not be easy to obtain the Heaven and Earth Lock technique. Old Chief was no fool.

It was right at that moment that the High Seraph suddenly appeared. He saw Lu Yin and the others, and at the same time, they all saw him. Everyone attacked at the same time.

The conscients had filled the area with their consciousness, which prevented the High Seraph from fleeing the moment he arrived, and that precaution proved worthwhile at this moment.

A torrent of consciousness slammed down, and the High Seraph’s body quivered. Consciousness was not enough to shake him on its own, but Lu Yin had also manifested a Skyshearer Millstone that shot straight at the High Seraph instead of falling from up above.

This was Lu Yin’s strongest consciousness attack, and he simultaneously moved forward with Inverse Step. Unprepared, the High Seraph reeled under the Skyshearer Millstone. He staggered back a step, and then Everstone and his transcended sequence froze everything nearby while warping the void. Lu Yin’s palm strike stopped when it was less than half a finger’s breadth from the High Seraph’s brow.

A powerful force blasted Lu Yin away, hurtling him sideways. The High Seraph’s body flickered as he used the Nine Heavens Transformation: shapeless, formless, and impassable without transcendence.

Lu Yin faced the High Seraph and released his own Nine Heavens before unleashing Heaven's Blade.

From two other directions, Old Chief attacked with the Lower Heaven’s Blade while Xi Wen used the Middle Heaven’s Blade.

All three consciousness swords froze at the same time. The High Seraph thrust a hand forward, shattering all three attacks. Dominion's Mantle covered the sky, setting it ablaze.

Lu Yin jabbed a single finger forward, releasing a spiral of karma from its tip.

Each of the Luminaries present attacked as well.

However, the High Seraph was already gone. They had failed to pin him down.

“I’m a step too late.” Yong Heng appeared. He glanced up at the burning sky before looking over at Lu Yin and the conscients.

Lu Yin shrugged. “It’s as we expected, but each exchange will let us understand his methods better. Sooner or later, we’ll corner him.”

No one had expected to trap the High Seraph on the first try. His escape was fully within expectations.

“Your turn.” Lu Yin turned and left.

Yong Heng looked at Old Chief and the rest of the Luminaries. “You have too great a disadvantage against the High Seraph.”

“That’s precisely why we want to kill him,” Old Chief replied with a shrug. “The High Seraph cultivates the Everstone Sequence Technique, and with his transcended sequence, he can alter the universe itself. For us conscients, he is our absolute nemesis. Even worse, he has the Everstone sequence base, which utterly suppresses us. Even his Everlasting Will can cut us Thirteen Luminaries down. We are not his match.”

If not for their cooperation with Lu Yin, the High Seraph would have crushed all the conscients in the momentary battle that had just occurred.

Even though he had failed to instantly wipe out the Luminaries, it would have been easy enough to pick them off one by one and eradicate them in that manner.

Suddenly, Xi Wen turned, looked at a corner of the area, and her pupils shrank. “The High Seraph?”

Yong Heng turned his head to follow her gaze, as did Old Chief and the others.

The High Seraph was standing in plain view. He had indeed escaped, only to return again so quickly. He calmly stared at the individuals gathered before him.

Xi Wen and the conscients all reflexively prepared to attack.

“You cannot keep me here,” the High Seraph slowly stated. “But I can take you up the cliff.”

His words instantly doused their killing intent. The allure of reaching the top of the cliff was too strong.

“Why didn’t you mention this before?” Old Chief asked.

Yong Heng was the one to answer. “Because of Lu Yin.”

The High Seraph met True God’s gaze and nodded in agreement. “I can take you, but I will not take him.”

“Why not?” Shuangdao was curious. The relationships between humans were always so tangled.

The High Seraph gazed at the cliff above and said, “Up there lies the greatest possibility, and Lu Yin himself already embodies another. The two cannot coexist. If they do, neither of us will have any chance.”

Yong Heng smiled. “I agree. You want to climb the cliff, as do we. First, tell us exactly what is up there.”

“How long until he returns?”

Yong Heng casually waved at the burning sky up above. “When those flames die down, he will be here.”

The High Seraph briefly glanced up. “Then I’ll be brief.”

His eyes fell upon the cliff. Many eyes looked down at him from the top. The people of the Nine Odysseys Megaverse had mixed feelings regarding the High Seraph. Some felt awe, but others felt contempt.

They all revered the title of Lesser Sancte, but they still looked down upon the High Seraph because he was someone who had been given his title instead of earning it.

“I don’t know how you conscients regard the Willbound Spire, but those above see it as nothing more than a repository of memories—whether they’re the recollections of living beings or of entire megaverses matters little. All you need to know is that it holds memories.

“Within those memories are countless past events: the birth and destruction of universes, the deeds of transcendent masters beyond all other life. And at the heart of it stands that palace—the deepest, most priceless memory of them all.

“Approach the palace and you’ll feel the weight of its memories bearing down on you, yet pressing onward may reward you with even more invaluable visions. Legend holds that the very halls conceal the memories of an Immortal.”

The High Seraph’s expression grew solemn. "All the memories of an Immortal realm powerhouse."

Flames burned the sky, wavering as they considered the High Seraph’s words. Cold gusts occasionally drifted by.

It was deathly silent at the foot of the cliff.

Old Chief and the other Luminaries all stared at the High Seraph in shock.

They had known that there was something within that palace, and they had even guessed that it might be a path to the Immortal realm, but being bluntly told that the palace contained the memories of an Immortal was more shocking than anything the conscients had ever considered.

What did the full memories of an Immortal signify?

It meant that one could experience the Immortal’s entire cultivation journey.

It meant that they could witness that expert’s battle techniques and cultivation arts.

It meant that they would be able to understand that cultivator’s most invaluable mental state when they had overcome Dukkha.

It meant a guide to the Immortal realm by one who had already walked it.

The path to the Immortal realm was ethereal. How many individuals had ever reached that level throughout all of history? Even someone as powerful as the High Seraph, who had reached the peak of Dukkha, was still unable to step into the Immortal realm.

Obtaining the complete memories of an Immortal would be almost the same as becoming an Immortal themselves. It offered them a real chance of reaching that realm.

While each person’s Dukkha was unique, simply catching a glimpse of another’s final answer would greatly increase their own chances of succeeding. It was not some negligible benefit.

Failing all else, acquiring the battle techniques and cultivation arts of an Immortal would allow them to become invincible throughout the megaverses.

The High Seraph’s voice dropped low. "People have studied the Willbound Spire for many years, and their suspicions are almost guaranteed to be accurate. Outside of that palace, people have witnessed the memories of peak Dukkhans, which means that there is a ninety percent chance that the palace contains something from an Immortal.

"This is why I’ve tirelessly searched for the Willbound Spire. I want those memories.

"I am unable to reach the Willbound Spire as they do. While that is certainly the shortest path, it is impossible for me. I was given no other choice but to come here to the Consciousness Megaverse again and again, seeking the Willbound Expanse. You’ve guessed right, I did come here for this. However, I have more knowledge of it than any of you conscients."

Xi Wen licked her dry lips. “Then... is it possible that the memories in the Willbound Spire are also from an Immortal?”

The High Seraph looked at Xi Wen while everyone else turned to look at him. "I don’t know."

He then raised his head to look at the top of the cliff. “Even the presence of an Immortal’s memories within that palace is mere speculation, though it is highly likely.

"No matter what, we’ll know the truth once we enter. Even in the worst case scenario, we’re bound to gain something. I’m certain that you’ve already benefited from the memories you observed in the Willbound Spire."

Old Chief and the others were immediately reminded of the consciousness techniques that they had obtained.

While not all of the Thirteen Luminaries had obtained a technique from the Willbound Spire, many of their insights regarding how they manipulated their consciousness originated from the memories that they had received.

It was because the memories were so fragmented and complex that the conscients had speculated that they were the memories of the megaverse itself.

Since a megaverse contained karma, then it must have memories as well.

Memories were simply the imprints living beings left upon certain extraordinary locales, one of which was the Willbound Spire.

Still, none of the Luminaries had ever considered the possibility of the palace containing an Immortal’s memories.

One method to enter the Immortal realm was to reset a universe. No one knew who first proposed such a method, but there seemed to be precedents of success. The other method was to overcome Dukkha, yet that method remained purely theoretical as no one had ever succeeded. Rather, if anyone had succeeded, there were no records of it.

If they could see the path that an Immortal had walked to reach that realm, it might pave the way for their own success.

The High Seraph looked over at Yong Heng, and just as expected, Yong Heng’s eyes were blazing just as hot as anyone else’s.

No one could resist the temptation of the Immortal realm, not a single soul.

The flames were still burning in the sky, producing faint crackling sounds.

At the top of the cliff, the two groups of young people looked down in curiosity. They could not hear the voices of those down below, yet it seemed that the atmosphere had changed yet again.

Just what was going on down there?

The most troubling development was the lack of any fighting. The High Seraph was able to touch the cliff, but instead of everyone else fighting against him, there was a conversation. Those above the cliff could not shake a sudden and ominous foreboding.

Could those individuals be joining forces?

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