The void distorted as Xia Luo and Lu Yin walked out.
The Trialmaster and the rest relaxed when they saw the two appear; Xia Luo had won.
Across from them, Xia Meng stared at Xia Luo with a complicated expression. She didn't know what to think of this person.
Who was Jiuyou, or Jiuyou himself?
No one could understand Xia Meng's feelings.
She had always been protecting Xia Jiuyou. When he was young, Xia Jiuyou was kind and innocent. She liked him very much. Because of this, she had even offended the Clan Leader, Xia Yi, to conceal the Nine Clones Technique for Xia Jiuyou. Now that the Nine Clones Technique had merged, the main consciousness was not Xia Jiuyou.
She clenched her fists and stared blankly at Xia Luo. This face was very similar to Jiuyou's.
Xia Luo took a step forward and arrived in front of Xia Meng, looking up. "Aunt Meng."
Xia Meng shuddered; this was the name Xia Jiuyou had used when they had first met. It was also because of this that she had treated him like her own son. However, as Xia Jiuyou grew up and cultivated the Nine Clones Technique, his personality completely changed. He became ruthless and merciless, and he was good at disguising himself.
She had never expected to hear this name again after so many years.
"You …" Xia Meng's fingers trembled as she stared at Xia Luo.
Xia Luo smiled. "Aunt Meng, let's go home."
Xia Meng stared at him blankly, as if she was seeing the kind and pure Xia Jiuyou from their childhood. "Oh, okay, okay. Let's go home."
Xia Luo looked back at Lu Yin. "Brother Lu, I'll fulfill my promise to you soon." He then smiled happily. "See you at that place soon."
Lu Yin knew that Xia Luo was referring to the place where he could obtain his destiny. It seemed that he knew something.
Xia Meng finally noticed Lu Yin, and her eyes were filled with killing intent that made his scalp go numb.
He frowned, but he wasn't worried. The Elysium Heavenly Master was always watching him, so it would be strange if Xia Meng dared to attack.
Xia Luo hurriedly said, "Aunt Meng, he's my friend."
Xia Meng stared at him, not knowing what to do. Revenge?
She didn't know what she was feeling.
He bowed to Xia Meng, "Senior, Xia Jiuyou is Xia Luo, and Xia Luo is Xia Jiuyou. With Xia Jiuyou's temperament, he won't be able to go far with the Nine Clones Technique, but Xia Luo is different.
Xia Meng loosened her grip and snorted coldly. "Junior, sometimes you're too smart for your own good. It's best to keep a low profile when you go there. There are some places where you can't do as you please. If something happens to you, don't drag Jiu and Little Luo down with you."
Lu Yin smiled. "Rest assured, senior."
"Hmph." Xia Meng was very unhappy with him, but there was nothing she could do about it. She left with Xia Luo.
Before he left, Xia Luo bowed to the mentors of Astral-10. "I will be back. Please take care of yourselves."
As he watched Xia Luo's departing figure, Lu Yin looked forward to the 900 million star essence that he had just received. It was an enormous sum of money that even the Hall of Honor's director would want to keep for himself. It was obvious how much it was worth, and it was enough to make anyone jealous.
Lu Yin turned to the Trialmaster and the others and bowed deeply. "This student has brought disaster to the academy. Thank you for your help."
The Rainmaster, Starmaster, Sandmaster, and Trialmaster only glanced at him before returning to the academy. Old Cai made a gesture that Lu Yin was very familiar with, and Lu Yin understood. "Rest assured, Old Cai. This student understands."
Old Cai was satisfied.
After the mentors left, Lu Yin looked through the void and saw a pair of turbid eyes that had experienced the vicissitudes of life. It came from Astral-10's Rain Observatory, from the crazy director.
It had been more than ten years since Lu Yin had joined Astral-10, and he had barely spoken to the crazy director. He had also never seen the crazy director in his normal state, but the director had been of great help to him.
He had helped Lu Yin break through to the Melder realm, deduced the ninth star of the Sirius Art, and now, even helped Lu Yin block Xia Meng. Even though the crazy director had not taught him anything, Lu Yin still respected this elder greatly.
Before the Astral Combat Tournament, it was said that the crazy director had appeared and asked the mentors to guide them, which had allowed them to improve so quickly. These mentors were not actually mentors, but rather the crazy director's guards.
As Lu Yin's status and outlook increased, he was able to see the past more clearly.
For example, he was now certain that the crazy director was not crazy and was actually normal.
He slowly descended to Astral-10 and arrived at the Rain Observatory.
Rain pitter-pattered onto the limestone floor as Lu Yin flitted past several giant trees until he was not too far away from the crazy headmaster. He took one step at a time until he was less than three meters away from the headmaster. He slowly bowed, "Student Lu Yin greets the headmaster. Thank you for your help."
The crazy director did not reply. His clothes were a mess, and his hair was like a hornet's nest. His face was dirty, and he was not wearing shoes. Lu Yin did not know what he had stepped on, but he looked very dirty. In the world of ordinary people, he would have been a beggar.
Lu Yin did not stand up and simply bowed with a respectful expression.
Two hours, four hours, six hours, and finally, ten hours passed. The crazy director did not move, and neither did Lu Yin.
"Have you graduated?" the crazy director asked in a melancholy tone.
Lu Yin replied, "I haven't graduated yet."
The crazy director looked up. "Then you're still a member of the academy. It's my duty to help you."
Lu Yin was grateful. "I'm grateful for your help. I apologize for the trouble I've caused."
"There's no need to apologize. All you have to do is carve your name on Astral-10 and become a guest mentor."
Lu Yin was stunned. "Guest mentor?
Like Xia Luo? "
"No, he did not leave his name on the academy. Instead, he left his name as Unbounded. In the future, no matter what happens, as long as Unbounded exists, you will exist. If Unbounded dies, you will die." The crazy director turned around and stared at Lu Yin sternly.
Unbounded was the name of Astral-10's battleship.
Lu Yin felt an indescribable solemnity. It was as if some sort of ritual was being carried out, or rather, someone was watching everything. If he agreed, he would have to bear some sort of karma.
Unbounded … Unbounded … Unbounded … Lu Yin did not dare to casually answer. "Sir, may I ask where Unbounded comes from?
Where does it go?
And where does it end? "
The crazy director's gaze was pious. "It comes from the Daosource Sect, but there is no end to it. Does humanity have an end?
Even if there is, Unbounded has no end. He must bear the hope of humanity, the seed of inheritance. This is Unbounded's destiny. "
Lu Yin's eyes twitched. "Seed of inheritance?
Isn't that a war? "
The crazy director's eyes widened, and a terrifying pressure descended upon Lu Yin. Lu Yin felt as if everything around him had changed, as if the universe had been destroyed. He almost fell to his knees.
"Unbounded's mission is not to fight, but to pass on its legacy. Only by passing on its legacy can there be hope." The crazy director's eyes grew crazed as he laughed heartily. "Hahahaha, you started this war, and now you're eating your own bitter fruit. Hahahaha, you started this war!" He then ran off and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Lu Yin had not expected that his words would drive the crazy director insane. He was stunned.
The Rainmaster walked out from nearby. "Don't mind him. He's always like this, and he won't be normal for more than a few days."
Lu Yin was puzzled. "Mentor, isn't Unbounded a battleship?
Why is it an academy?
The director seems to value it. "
The Rainmaster's tone was heavy. "He doesn't value the academy, nor does he value the honor of being the director. He values the name Unbounded."
"Unbounded?" Lu Yin muttered to himself.
The Rainmaster gazed into the distance. "We're only fulfilling our duties as mentors because of Unbounded. No matter what this battleship is called, it was once a leading ship. It led both astral battleships and humans, guiding the light and passing on the hope of humanity. No one can bring shame to Unbounded."
"What does the director mean by 'legacy'?" Lu Yin asked.
The Rainmaster replied, "This involves too many things. Right now, you just need to focus on your cultivation. We'll talk about it later. Ignore the director's request for you to leave your name in Astral-10 for now. When you become an Emissary and recognize Unbounded, you can decide whether or not to leave your name there. Once you do, the burden will be more than you can bear."
Lu Yin was curious. No matter what, the Astral Combat Academy was still just an academy or a battleship left behind from ancient times. How could it have more responsibilities than the Hall of Honor?
That was impossible. However, the Rainmaster's words implied that Lu Yin did not have the qualifications to leave his name there. He was a paragon of his generation who had defeated the Prime Clear and was a genius who could request the protection of a half-ancestor.
There were too many secrets in the universe.
As for the matter of leaving his name, he was already conflicted, but now, he was even more conflicted. He did not want to shoulder such a ridiculous burden; he just wanted to take care of his own matters.
In the Neoverse, on the Summer Blade Continent, the Xia family's patriarch, Xia Yi, officially announced that Xia Luo would be the heir. At the same time, he applied to the Hall of Honor for Xia Luo to replace Xia Jiuyou in the Sovereign Tournament's top ten.
Whether it was Xia Jiuyou or Xia Luo, they could both be seen as clones of the main body. Now that Xia Jiuyou had fused with Xia Luo, his strength had increased by another level. The Hall of Honor had no reason to disagree.
However, many people could not understand why Xia Jiuyou had been fused with Xia Luo. Xia Yi's attitude was even more perplexing; he did not seem to care.
Xia Jiuyou and Xia Luo were both his sons, and no matter who fused with the other, it would not change this fact. In the depths of Xia Yi's heart, he hoped that Xia Luo would replace Xia Jiuyou because of Xia Jiuyou's deep hatred for him.
In the Xia family, Patriarch Xia Yi slowly bowed. An elder stood in front of him, one of the seven half-ancestors of the Xia Family, Xia Ji.
"Xia Yi, you did not teach your son well. Do you admit to your crime?"
Said Xia Ji calmly, but when Xia Yi heard it, he was terrified. He had seen this elder more than once. Back then, this elder had killed many of the Xia family's direct descendants without saying a word. His methods were even more ruthless than his own.
"Junior admits his crime," said Xia Yi hastily.
Xia Ji sighed. "The Nine Clones Technique could have made Xia Jiuyou a perfect expert. Nine clones, each with their own Dao, could have even made up for the flaws in his character. Unfortunately, you taught that child so cruelly, making him think of the Nine Clones Technique as a way to split apart his grief. As a result, the flaws in the Nine Clones Technique are magnified, and he is unable to use its true power.
"The Nine Clones Technique was defeated one after another. That is an insult to Ancestor Chen."