Star Odyssey

Chapter 2179: Influence

"Uncle Xia Yuan is second only to Semi-Progenitor Zihuan within our branch family, and he happened to overhear this information while he was with me," Xia Zhitong said.

Lu Yin frowned. "This is nothing more than a single piece of information. How is this supposed to help me rescue my grandfather?"

Xia Zhitong replied, "I can go speak with Xia Yuan again. While the Celestial Frost Sect places the restrictions on the members of Star Alliance, they’re not the only ones with control over them. Each of the four ruling powers has the means to control Star Alliance, and I might be able to learn how to remove the restrictions if I can speak with Xia Yuan again. That would allow you to rescue your grandpa."

Lu Yin not only wanted to save the old man from the Yu family, but also all of the surviving vassals of the Lu family who had been forced into Star Alliance.

If Lu Yin was unable to break the restrictions on those people, then it would be impossible to save any of them. It seemed that Xia Yuan might be one way of learning how he could remove the restrictions, while another possibility was to roll six pips on Lu Yin’s die. If he could Possess some bigshot, such as Xia Xing, the Xia family’s patriarch, Lu Yin would also be able to learn how to remove the restrictions.

However, saving the people from Star Alliance was only one of Lu Yin’s goals. He also wanted to save the prisoners confined to the Crimson Garden. Finally, he also wanted to get Shenwu’s Sky’s secret technique. That was the full list of Lu Yin’s goals while he was in the Perennial World.

Lu Yin looked back at Xia Zhitong. It was true that he could not afford to kill this woman, as she was more valuable alive than dead. She would eventually die, but it was not time for that yet.

Furthermore, Lu Yin was impersonating someone who had been tortured by hatred for decades. Such a person would never be willing to let an enemy off so easily, as they needed to slowly vent their accumulated hatred.

Lu Yin was impersonating such a person, and the real Young Master Yu would never give Xia Zhitong an easy death.

"I do want to save Grandpa, so I won't kill you," Lu Yin said.

Xia Zhitong let a sigh of relief escape.

"However." Lu Yin stared into Xia Zhitong's eyes, and he saw fear blossom in them as he continued speaking. "I will make sure that you suffer. You enjoy playing around? I’m going to poison you with something that will spread throughout your body. Any time you touch a man, the poison will activate, forcing you to suffer a pain worse than death. Feel free to try to remove the poison. I won’t stop you at all. But know that every attempt you make will push you one step closer to death—you’ll age more and more with each failed attempt."

Xia Zhitong's pupils instantly constricted. She had just heard her worst fears be spoken aloud: not being able to touch any man, death, and growing old. "Yu Hao- Master Yu- Brother Yu, there are many things that could happen, and you should really think about your grandpa. How are you going to save him if I die?"

Lu Yin just smiled. "I never said you would die, just that you would suffer a life worse than death."

"It’s almost time for my Xia family to pay our respects to our ancestor. If I’m found to be poisoned-"

"It doesn't matter. I’d actually like to see who in the Xia family is capable of removing this poison. You could always ask Semi-Progenitor Huan to give it a shot, but this poison was developed by my master, and I really want to see who can get rid of it. I’ll find you again in a while, and I certainly hope that you’ll be able to find a way to save my grandfather by that time. You know the consequences of failing." With that said, Lu Yin simply knocked Xia Zhitong unconscious.

After seeing that Xia Zhitong was unconscious and on the ground, Kui Luo showed himself. "That’s quite the surprise. You were actually able to obtain some information about Star Alliance. Do you really believe that she’ll be able to help you save any of those people?"

Lu Yin shook his head. "Probably not, but I need to set some things in play so that I can use her to obtain a few opportunities. With her, I’ll have constant access to the members of the Xia family, and I can even get in touch with some of the Xia family’s powerhouses. After all, the Xia family won’t pay much attention the name ‘Yu Hao,’ not even if something extraordinary did happen to him."

Lu Yin then asked Progenitor Smoke to come out, and after offering a bit of flattery, the woman created a bit of her wei, had it infiltrate Xia Zhitong's body, and accomplish basically what he had threatened the woman with.

"My wei can even create Envoys by simulating stellular energy vortices. What you’re requesting is just too simple," Progenitor Smoke proudly stated.

Lu Yin quickly offered up more compliments. "This junior knew that you could do it, Senior, which was why I tried to come up with a truly unique poison. If this woman still doesn’t believe me after she wakes up, she’ll quickly learn just how amazing your abilities are, Senior."

Progenitor Smoke frowned. "If this wasn’t related to you trying to save the Lu family, I would never do a favor like this for you. That woman doesn’t have the qualifications to be touched by my wei. She’s too revolting."

Lu Yin smiled. "This junior understands, and you have my genuine thanks, Senior."

Progenitor Smoke returned to the pocket dimension within the mirror while Lu Yin stared at the unconscious Xia Zhitong. "When I return next time, the Perennial World’s situation won’t be as stable as it is now, and the four ruling powers’ position won’t be as stable either.

"Let’s go."

As they left the Yu family’s mansion, Lu Yin grabbed the man who had been with Xia Zhitong when they had first arrived, as Lu Yin was interested in learning more about the Dealcut Association.

The four ruling powers suppressed the entire Perennial World beneath an iron fist. There were some recognized powers that could not be completely overwhelmed, such as the Nong family, the Liu family, Virtue Archives, Specter Abyss, and a few more. In addition, there were also secret societies that had been established in the dark. Even if these small groups were not able to accomplish very much and would be instantly destroyed if they were discovered, like the Dealcut Association, many small matters could snowball into large ones.

As long as they were not discovered, such secret societies could be quite useful, at least to Lu Yin. He was also operating in the shadows. Thus, such organizations were well suited to his uses.

After leaving Yu City, Lu Yin threw the man to the ground. Tong Yu had knocked the man unconscious, but he woke back up the moment he struck the ground.

The man rubbed his head, looking terribly confused. When he saw Yu City off in the distance, he was stunned. How is that possible? Wasn’t I just in Yu City?

The man tried to remember what had happened to him, and then he finally noticed that there was someone standing behind him. His head snapped around, and he saw Lu Yin, Tong Yu, and Kui Luo. Of course, he was not able to see any of their faces clearly, as they had all blurred their appearances.

"Who are you?" The man was instantly on guard, though he was not badly frightened. At the same time, he did not take any rash actions.

Lu Yin stared back at the man. "Name?"

"Who are you? How did you bring me out of Yu City? Where’s Xia Zhitong?" the man shouted.

Lu Yin lifted his head. "I asked for your name."

The man sneered. "What? Are you trying to scare me? If this is how Xia Zhitong wants to try to intimidate me, just tell her to come out herself. She needs to stop dreaming. I said that I’ll let her join when I can get her in, but it’s useless to force the matter. I'm leaving."

The man immediately rose to his feet and turned to leave.

He genuinely believed that Xia Zhitong was behind his abduction. After all, he had been in the Yu family’s mansion, and who would dare to attack that place? Even if Xia Zhitong was only a minor branch family member of the Xia family, to outsiders, she appeared to be a member of Shenwu’s Sky as well as the person who had been sent to deal with Yu City. Who would dare to act against Shenwu’s Sky’s knife?

Tong Yu’s eyes narrowed, and a terrifying pressure erupted, instantly smashing the man to the ground.

The man was badly startled, as this pressure was so intense that he could not even breathe. He felt as if the sky itself had fallen, and he could not believe his situation. How was this possible? This person was clearly stronger than his uncle, who was a four-tribulation Envoy. Just who were these people?

As soon as Tong Yu put pressure on the man, he realized that these three people had no connection to Xia Zhitong. No matter who Xia Zhitong might manage to sleep with, she would never be able to hook up with any powerhouse aside from her uncle.

"Now are you willing to talk?" Lu Yin asked with a hint of a smile.

The pressure from Tong Yu instantly vanished.

The man gasped for breath. His body had almost been crushed by the pressure that had surrounded him. He slowly lifted his head and met Lu Yin's indifferent eyes. The man fearfully asked, "Who are you? Why did you capture me?"

Lu Yin shook his head. "It looks like you still don’t understand your situation."

As soon as Lu Yin finished speaking, the pressure slammed back down onto the man.

This time, the pressure was even greater than before. He spat out a mouthful of blood, and his internal organs were about to be completely destroyed. His vision grew blurry, and he felt like the entire world was spinning. He wanted to beg for mercy, but he could not even open his mouth.

The pressure only lasted for a moment, but that was already enough to leave the man seriously injured.

He spat out even more blood, and he did not dare take another breath, as he feared that he would spit out his insides.

"Name?" Lu Yin casually asked again.

This time, the man did not dare to hesitate for even a moment after hearing the question. Even with his shattered body, he forced himself to answer. "Zuo- Zuo Shan."

"Identity?" Lu Yin continued.

"Inspector for the Merchant Alliance."

"Identity?" Lu Yin demanded a second time.

Zuo Shan was instantly terrified, and countless thoughts rampaged through his mind. Helpless, he replied, "A member of the Dealcut Association."

Lu Yin continued to stare at the man. "What is the Dealcut Association?"

Zuo Shan coughed, and blood leaked from the corner of his mouth. It dripped onto the ground, but even then, the man did not dare to hesitate for even a moment. He trembled as he shared the origins and purpose of the Dealcut Association.

The explanation was about the same as what Lu Yin had already heard from Kui Luo, but with a few more details. For example, Zuo Shan shared the names of some of Duan Yuhui’s members, such as the second-in-command, Colonel Zuo. Lu Yin had already learned this name from eavesdropping on the conversation between Zuo San and Xia Zhitong, but the man also mentioned a few others. There was the old woman on the rear battlefield’s second array base who exchanged merit points for the defenders, someone else from the Higher Realm who had been sent to the rear battlefield to guard the entrance, and more.

"That's all that I know," Zuo Shan finished with a tremor.

"Your uncle is the second-in-command, which means that you should have a pretty good status within the Dealcut Association. How do you know about the people you mentioned? All of them work on the rear battlefield, and they are even mostly related to the second array base," Lu Yin asked with a bit of surprise.

Zuo Shan explained, "I’m responsible for delivering certain materials back to the Middle Realm for the Dealcut Association to sell. I act as a liaison with a few families, and I give the list of people whom they’re paying to be protected back to my uncle. I don't know about anyone else, as this is the extent of my responsibilities."

Lu Yin believed the man. With everything else that Zuo Shan had shared, there was no need to bother hiding anything. After all, the man had already betrayed his own uncle.

Everyone who was a part of the Dealcut Association had different responsibilities, and Zuo Shan was primarily responsible for the second array base’s business. This suggested that the other array bases, as well as the Higher Realm, the Middle Realm, and the Lower Realm all had their own people who were responsible for them. For a secret society which was kept secret from the four ruling powers, the Dealcut Association was impressively influential.

After all, not even the four ruling powers themselves could be seen protecting people who were deployed to the rear battlefield, though that was only a matter of appearances.

"How do you get supplies from the second array base?" Lu Yin asked.

"The rear battlefield is strictly monitored, but there are always some people who will exchange their merit points but then return to fight before actually collecting their goods. When those people die, the goods that they purchased are still held, even though they were given away on paper."

Lu Yin's eyes grew incredibly cold. "Even if some of those materials can be exchanged the moment the exchange is made, you people deliberately withhold them, don’t you?"

Zuo Shan did not answer, and he regretted sharing this last bit of information. However, he had simply been too scared and had given everything away. In truth, the person asking these questions knew very little about the Dealcut Association. Basically, he knew the name and nothing else, especially not about how the organization actually operated. Zuo Shan should have never revealed these secrets.

However, it was already too late for regret, as he had given away everything.

Lu Yin frowned, and he looked at Zuo Shan with disgust. These people were beasts. Those who fought on the rear battlefield were risking their lives to defend humanity, and yet these people from the Dealcut Association had deliberately delayed the exchange of merit points for earned rewards. Given the fierceness of the fighting on the rear battlefield, a delay of a day or two, or even a few hours, could be enough for the person to return to the battlefield and die.

While this method made it impossible to skim a large amount of resources from the rear battlefield, it still provided a substantial source of income for the Dealcut Association. After all five array bases were taken into consideration, it was a rather large harvest.

However, these were profits being paid for by the lives of people who were fighting on the frontlines for humanity.

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