Chapter 2218: Crossing The Ocean
Chapter 2218: Crossing The Ocean
After wandering around the Middle Ocean for a few more days, with Lu Yin’s guidance, they finally saw the Island of Hope.
"Isn't that the Island of Hope? I didn't think that we’d end up here." Prof. Bai was amazed, and envy filled her eyes.
Who in the entire Perennial World did not want to visit the Island of Hope? Youths competed for the title of Junior Progenitor and the opportunity to enter the Dominion Realm here, and older cultivators would choose a Junior Progenitor to follow them because the Junior Progenitors were guaranteed to become Progenitors in the future, and the future was limitless for a Progenitor’s followers.
However, Bai Weiwei had not been qualified to follow any of the four Junior Progenitors because she had been too weak during their selection process
"Since we’ve come all the way to the Island of Hope, we might as well go take a look! Let's go," Bai Weiwei said excitedly.
However, Prof. Bai hesitated. "That’s not a good idea. Before the competition to determine the Junior Progenitors’ teams to enter the Dominion Realm starts, no one is allowed to step foot onto the Island of Hope."
The Island of Hope was the entryway to the Junior Progenitor Planets, which only those elite few recognized as Junior Progenitors and their followers were allowed to enter. Even the title of Junior Progenitor only existed for a limited amount of time, and it was given exclusively to those who were victorious during the Yuanlun Festival. Even if other geniuses were born in different eras and had power that matched or even exceeded the Junior Progenitors’, they could not receive the title.
The Junior Progenitors were the only ones who were given the opportunity to go to the Dominion Realm to compete for Origin Matter, as even here, there was not an excess of Origin Matter. This was also why the Fifth Mainland always chose to send people into the Perennial World immediately after the Yuanlun Festival concluded.
Of course, not being able to go to the Dominion Realm and fight for Origin Matter did not mean that it was impossible to obtain Origin Matter. Rather, the method to obtain it was completely different.
From Lu Yin’s point of view, the Junior Progenitors’ excursion to the Dominion Realm was nothing more than a ritual or a ceremony.
Was it possible that Bai Shaohong and the other Junior Progenitors would not be given Origin Matter if they did not find any in the Dominion Realm? That was impossible. Was there no way for the elites before and after Bai Shaohong’s generation to have an opportunity to obtain Origin matter? That was also impossible.
The most obvious example of this was the Seven Heroes. There was no Yuanlun Festival during their time, but everyone had been utterly confident that they would reproduce the glory of controlling the Nine Mountains and the Eight Seas. Only Progenitors could control the Nine Mountains and the Eight Seas, and it took a truly exceptional Progenitor to accomplish that feat.
It was impossible to become a Progenitor without Origin Matter, which meant that there had to have been some way for the Seven Heroes to obtain it.
The fact of the matter was that, regardless of whether someone could get Origin Matter, climbing past the Island of Hope to reach the resources and other benefits that were on the Junior Progenitor Planets did not depend on the age in which a person was born. Rather, it depended on their own strength.
Things like justice and luck were only facades used by ordinary people.
Prof. Bai was a rather ordinary individual, and so to his knowledge, only the Junior Progenitors and their followers could ascend past the Island of Hope, and the time of the Junior Progenitors had already passed. Even if the man was an Envoy, he was still a relatively average individual.
Bai Weiwei lifted her head high. "Who’s going to stop us?"
Prof. Bai was caught off guard. It was common knowledge that the Island of Hope was off limits unless one had permission, but who enforced that restriction? It could only be the four ruling powers, and to some extent, Bai Weiwei could act as a representative of the Celestial Frost Sect.
"Let's go," Bai Weiwei gently pushed.
There was no more hesitation, and Prof. Bai guided the paper boat towards the Island of Hope.
Lu Yin never said a word. He could not voice his desire to step onto the Island of Hope, so he had purposefully stayed silent and left the decision to Bai Weiwei.
It was not long before they landed on the Island of Hope.
Lu Yin actually felt a bit emotional when he returned to the island. When he last visited this place, he had been escorted by Long Kui. He had benefited greatly that time, but there was no telling if he would be similarly successful this time.
During his last visit, Lu Yin had not spent much time observing the Island of Hope. While walking across the island with Bai Weiwei, he found the place to be no different than any other place. It seemed that the greatest difference was the presence of the Junior Progenitor Planets.
The four Junior Progenitor Planets hung beyond the Island of Hope, and it was only possible to see them from Hope Restaurant.
After half a day of walking, the three people arrived at Hope Restaurant. There was absolutely no one on the entire island, and the only sounds were those of birds, beasts, and insects.
Bai Weiwei looked up at Hope Restaurant. "So is this the legendary Hope Restaurant?"
Prof. Bai stared at the restaurant. He had never even imagined that there would come a day when he would visit this place.
"Prof. Bai, I heard that there’s an old senior from the academy here, right?" Bai Weiwei asked.
Prof. Bai replied, "I've heard that as well, but I don’t know the details."
Bai Weiwei glanced over at “Yu Hao,” and Lu Yin spoke up. "There’s an old senior here who’s known as the God of Food."
Bai Weiwei was surprised. "Why do they call him that?"
"How do you know about that, Prof. Hao Yu?" Prof. Bai also felt quite surprised.
Lu Yin laughed. "I met that senior by coincidence, and he’s the one who invited me to become an instructor at the academy."
"So that's what happened." Prof. Bai instantly understood. He had joined Virtue Archives before Lu Yin, so there was no reason for him to not know the information that Lu Yin was privy to. This was the easiest explanation that made sense.
There was no more hesitation as the three people climbed up to the restaurant. There, they were finally able to make out the hazy form of the four Junior Progenitor Planets far off in the distance. At the same time, delicious food appeared on a table in front of them.
"This is the famous food of Hope Restaurant! Let’s try it!" Bai Weiwei was quite intrigued, and while eating, she stared at the Junior Progenitor Planets with glowing eyes.
Prof. Bai was not the only average cultivator, as Bai Weiwei was the same. At the very least, she was not exceptional enough to break the rules.
The delicious food appeared without warning, and whenever the plates were emptied, new ones appeared.
Lu Yin smiled. "It looks like Senior is afraid that we’ll starve."
A respectful expression suddenly appeared on Prof. Bai’s face.
Bai Weiwei quickly got to her feet. "Virtue Archives student Bai Weiwei respectfully asks Senior God of Food to reveal himself."
As soon as Prof. Bai heard the young woman, he leaped to his feet and offered a bow of his own. "Bai Lin, instructor from Virtue Archives, respectfully requests that Senior show himself."
Lu Yin also rose to his feet. "Hao Yu, instructor from Virtue Archives, respectfully requests Seniors to show himself."
There was no response. The three people repeated their request, but there was still no response.
"Forget it. It appears that Senior doesn't want to be disturbed by us, so let's just leave after finishing our food," Lu Yin said.
Bai Weiwei replied, "Since I came to the Island of Hope, it’d be a pity to not visit the Junior Progenitor Planets."
As soon as she finished speaking, she left the restaurant and started making her way towards the Junior Progenitor Planets.
Prof. Bai was startled, and he hurried after her.
Lu Yin similarly followed.
They soon arrived at the Celestial Frost Sect’s Junior Progenitor Planet. Bai Weiwei moved towards the planet, but an irresistible, yet gentle force stopped her. She stopped and said, "Bai Weiwei, disciple of the Celestial Frost Sect, wishes to enter the Junior Progenitor Planet."
"If you are not a Junior Progenitor, then you are not allowed to enter the planet," a voice replied.
Lu Yin and Prof. Bai arrived at that moment, and when they looked down at the Junior Progenitor Planet and saw the endless star essence, the sight caused Lu Yin’s eyes to sparkle.
Bai Weiwei was unwilling to back down. "I am the most outstanding disciple of my generation in the Celestial Frost Sect, and I am comparable to Junior Progenitor Bai Shaohong when he was my age. Do I really not qualify to visit the Junior Progenitor Planet?"
A man stepped out of the Junior Progenitor Planet. He was Senior Cheng Tian, who was the guardian of the Junior Progenitor Planet. Each of the four planets had several Envoys who served as guardians, and Senior Cheng Tian was a powerhouse who was a six- tribulation Envoy.
The guardian and Bai Weiwei stared at each other. "I truly would like to allow you in, but we cannot break the rules. I would be the one responsible for allowing you in, unless you are able to obtain the consent of the sect master of the Celestial Frost Sect."
The guardians had volunteered to take on their task not only because they wished to retire on the Junior Progenitor Planets, but also because they wanted to rely on the Junior Progenitors. After all, those four youths had a very good chance of eventually becoming Progenitors, which was why so many people were eager to follow and support the youths; it was purely because of their potential. Serving a Junior Progenitor was an opportunity that was out of reach of the vast majority of cultivators.
Bai Weiwei was indeed the most outstanding disciple of her generation in the Celestial Frost Sect. So despite being a six-tribulation Envoy, Cheng Tian was eager to support the young woman. The old man knew that he had reached his limits and could not improve any further, but if he obtained a higher status, then those barriers could be surpassed.
Thus, the man was not lying when he said that he wished that he could allow Bai Weiwei to enter the planet, as things would greatly improve for him if the young woman received the title of Junior Progenitor. However, rules were rules.
Bai Weiwei frowned. "If you let me in, I will accept your support."
Cheng Tian shook his head in a helpless manner. "I'm sorry."
The man would not place all of his hopes onto a single person or generation. His strength meant that he had a long life ahead of him, and as long as he remained the chief guardian of the Junior Progenitor Planet, he would continue to meet geniuses who had the potential to become Progenitors. Risking this position by breaking the rules for a single individual was not worth it at all.
Bai Weiwei’s attempts to talk her way in were useless, and she eventually had no choice but to leave.
Aside from visiting Hope Restaurant and seeing the Island of Hope, she had gained nothing at all from this visit.
Even when she was back on the paper boat, Bai Weiwei was very reluctant to accept the current situation. "If I wasn’t just a few decades too late, Bai Shaohong might not have been the Junior Progenitor!"
Lu Yin arched a brow. From his judgment, Bai Shaohong had been much more impressive than Bai Weiwei was. Did people actually believe that there was an element of luck to becoming one of the four Junior Progenitors? That was completely wrong. Unless one reached a certain threshold of power, then even if they surpassed everyone else in their generation, it would not be enough to stand up to the other three Junior Progenitors.
The four Junior Progenitors had received their titles by relying purely on their own strength. If Bai Weiwei had been born at the same time as Bai Shaohong, then she would have at best been comparable to Nong Sanniang or Liu Hao.
The sky darkened above the Middle Ocean, and a luminous silver fish shot into the sky from the depths of the ocean, where it shot out a beam of light.
Aboard the paper boat, Prof. Bai turned pale. "Not good! That creature’s as strong as a four-tribulation Envoy!"
“Yu Hao” quickly set up a sourcebox array to block the beam of light, and then both Prof. Bai and Bai Weiwei attacked the beam in an attempt to weaken it. The three of them fought for a bit less than half an hour before driving the silver fish off.
By the time the sky recovered to its former brilliance, Prof. Bai was almost completely drained, and Bai Weiwei was also gasping for breath.
Puff!
“Yu Hao” spat out a mouthful of blood, and Bai Weiwei and Prof. Bai quickly moved over to assist him. "Prof. Hao Yu, what’s wrong?"
“Yu Hao” looked terrible, and he continued to cough up more blood. "I was barely able to keep the sourcebox array stable against those attacks, and I ended up being badly injured. I don’t think that I’ll be able to help you for several days."
Bai Weiwei still felt quite grateful. "If not for your help just now, we would have died. Let’s find a place to rest while you spend a few days recovering, Professor."
“Yu Hao” nodded, and he took a seat in the paper boat, still looking extremely pale.
However, the Yu Hao who was present was actually someone else, as Tong Yu had adopted Hao Yu’s appearance and replaced Lu Yin.
After agreeing to travel to the Middle Ocean with Bai Weiwei, Lu Yin had contacted Tong Yu and asked her to follow them from a distance and be ready to replace Lu Yin at any given moment.
Lu Yin’s goal for visiting the Middle Ocean was not to waste time, but rather to obtain the resources that were on the Junior Progenitor Planets.
Everyone in the Perennial World knew that the resources on the Junior Progenitor Planets were provided by everyone in the Perennial World. After all, the Junior Progenitors were not supposed to merely represent the four ruling powers, but rather the entire Perennial World. They were supposed to be geniuses who were supported and raised by all of humanity.
However, the Junior Progenitor Planets were under the complete control of the four ruling powers. While the current generation’s Liu Que was incredibly powerful, he was still barred from using the resources that had been gathered and sent to the Junior Progenitor Planets. The four planets had become the private property of the four ruling powers.
Since that was the case, Lu Yin was happy to help himself to what was available.
He had first asked Tong Yu to pretend to be him. Then, so that no flaws would be discovered in her act, Lu Yin had lured the silver fish with the strength of a four-tribulation Envoy over and feigned a serious injury. This would prevent Tong Yu from interacting too much with Bai Weiwei, during which Lu Yin would sneak back onto the Island of Hope while hidden by Progenitor Smoke. In the end, Lu Yin was able to get to the Junior Progenitor Planets without the God of Food noticing anything.