Published at 17th of December 2025 7:33 am

Chapter 3973: Absorption

This chapter is updated by JustRead.pl

But how could the humans possibly know about Luo Chans ability?

Lu Yin exchanged glances with the Great Master and the others on her boat. This was war: truth and lies, reality and illusion.

The truth was that Lu Yin and his companions had no idea if Unbroken Time was attempting to deliberately mislead them or if the bugs schemes were far more intricate than expected. Their only source of confidence lay in Greater Sancte Awe Gate and the fact that humanity was currently being protected by two Immortals. No matter how the Nest civilization attacked, humanity would surely have a path of retreat.

If the battle went smoothly, then all the better. If not, they could simply retreat and try again. There was nothing worse than sitting back and watching the swarms of insects expand.

Unless the Immortal Lord arrived.

If the Immortal Lord arrived, the Heavenly Karmic Macrocosm would allow Greater Sancte Awe Gate to know in advance.

Also, the Immortal Lord could be temporarily left to Master Qing Cao. That Immortal was not something that Lu Yin and the others needed to worry about.

Unbroken Time stopped speaking, and Lu Yin and the others similarly fell silent. The confrontation atop the River of Aeons continued.

Far away, in three different directions, Chang, Luo Chan, and Shan Xiao were making their way towards Unbroken Time. None of the Insect Lords concealed their movements, allowing the humans to see them clearly.

Their method of travel was quite unique. They used the elasticity of a specific type of insects shell to fling themselves forward like springs. It was actually rather similar to how the Night Pillars were launched to foreign megaverses, with the exception that one took advantage of an insects innate trait while the other was a man-made method.

The Nest civilization had destroyed many civilizations, and there were many bugs that possessed the abilities of previously encountered creatures. This had given rise to some truly bizarre species.

Unbroken Time and Luo Chan were among the most peculiar lifeforms, but beneath them were entire hordes of bugs with odd abilities. They had wreaked havoc on the human cultivators while fighting on the battlefield.

Master Qing Cao quickly relayed the news to Lu Yin and the others.

This method allowed the other three Insect Lords to travel through the Aevum Inch much faster than they could by their own power. They moved at almost half the speed of a green lotus leaf. This meant that Shan Xiao and Luo Chan would take no more than a year and a half to reach Unbroken Time. Chang was the farthest away, but it was being propelled by a Verdant Sage whose speed nearly matched that of a green lotus leaf. This meant that all three would arrive at roughly the same time.

A year and a half. That was how long Lu Yin and the others would need to survive while being battered by the River of Aeons.

Unbroken Time would also have to endure for a year and a half.

Each side was pursuing their own schemes, but no one expected that, in addition to the plots in play by humanity and the insects, Lu Yin had yet another one. He intended to absorb all of the foreign time in Unbroken Time's River of Aeons and strengthen Lightstream.

Only he knew that this was even possible.

It was only months later that the Great Master stared at the boat beneath Lu Yins feet in a daze. Had something about it changed?

Sensing the Great Masters gaze, Lu Yin looked back at and locked eyes with her.

She glanced from him back to Lightstream. That boat had definitely changed.

Lu Yin offered a hint of a smile and gestured for silence.

He had deliberately prevented Lightstreams boat form from growing any larger, so as not to alarm Unbroken Time. However, it was not possible to hide the changes in Lightstream from a ferryman of the River of Aeons, even if it was possible to fool Unbroken Time.

The Great Master was too familiar with the River of Aeons. Lightstream boat form was lower in the river than ever before, and by a significant amount too. This indicated that the boats weight was increasing.

The pressure it exerted upon time was growing, which meant the boat itself was accumulating more time.

How had Lu Yin accomplished that?

The Great Master was stunned. Was such a thing even possible?

She had never heard of a ferrymans boat on the River of Aeons growing heavier. At first, she had even assumed that Lu Yin had stolen some ferrymans vessel, but later she realized it was something else entirely: a boat born of space chasing after time, formed from the crushing weight of the years.

Could such a boat grow?

The Great Master could not understand what Lu Yin had done, while Unbroken Time had not even noticed.

Soon, a year passed.

The Nine Odysseys Megaverse had been waiting the entire time, sated only by the reports that Master Qing Cao delivered. Even so, those reports were limited to revealing that the stalemate continued.

That River of Aeons had become a magnificent sight.

Not everyone had a chance to see the River of Aeons, yet Unbroken Time had kept it out for a year, scouring away countless insects. It was truly an amazing sight.

The sight of Lu Yin and the other humans bobbing in boats on top of the River of Aeons was another miraculous sight.

Even Greater Sancte Awe Gate was amazed. It was no surprise to her that the Great Master was capable of this, but the fact that Lu Yin was also able to do so was astonishing.

How could the boy have found such a strange use of the power of time?

It will still be another half year before Luo Chan and the others arrive, Master Qing Cao reported. He had wandered about the Aevum Inch to confirm this information.

Greater Sancte Awe Gate clasped her hands behind her back, saying nothing.

As the River of Aeons continued to wash everything away, the Great Master would occasionally glance at Lightstream. The boat had sunk even deeper. She was very curious; if Lu Yin fully released Lightstream, how large of a boat would it become?

Unbroken Time managed to finally sense that something was wrong, but that was because it had become clear that Lu Yin was no longer swaying.

As Lightstream absorbed more time, Verdant Eternity had become better able to resist the force of the River of Aeons flow. Lu Yin was able to completely withstand the impact, which was why he no longer wavered.

The more steadily that Lu Yin stood in his boat, the more uncomfortable that Unbroken Time became. It had been nervous for more than half a year as it had continued to wait for the other three Insect Lords to arrive. However, its unease had only grown, reaching the point where it instinctively wanted to stop the flow of the River of Aeons.

It felt that Lu Yin had managed to accomplish something with the help of its River of Aeons.

Unfortunately, it could not see what the human had done.

Lu Yin was just like the Great Master, and he had become quite curious to discover how Lightstreams boat form had changed.

Lightstream was constantly absorbing more time. Each cast of Lu Yins net brought in a tremendous amount of foreign time. Clearly, Unbroken Time had erased countless creatures from other civilizations with its River of Aeons, which had caused the river to become indescribably polluted with time that did not belong to it.

What Lu Yin felt from Lightstream was solidness. It felt deep, steady, and incredibly havy.

The scouring flow of the River of Aeons practically had no effect on the boat any longer. Lu Yin was even confident that he could move Lightstream closer to Unbroken Time, which was beyond what the Great Masters vessel could do.

However, he refrained from doing so. Instead, he simply continued. This was an incredibly rare opportunity, and he needed to absorb as much time for as long as possible.

Unbroken Time resisted the urge to withdraw its River of Aeons. It needed to wait. There was no chance that humans could endure for much longer, as it knew that the humans Immortals were monitoring the movements of the other three Insect Lords. Soon, very soon.

Several more months passed.

When there were less than two months remaining before the three Insect Lords arrived, Unbroken Time stared intently at Lu Yin.

He was no longer putting on any sort of act. He was standing upright on Lightstream, looking utterly at ease. Verdant Eternity was now able to endure the force of the River of Aeons, which allowed him to absorb time even faster.

Unbroken Time was certain that Lu Yin had done something, but with reinforcements already so near, there was no need to dwell on the matter.

The Great Master could not help but look at the boat beneath Lu Yins feet. Judging by how deep it was in the river, it was far heavier than her own vessel. Could it even still be considered a boat?

Qing Xing and Dan Jin both calmly sat in the Great Masters boat, awaiting the coming battle.

Time continued to roll on. Two months passed quickly, though Unbroken Times anxiety and restlessness only increased. The humans still had not retreated. How could they not have left? Was it possible that they actually intended to fight to the death?

Luo Chan and Shan Xiao were fast approaching, and Changs strength caused space to tremble, even though they were still far away. Despite that, Lu Yin and his companions still refused to leave.

Retreat?

Of course that was impossible. Lu Yin and the others goal was to kill Unbroken Time. If they looked like they were about to succeed, the Nest civilization would never allow the creature to die just to keep Luo Chans ability a secret. When Unbroken Times life was truly threatened, Chang and the others would appear in an instant.

That was why it did not really matter whether they arrived or not.

What mattered was making them believe their own plan had succeeded, provoking their fury and forcing the final battle to begin.

Its time. Lu Yins eyes glinted with a cold light. Beneath his feet, Lightstream suddenly started to swell. It grew more than a hundred times larger, becoming a monstrosity that sprawled across the River of Aeons. Lu Yin then took control of it and shot upstream, charging straight at Unbroken Time.

It was completely stunned. How was this possible?

The Great Master, Dan Jin, and Qing Xing were all struck dumb. That massive?

Compared to Lightstream, the Great Masters boat looked downright pitiful.

Lu Yin guided Lightstream straight into Unbroken Time, violently crashing into the creature. So what if he had to go against the current? His boat could endure it.

Frightened by Lu Yins vessel, Unbroken Time turned and fled, the River of Aeons instantly vanishing.

Dan Jin and Qing Xing immediately took action, though they did not target Unbroken Time, but rather the void. With the Insect Lords on their way as reinforcements, it was necessary to create a battlefield that could not be affected by outside forces. Only then could Lu Yin and the Great Master slay Unbroken Time.

That had been the plan from the start, but while they had originally needed to prevent Luo Chan from moving Chang and the other Insect Lords, there was no longer a need to monitor Luo Chan. The other three Insect Lords were already so close. At this point, things were a matter of sheer endurance.

Lu Yin threw out a Wheel of Karma, flinging it towards Unbroken Time.

Behind him, the Great Master slammed her oar down. Lu Yin threw out a punch, the power of which was swept up by the oar and hurled downward.

There was a resounding crash as Unbroken Time was struck from above. Its needle immediately jumped from the twelfth mark to the first one. A line of time shot out, targeting Qing Xing.

Energy swirled around his body, and he pointed a finger, meeting the line of time.

Time froze, but that was not enough to stop either the Chaotic Ancient Qi Art or the Immortal matter.

Unbroken Time moved the line of time, and everything nearby turned gray as it retreated farther and farther.

Nee shot forward to crash into the Great Master.

Lu Yin stepped in front of her, his hand upraised to block Nee. It was over.

Terrifying force drove Lu Yins five fingers straight through Nees shell. The creature let out a howl of agony as Lu Yin hurled it straight into his Champions Stage Purgatory. His inner universe erupted, just as he saw Luo Chan flicker by. In the end, it had arrived.

It was impossible for either Qing Xing or Dan Jin to stop Luo Chan, though they did manage to hold Shan Xiao off.

Some distance away, Shan Xiao unleashed her Third: Heaven-Severing Technique. The power of the Third Rampart slammed sideways into Qing Xing and Dan Jin.

Dan Jin ceaselessly unleashed her pill arts, bombarding the attack.

The earth-shaking impact rattled the cosmos.

Careful! Lu Yin shouted harshly.

Luo Chan flickered past the Great Master, aiming to smash her head.

She casually slapped at the attack and simply swatted Luo Chan away. She was certain that her attack would land.

Lu Yin was astonished. The Great Masters use of the power of time was also quite bizarre. She had not attacked Luo Chan, but rather the segment of time that Luo Chan occupied. It was the same method that she had used earlier against Unbroken Time. This was what guaranteed that her attack would always land.

No matter how fast Luo Chan might be able to move, it could never move faster than time itself. Even more importantly, not even Lu Yin himself had been able to clearly see if the Great Master had attacked a moment of time in the past or the future.

A sky-shaking roar rang out with enough force that the void peeled back in layers.

Lu Yin looked up. Chang had appeared. Its colossal body coiled across the cosmos. It let out a roar that shook space as it revealed its indescribable strength.

The Lifeforce that the creature possessed was like that of a true Immortal. A single tail swept across the universe.

Qing Xing empowered his attacks with Immortal matter, throwing a punch, a kick, a leg sweep, a palm strike, a hip-check, and a back smash. The Chaotic Ancient Qi Art formed six afterimages that merged into one. Swirls of energy shot upwards as the man charged at Chang on his own.

Share