In the Beast Tamers Flowzone's First Class Hall, a middle-aged man opened his eyes, and a majestic pressure caused the void to collapse. "The Northgate Platform Competition is about to begin. I'll be representing the Beast Tamers Flowzone as a witness this time. I wonder if I have the ability to challenge those three."
In the Blazing Mist Flowzone, space burned with flames. The temperature was extremely high, but it did not affect the void at all. This was the Blaze Realm.
"Poison Flame, you'll be representing the Blaze Realm to witness the Northgate Platform Competition," an old voice said. It was impossible to tell if the voice was near or far, and it was impossible to tell if it was real or illusory.
In a corner of the Blaze Realm, the void distorted, and a person covered in bluish-green flames walked out. "Yes."
As the bluish-green flames dissipated, Poison Flame gradually revealed his true appearance. He was a middle-aged man with a sinister expression who looked up into space. "Has the Northgate Platform Competition begun again?"
He then stepped out of the Blaze Realm and appeared on a stone platform floating in space. A row of figures were kneeling on it, and the person at the front was Jared.
"Master, I was unable to achieve good results in the Astral Combat Tournament. I've embarrassed you," Jared said sadly as his body trembled.
Poison Flame glanced at him coldly. "Where's the retribution flame?"
Jared gritted his teeth, and his eyes were filled with hatred. "Arikar returned, and the sect gave him the retribution flame. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been defeated so easily."
Poison Flame's gaze was cold. "It seems like I haven't been out for a long time. Some people in the sect have already forgotten how terrifying I am."
Jared did not dare to speak. He lowered his head, and his eyes were filled with fear.
"When I return from the Northline Flowzone, tell me who told you to hand over the tribulation flame," Poison Flame said.
Jared's eyes lit up. "Master, you're going to the Northline Flowzone?
Is it because of the Northgate Platform Competition? "
Poison Flame looked at Jared.
Jared's breath caught, and he hurriedly said, "I have a great enemy in the Astral Combat Academy named Lu Yin. He's the champion of this year's Astral Combat Tournament and has joined the Council of Astral Academy. He's in charge of the Northline Flowzone, and he'll probably be there for the Northgate Platform Competition. Disciple …" Before he could finish, Jared spat out a mouthful of blood from Poison Flame's pressure.
The terrifying pressure pressed his body into the ground, and his face turned red as he spat out another mouthful of blood.
"You want Master to participate in a competition between disciples?"
Poison Flame's voice was ice cold. As he spoke, the surrounding flames strangely froze, tinged with a hint of green.
Garr was even more terrified as he stared at Poison Flame with trembling eyes.
After a while, Poison Flame lifted his suppression on Garland and left.
In the same Blazing Mist Flowzone, in space above the Ross Empire, an incomparably large eagle soared through the universe. It flew past planets and countless surveillance technologies as it flew towards the depths of outer space.
"It's Duke Blackhawk. He seems to be heading towards the Northline Flowzone."
"Rumor has it that the Northline Flowzone's new Northgate Platform Competition is about to begin. Duke Blackhawk should be representing the Ross Empire to witness it."
"They actually sent Duke Blackhawk? He's a powerhouse with a power level close to two hundred thousand, and his innate gift, Qiong Ying, can intimidate the entire universe. Even in the Ross Empire, he's ranked at the very top. Is it really necessary to send him here just for the Northgate Platform Competition?"
"Who knows?"
…
In the Northline Flowzone, the Northgate Platform was not a small stone platform. On the contrary, it was extremely large. Although it was just a stone platform, it was large enough to accommodate countless people. Shangwu Academy was built on top of the platform.
Shangwu Academy was jointly built by seventeen families to nurture the younger generation of the Northline Flowzone. The Northgate Platform Competition was first to announce the contributions that each family had made to the Northline Flowzone over the past few years. Second, it was to announce the future development direction of the Northline Flowzone. Third, it was to allow the younger generation to learn from each other. Fourth, which was also the most important point, was to showcase the strength of each family's top powerhouses.
Only those who could surpass everyone else in these four aspects would be able to gain control of the Northgate Platform.
In fact, although it was said that 17 families were competing, only three families were truly qualified to compete. They were the Northgate family, the Lily family, and the Barthe Jacques family. This was because only these three families had almighties whose combat power exceeded 200,000.
In the past Northgate Platform Competitions, one of the three families had always won.
Shangwu Academy was built on top of the Northgate Platform, and it was flanked by large commercial streets.
The Northgate Platform was a stone platform, and its foundation was quite sturdy. Even space-exploring powerhouses would find it difficult to damage it. There were no rivers, mountains, or seas, so this place was not suitable for living. All of the resources needed to be transported from the outside world, and the only places that could be purchased were the commercial streets that flanked Shangwu Academy.
At this moment, in a restaurant on one of the commercial streets, a dozen or so young students were fiercely debating. The antique restaurant had a modern screen hanging on it, giving it a feeling of a combination of technology and antiquity.
"The mentors said that the winner of this Northgate Platform Competition will definitely be the Northgate family. The Northgate family's young master, Northgate Lie, is an Explorer with a power level over thirty thousand. He's also ranked ninety-third on the Top 100 Rankings, and no one in the younger generation of the Northline Flowzone is his match."
"The competition between the younger generation is just one aspect, but it also depends on how much they contribute to the Northline Flowzone. No family dares to compete with the Barthe Jacques family in this aspect. They're a huge corporation, and their influence is not limited to just the Northline Flowzone, but also the Innerverse and Outerverse. Even the Outerverse's Four Great Corporations can't say for sure that they can beat them. A large part of the Northline Flowzone's economy is supported by the Barthe Jacques family."
"The Barthe Jacques family is just a commercial family, and they don't have much power. If they didn't hire the Scarlet Mercenaries, then they wouldn't even have an Enlighter with a power level over two hundred thousand."
"So what? The Scarlet Mercenaries' leader, Tie Sa, has been serving the Barthe Jacques family for so many years, and they're already family."
"I think that the Northgate family has the highest chance of winning. Countless years ago, the Northgate family was a colossus that even the Daynight clan feared."
"Don't talk about the past. Just look at the present."
"The Lily family isn't bad either."
"The Lily family?
It's a woman, so their chances of winning are very low. However, Granny Chan is very powerful, and she's one of the three protectors of the Northline Flowzone. "
…
In a corner of a restaurant, a man was sullenly drinking wine. As the alcohol got to his head, he heard a nearby argument and slammed the table. "Shut up! The Northgate Platform Competition isn't something that the younger generation can discuss."
The youths looked at the man and were stunned for a moment. They then said in a strange tone, "I was wondering who it was that was so arrogant. So it's Ah Fan. Why haven't you left Shangwu Academy yet? Are you waiting for the mentors to kick you out?"
"Ah Fan?
One of the strongest people in the academy?
That Ah Fan? "
"Strongest?
Hmph, he's just a piece of trash who lost our academy's only teleportation stone, "someone said in an unfriendly tone.
"Oh, I remember now. I heard that he lost to Astral-10."
"That's right. It wasn't easy for the academy to obtain a teleportation stone, but that piece of trash lost it so easily. He still has the face to stay in the academy. How shameful."
"Bah, how shameful."
…
Ah Fan gulped down a mouthful of wine and suddenly stood up. He casually threw the wine cup in his hand, shattering it into pieces as it flew towards the students. The students didn't expect Ah Fan to attack so suddenly. They were already much weaker than him, and now, they couldn't even react before they were injured by the fragments of the cup and fell to the ground.
The restaurant owner didn't even dare to make a sound and just watched from the side.
"I, Ah Fan, have lost, and there's nothing to complain about. However, against that person, even Northgate Lie, who you all claim to be the strongest, would have a slim chance of surviving. You can only blame yourself for being unlucky," Ah Fan said coldly.
The students on the ground grimaced in pain, but they didn't dare to talk back. Ah Fan had always been one of the strongest people in Shangwu Academy, and even though he had been neglected by the academy, his strength hadn't changed. They were no match for him.
"How arrogant." Below the restaurant, several young men and women walked up the stairs. The person in the lead held a folding fan and looked very confident.
Everyone looked over and was surprised to find that they were from the Northgate family and the Lily family. Two of the three strongest families had come.
"Brother Ah Fan, I'd like to know what kind of person you're talking about. Even my brother, Northgate Lie, had a slim chance of surviving," the man with the folding fan said slowly as he looked at Ah Fan arrogantly.
Beside him, a very beautiful young girl also seemed to be interested in this matter.
The young man was called Northgate Gang, and he was one of the successors of the Northgate family. He was also Northgate Lie's younger brother. He studied at Shangwu Academy and was one of the strongest Limiteers there, similar to Ah Fan.
Ah Fan remained silent and didn't say anything.
At this moment, the students who had been knocked down had already stood up and were glaring at Ah Fan angrily, as if they were about to attack.
More and more students gathered upstairs to watch the commotion.
Northgate Gang sneered and politely said to the people around him, "Everyone, let me introduce you." He then moved aside to reveal the beautiful girl. "This is Lily Shu'er from the Lily family. She's the cousin of the young mistress, Miss Lily Anne. She's just joined Shangwu Academy, so please take care of her."
The crowd was in an uproar as they looked at Lily Shu'er.
Lily Shu'er wasn't very old, but her eyes were mischievous and cute. She looked around and finally looked at Ah Fan. "Senior Ah Fan, you still haven't told me who was able to kill Brother Northgate Lie. He's on the Top 100 Rankings."
Everyone looked at Ah Fan once again.
Northgate Gang raised his head. "Brother Ah Fan, what's wrong? You can't tell me?
The ported battles only use codenames and don't have names, so you can't talk. If you lose, you lose. All you have to do is work hard and cultivate. But here you are, talking nonsense and using my brother as a stepping stone to wash away your humiliation. As a student of Shangwu Academy, even I feel embarrassed for you. "
Everyone looked at Ah Fan with disdain. A loss was a loss, but he had said that the person who had defeated him was able to kill Northgate Lie. This method of shirking responsibility was too low class, and it had even been heard by the Northgate family. It was utterly humiliating.
Ah Fan clenched his fists and looked up at Northgate Gang. "I'm not spouting nonsense. The person who defeated me is Astral-10's Lu Yin."
The restaurant fell silent as everyone stared at Ah Fan. They all knew who Lu Yin was.
Ah Fan had only told the mentors about this matter, which was why the mentors hadn't blamed him too much and why he had been able to stay at Shangwu Academy.