Lu Yin glanced at the man again and subconsciously moved to the side. Poison was a headache to deal with at any given time.
Not long after, Northgate Lie stepped onto the stage once more. This time, he did not use any battle techniques and only used his powerful star energy to defeat his opponent. It was also an instant kill, which fully displayed the terror of the Top 100 Rankings.
Not long after Northgate Lie's battle ended, Lu Yin received news that Lily Anne wanted to meet him.
Lu Yin left the stage and headed to the meeting place.
The meeting place was very close, and when he arrived, he saw Lily Anne and Northgate Lie.
"Brother Lu, I'm really sorry to disturb you, but Brother Lie wants to meet you," Lily Anne said apologetically.
Lu Yin nodded and looked at Northgate Lie. "Brother Northgate, are you looking for me to confirm the time of the battle?"
Northgate Lie gave Lily Anne a look that signaled for her to leave. She had no choice but to leave.
After she left, Northgate Lie looked at Lu Yin solemnly. "Brother Lu, we have no enmity between us, so there's no need for a battle."
Lu Yin was puzzled. "Brother Northgate, did you invite me here just to talk about this?"
Northgate Lie asked in a low voice, "Brother Lu, are you sure you can win?"
Lu Yin muttered to himself for a moment and then shook his head. "No one dares to say that they can win against an expert on the Top 100 Rankings. Besides, I'm just a Limiteer."
"That's right. Brother Lu, you're not just representing yourself, but also the Ten Arbiters. If you lose, the Ten Arbiters will lose face, and this will affect your position in the Ten Arbiters Council. What do you think, Brother Lu?"
Lu Yin's eyes flashed, as he could guess Northgate Lie's misgivings. They were afraid that defeating him would embarrass the Ten Arbiters and offend them. Lu Yin had not considered this before, and the Northgate family's misgivings were justified. There had been a lot of rumors in the outside world over the past few days, and one of them was that the Northgate family had expelled the Ten Arbiters Council.
For the Northgate family, if news of Lu Yin's defeat reached the ears of the Ten Arbiters, it would make them think that the Northline Flowzone was challenging the Ten Arbiters Council's authority. This was equivalent to placing the Northgate family in opposition to the Ten Arbiters, which was too much of a risk for the Northgate family. The Ten Arbiters not only represented ten individuals, but also the unimaginable power behind them.
The Northline Flowzone still needed to use the Northgate Platform Competition to unite the seventeen families against the surrounding Flowzones, so how could they dare to offend the power behind the Ten Arbiters?
The Northgate family was scared.
However, the more afraid they were, the more it showed that they did not take him seriously. They had never thought that they would be defeated. This was the confidence of the experts on the Top 100 Rankings.
After thinking through all of this, Lu Yin's mind became active. It was as if a path to the heavens had bloomed in front of him, and he saw a new way to earn money.
Lu Yin coughed twice and righteously said, "Brother Northgate, a man is born in the universe, so naturally, he should have some accomplishments. Being able to challenge the Top 100 Rankings is my greatest wish in this lifetime. Even if I lose, it's still an honorable defeat."
Northgate Lie's face twitched. "Brother Lu, you need to think this through. If you lose, then the reputation that you've built up through the Astral Combat Tournament and the Tournament of the Strongest will be damaged. More importantly, you'll embarrass the Ten Arbiters, and your future in the Ten Arbiters Council won't be easy."
Lu Yin waved a hand. "It's fine. A man should take responsibility."
Northgate Lie was speechless. This Lu Yin had a one-track mind and did not consider the severity of the consequences. If they really fought, then this person would definitely lose, and the consequences would be severe for the Northgate family. However, it was impossible for Northgate Lie to lose in order to protect the Ten Arbiters' reputation. If he lost, then Lu Yin would replace him and become an expert on the Top 100 Rankings. This was something that Northgate Lie could not accept no matter what.
"Brother Lu, I heard that you had an agreement with the Sword Sect's Liu Shaoqiu to challenge the Top 100 Rankings together. It's not good for you to go back on your word," Northgate Lie probed.
Lu Yin raised his head. "A man should take responsibility."
Northgate Lie was speechless again. Were they even talking about the same thing?
The atmosphere suddenly fell into a strange silence. One was thinking about how to make Lu Yin give up on the battle, while the other was thinking about how to bring up the topic of money.
Lu Yin had already suffered a loss. Yue Xianzi and An Shaohua had not given him any money because they had not made it clear enough. However, he still wanted to save face, and he could not possibly ask Northgate Lie for money. That would be too embarrassing.
Both of them were rather melancholic.
At this moment, Northgate Gang walked over. Lu Yin's eyes lit up when he saw him, and he deliberately turned his back to Northgate Gang. He placed his hands behind his back and rubbed his three fingers together. His actions were too obvious.
Northgate Gang was stunned, and he stared at Lu Yin's fingers in a daze. He seemed to realize something after a while, and he pulled Northgate Lie aside to whisper to him.
Northgate Lie did not believe Lu Yin at first, and then he became skeptical. He glanced at Lu Yin's hands behind his back and saw that those three fingers were still rubbing together. Everyone in the universe knew what this action meant.
Lu Yin's eyes gleamed with anticipation. This was obvious enough!
"Brother Lu, are you short on money?"
Northgate Lie probed. Beside him, Northgate Gang hurriedly said, "Bro, it's too obvious." He then looked at Lu Yin with a displeased expression. "Brother Lu, since it's your first time in the Northline Flowzone, my Northgate family has prepared a greeting gift for you. Please accept it."
Lu Yin's lips curled up, and he looked at Northgate Gang with admiration. Although this person liked to oppose him, he was still quite sensible. "Well, since it's a gift from the Northgate family, I'll accept it."
This time, Northgate Lie was certain that Lu Yin wanted money. His evaluation of Lu Yin instantly dropped by a hundred levels, and his disdain was written all over his face. This kind of person was actually the champion of the Tournament of the Strongest? The Astral Combat Academy had truly declined.
Northgate Lie no longer wanted to speak to Lu Yin.
"Brother Northgate, I've thought about the battle you just mentioned, and I feel that it's indeed inappropriate. However, with the rumors spreading everywhere, abruptly canceling the battle will be a loss of face for both myself and the Ten Arbiters," Lu Yin said.
Northgate Lie coldly replied, "Brother Lu, you don't have to worry about that. I'll leave tomorrow, and no one will blame Brother Lu for that. Brother Lu, you just need to announce that the battle will be postponed."
Lu Yin nodded. "That's good, that's good."
In front of them, Northgate Gang gave Northgate Lie a look, and Northgate Lie tossed a cosmic ring to Lu Yin. The ring's design was strange, and it had an ancient charm to it. "This is a cosmic ring that I obtained from the Starfall Sea. It has a huge range, and a normal person would want to buy at least two star essence. This gift should be enough."
Lu Yin actually wanted the star essence more, but when he looked at the space in the cosmic ring, he realized that it was indeed quite large. It was several times larger than the one he was currently using. He had wanted to buy a cosmic ring like this for a long time, but he couldn't bear to spend the money. After thinking about it, he nodded. "It's enough. Thank you, Brother Northgate."
Aside from a rich second generation like Lulu, the disciples of the Innerverse's great families did not have much money. Northgate Lie giving Lu Yin a cosmic ring that was worth two star essence was already beyond his expectations. Lu Yin had actually wanted to have a chat with Northgate Kong, but this matter was not something that could not be resolved. Northgate Lie could just walk away, and there was no need for Lu Yin's approval. Lu Yin knew when to stop, and getting a cosmic ring was already pretty good.
Northgate Lie was no longer in the mood to bicker with Lu Yin, and he turned to leave. In his eyes, Lu Yin was just a petty merchant.
Northgate Gang was similarly disdainful of Lu Yin.
Lu Yin did not care about them. So what if they looked down on him? Increasing his strength was the most important thing.
"Seventh Bro, even I feel embarrassed for you. Not only did you lose face, but you also lost everything," the monkey said with a sigh.
Lu Yin smiled. "Was it embarrassing?
The initiative to challenge the Top 100 Rankings is not in Northgate Lie's hands; it's in my hands. "
"What do you mean?"
"What I mean is that I can challenge Northgate Lie at any time. History is written by the victors, and no matter what the process is, a win is a win," Lu Yin said confidently.
The monkey was puzzled. "Seventh Bro, you seem to be so sure that you can win."
"Maybe. I just need to earn some more money," Lu Yin said. So what if he was looked down on? Once he defeated Northgate Lie, he would see who would dare look down on him. Money might seem vulgar, but who didn't need it?
Lu Yin wanted to use the Northgate family to tell the entire universe that he needed money. The more money he had, the faster his strength would increase.
As for reputation, strength meant reputation. Once he reached the level of the Ten Arbiters, he could hide his name like the Ten Arbiters. Who would dare talk about him then?
Speaking of which, did the Ten Arbiters hide their names because they did too many immoral things and did not want others to talk about them?
This time, the winner of the Northgate Platform Competition was almost certain to be the Northgate family. Duke Blackhawk and the others all wanted to leave.
Suddenly, on the Barthe Jacques family's floating platform, the Enlighter Tie Sa opened his eyes and looked towards the north. Behind him, Poison Flame, Duke Blackhawk, Fayde, Northgate Kong, and the rest all looked towards the north, causing the void to tremble.
Lu Yin felt his scalp go numb, and he looked towards the north in shock. Was this a battle between powerhouses?
The Northgate Platform was shaking, and the air was shaking. Or rather, the entire universe was shaking.
Tie Sa's eyes gradually turned scarlet. "Master, there's a battle between Enlighters."
Hawk solemnly replied, "In the north, it's the Northgate family."
Northgate Kong's face turned ugly, as the Northgate family was in that direction. The shockwaves from a battle that could cause even them to tremble was definitely a battle between powerhouses with power levels above 200,000. Fortunately, Boss Northgate was still within the family, so he should be fine.
Everyone felt the air become heavy, and the younger generation's battles stopped as they all looked towards the north.
Someone had attacked the Northgate family.
Everyone had different expressions.
Northgate Kong's gaze swept over everyone, as if he was trying to figure out something.
The next moment, an indescribable power swept past the Northgate Platform, and the air seemed to burn away. Everyone trembled as they felt a terrifying power that they had never felt before.
At this moment, even Tie Sa, an Enlighter, was overwhelmed. "This, this is …"
Duke Blackhawk and the others narrowed their eyes. This power definitely exceeded 300,000. No, it might even exceed 400,000. Why had such a powerhouse appeared in the Northline Flowzone?
Northgate Kong's face paled. Who could actually force the Northgate family to such a state?
Lily Liana looked at Northgate Kong fearfully. Rumor had it that the Northgate family had an elder who had sealed himself in ice and whose power level was extremely terrifying. When the Northgate family had ruled the Northline Flowzone, that elder had been alive all this time. Lily Liana had never believed this rumor, but that power had terrified her. She looked at Northgate Kong's expression and wondered if there really was such an elder.
The Northgate Platform fell silent.