Lu Yin activated his gadget and brought up the screen. When Lilyrose looked at it, her expression drastically changed.
The screen was a report of all the men that she had tormented during her time on Zenyu Star—a total of thirteen handsome men. Although they were not dead, all of them were practically crippled.
Lu Yin took a sip of his wine. “Nobody cares about your personal life, but those whom you’ve tortured are the Great Eastern Alliance’s regular citizens. In other words, you’ve committed a crime.”
Lilyrose immediately denied the allegations. “That wasn’t me! Don’t frame me!”
Lu Yin’s lips curled upwards. “Don’t you know I’m a major shareholder of Amethyst Exchange? I’m also a member of Aegis’s highest level managers, and I have access to information that you can’t even grasp. If I wanted to know something, then you wouldn’t be able to hide anything from me.”
Lilyrose gritted her teeth. At this moment, she realized why this youth was the leader of the Great Eastern Alliance and why he could wield basically all of the Outerverse’s power as its king. Throughout all seventy two weaves of the Outerverse, whenever anything happened at all, Lu Yin would be able to find out within the shortest amount of time possible.
Lu Yin looked at Lilyrose. “I know the reason behind your actions. It’s because of your mother.”
Lilyrose’s face paled and turned a deathly shade of white while her eyes grew hateful. “Nonsense.”
Lu Yin laughed. “I have no wish to talk about your personal issues. Are you loyal to the Blaze Realm? Are you really happy with your position? Or is it that you can’t fight your fate?”
Lilyrose blankly stared down into her cup and at her reflection in the wine. This face was identical to that woman’s, and whenever Lilyrose saw it, a nauseous feeling would well up along with the urge to cut and tear that face apart.
Lu Yin had exposed her deepest secret, which was something that she could not face right now. It was even more humiliating that someone had pointed it out.
In fact, Lu Yin had only just learned about this information. When he wanted to learn more about Lilyrose’s situation, all of the intelligence organizations under him had quickly summarized everything for him, and the entire process merely took a minute.
Lilyrose’s personal information was something that was not known to either Aegis or Thousand Eyes; rather, the report that he had received had come from Amethyst Exchange.
He had not expected Lilyrose to have such a background, and truthfully, she was rather pitiful. He understood why the woman did what she had. However, understanding was merely that—it could not excuse her crimes much less pardon them.
“I can help you,” Lu Yin stated calmly.
Lilyrose’s body trembled. Her eyes betrayed a trace of insanity as she spoke in a voice thick with the hatred that she had revealed before. “Help me? You just want to use me.”
Lu Yin stared at her. “In either case, are you willing to let me use you to deal with the Blaze Realm?”
Lilyrose laughed. “Deal with the Blaze Realm? Why do you think that I’d help you with that?”
Lu Yin poured a cup of wine. “Whether or not you help me is your own choice. For the moment, all I want to know is the situation concerning the Astral River Ark.”
Lilyrose stared intently into Lu Yin’s eyes. “And if I don’t tell you?”
Lu Yin closed the screen and swirled the wine in his cup. “You’ll be captured and punished until your crimes have been paid back in full.”
Lilyrose clenched her fists. She then steadily drained the entire pot of wine, stood up, and coldly said, “I’m not sure who built the Astral River Ark, and I don’t know who maintains it either. However, I do know one thing—there’s more than just the two Astral River Arks. There’s another backup kept in Blazing Mist Flowzone.”
Lu Yin’s brows rose up. It was true that the Astral River was unpredictable, so how could there only be two arks that connected the Innerverse to the Outerverse? Having a backup was perfectly normal, as it would guard against the possibility of a monster destroying an ark within the Astral River.
“Do you know where it is?” Lu Yin asked.
Lilyrose’s voice turned sour. “No. That Astral River Ark doesn’t belong to the Blaze Realm, but rather to the Hall of Honor. It was simply stored in Blazing Mist Flowzone. Many people in the Blaze Realm know about this, but only a few know it’s exact location.”
Lu Yin did not speak.
Lilyrose left; this had not been a good night for her, as her greatest and most shameful secret had been exposed. Although there were many people in the Blaze Realm who knew about her secret, this was the first time she had been humiliated by it.
There was nothing that she could do to Lu Yin, and her eyes gazed into the distance. She looked at the various bars, wanting to find a man to vent her emotions. However, after thinking about it, she simply left.
She did not want to remain in this place where Lu Yin could reach her whenever he wished.
But before she could make it very far, Lu Yin’s voice echoed in her ears. “Wherever you stayed before, keep staying there for now, and don’t wander around.”
Lilyrose started seething. She had intended to leave Zenyu Star, but logic told her that fleeing would be useless. The entire Outerverse was under Lu Yin’s control, and he could order about innumerable powerhouses and had too vast an intelligence network. Unless she fled to the Innerverse or the Astral Wilderness, she would forever remain under his control.
“What rotten luck,” Lilyrose cursed as she left.
Within the tavern, Lu Yin swirled the wine within his glass. He had expected that, with Lilyrose’s history, he would have been able to convince her to work against the Blaze Realm, but he had been too naive. Although the woman held a deep hatred towards the Blaze Realm, the situation was not simple enough for her to immediately cast her lot in with Lu Yin. Besides, he was not that charming.
Take it easy!
Still, at least he had learned that Blazing Mist Flowzone contained a backup Astral River Ark, which was both good and bad news; it all depended on how it was used.
After finishing his wine, Lu Yin paid the bill, left the pub, and returned to King Zishan’s palace.
***
In another place, in the Innerverse, news about the official start of the contest for the Astral Tower began to spread. Everything would begin in eight months, and anyone in the Innerverse or Neoverse who had earned the title of King or above would be allowed to compete for a seat among the Cosmic Five by fighting for the inheritance of the five mountains and seas.
Everyone would gather at the appointed location within half a year.
Nightking Zhenwu stared at the giant stone plaque that stood in the distance. Zhuo Daynight had already surpassed Nightqueen Yanqing, and she was only behind Zhanlong Daynight, Lu Yin, and Nightking Zhenwu himself.
As long as she surpassed Zhanlong Daynight, she would achieve what he had requested of her.
As for Lu Yin, Nightking Zhenwu’s eyes burned with bloodlust. He would not feel at ease until that kid was dead beyond a doubt.
Lu Yin had actually managed to survive after being struck by his Heart Seeker secret technique, and he had even comprehended the Daynight clan’s battle techniques afterwards. That person had to be hiding a great secret, and he absolutely had to be eliminated.
“The Astral River is receding faster and faster, and it’s possible that the Innerverse will reconnect to the Outerverse within four months,” Starsibyl said as she moved over next to Nightking Zhenwu.
Nightking Zhenwu’s brows rose up. “Four months? That’s a bit too quick, isn’t it?”
Starsibyl did not understand his meaning. “You’re almost officially the leader of the Ten Arbiters. Is there some other matter?”
Nightking Zhenwu stared at the image on top of the stone plaque that was below only him. “I need one month to travel to the assembly location, which leaves me with just one month to kill him.”
Starsibyl looked over at Lu Yin’s image; she still could not make any predictions about this person, and she had never even considered the possibility of him surviving back then. This was a true variable.
“Right, will you also compete for the inheritance in the Astral Tower?” Nightking Zhenwu asked as he looked over at Starsibyl.
She nodded. “Yes.”
Nightking Zhenwu’s eyes flickered. “Are you confident?”
Starsibyl shook her head. “If I were, I wouldn’t be following you. The inheritance of the Astral Tower represents more than just the powers of the Human Domain—it actually represents the entire Human Domain itself. Among the competitors will be heirs of the Three Dark Hands, and my strength is not enough to defeat them.
“I favored you because you are very likely to become one of the Cosmic Five.”
Upon hearing Starsibyl’s words, Nightking Zhenwu involuntarily felt his spirits rise, as this was the accomplishment that he was the most proud of. In just eight months, he would become one of the Cosmic Five, and after that, he would be famous throughout the entire universe. What would accompany his name would not just be the title of Arbiter, but rather leader of the Ten Arbiters, one of the Cosmic Five.
***
In another area of the Innerverse, Tai Yuanjun had a bitter expression on his face. He had never thought that the Starsibyl whom he was so infatuated with would actually side with Nightking Zhenwu. When Tai Yuanjun had first learned about this, his spirits had collapsed.
He looked at the notification on his gadget and then suddenly stood up, snarling. “Are you just following him because he’s the one most likely to become one of the Cosmic Five? Is that why you followed him? Alright, then I’ll definitely find a way to become one of the Cosmic Five and surpass Nightking Zhenwu! At that time, let’s see if you’ll follow me. You are mine, and you can only ever be mine.”
***
In yet another part of the Innerverse, there was a place where thorns grew rampant, covering the ground and filling the sky. There were all sorts of poisonous bugs crawling over the thorns, and the thorns even had strange liquids from them that were potent enough to corrode even the void.
Among the thorns, a woman opened her eyes. “Assemble in half a year? There’s still enough time.” She thought about it and looked beyond the thorns. “I haven’t left Venom Flowzone in a long time, but it seems that those enemies have retreated.”
News of the start of the competition for the Astral Tower began to spread out. This was a grand event that had previously belonged exclusively to the Neoverse, but this time, some people from the Innerverse would be participating as well. This excited countless organizations from the Innerverse, and they felt as if, from this moment on, the Innerverse would also be able to participate in the contest for the Astral Tower. Thus, their passion for nurturing their youths was lit aflame.
Although many powers did not know what the Astral Tower actually represented, they were clear on the status of the Cosmic Five.
Even if the Ten Arbiters were able to judge the younger generation, they were still only able to preside over the youth of the Innerverse and Outerverse.
The Cosmic Five were even able to suppress the Ten Arbiters, as they ruled over the youths of the entire Human Domain, and the support that they enjoyed far surpassed even what the Ten Arbiters were given. These five had a special status.
More importantly, since the skies had changed in this generation, the Cosmic Five finally had a chance to become Progenitors, which was the most critical detail.
A Progenitor could change everything.
Countless people’s belief in this statement became even more firm after the Sixth Mainland’s invasion.
While the Innerverse was working itself up over the news of the Astral Tower’s competition, in the Outerverse, the weaves in the eastern and central regions were quite peaceful. However, the weaves in the west had descended into complete chaos. The guiding powers of many weaves had changed, and assassinations were commonplace there.
Lu Yin had En Ya increase the pressure on the weaves and pressed the issue. They were now constantly thinking of ways to push the western weaves into the Great Eastern Alliance.
The rate of assassinations was unprecedented, but fortunately, they did not stir up an absurd amount of chaos.
Quite a few powers in the western weaves had reached out to the Hall of Honor, asking them to intervene. After all, the invasion had only ended recently, and they could be considered to still be in a state of war.
However, at this moment, the Hall of Honor did not care, and Elder Daggs had thought things through very carefully. Rather than allow the Outerverse to remain in a chaotic state, he would rather have the situation play itself out once and for all. Thus, he would not interfere with the Great Eastern Alliance unifying the Outerverse. This would provide Lu Yin with both the title and status that befitted the Outerverse Allied Forces’ Commander.
Sometimes, Elder Daggs even considered whether or not Lu Yin was on a mission to unite the Outerverse! The more the elder thought about this, the more likely it seemed.
Elder Daggs ignored all of the requests from the western weaves, and soon, there was nobody in the western region that was able to make any noise. Eventually, more and more weaves continuously announced that they would join the Great Eastern Alliance.
One month later, which was the eightieth month since the Innerverse and Outerverse had separated, the Great Eastern Alliance officially united sixty five weaves. The vast majority of the Outerverse now belonged to the Great Eastern Alliance.
Aside from Endless Weave, there were six weaves that still maintained an extraordinarily intense resistance to the Great Eastern Alliance; it was as if they had vowed to die rather than submit. Still, those who were discerning enough knew that their resistance would not last for long.
Even Millions City had announced that they were willing to join the Great Eastern Alliance.
