Even though Poisonmaster had been higher ranked than the Magistrate, that was solely because of his alarmingly high kill count. That disturbing number, coupled with the fact that he had not been active for many years, meant that the large majority of the Outerverse had already forgotten about just how terrifying he was. However, the Magistrate was different; he had always been active in the assassin world with the solid ranking of fourth, a definite heavyweight within the field. He had been known to never miss his intended targets.
The death of such an elite assassin sent chills running down many people’s spines. An assassin like the Magistrate, who could kill even the mighty Poisonmaster, was still killed, so just how powerful was this Smoker? Could they be so powerful that anyone who hired them would be able to eliminate whoever they wished?
This question struck true fear into the hearts of many. Additionally, many people found out the price to request Smoker’s services. Once they discovered that they would have to pay in natural treasures that could evade danger, they begrudgingly gave up all thoughts of employing his services. Such items were unattainable to most.
Aegis was livid. They once again contacted Smoker, asking them to stop, but Smoker paid them no heed.
Many people then turned their attention to Lu Yin. Had he actually hired Smoker? The price to kill two top level assassins was definitely not as low as just one or two natural treasures, so just how many natural treasures did the Great Yu Empire’s Royal Regent have? How many more times could he still use Smoker’s services? These questions floated through the minds of many people in the Outerverse, and it was also a question that Aegis wanted the answer to.
The reason why Aegis was so feared throughout the Outerverse was in large part due to the fact that six of the top ten ranked assassins belonged to them. However, Lu Yin had recently taken out two of their ranked assassins, and another two had been taken out by Smoker, leaving them with just two assassins in the top rankings. Their threat level had suddenly been reduced by a considerable degree. If Lu Yin continued to hire Smoker’s services to kill more of their assassins, they would end up in deep trouble.
Even a huge number of mercenaries was not as threatening as a single top tier assassin.
Aegis could not afford to lose any more of their top assassins. Thus, left with no other choice, they quickly contacted Lu Yin. It was still the same person calling him, but this time, the voice contained less arrogance.
“Sir Lu Yin, were you the one who hired Smoker?” the sinister voice asked.
Lu Yin had recently heard many voices similar to this one, and they all belonged to people from the underworld. He had become used to them. “So what if it was me?”
“Are you trying to start an all out war with Aegis?”
Lu Yin sneered, “If you want to say it like that, sure. My next target may not be an assassin, but rather you or even Starfox.”
“It looks like you know quite a bit about Aegis, though it’s a pity that what you know barely scratches the surface. We, Aegis, have survived calamities for tens of thousands of years during which our assassins have been purged. We do not rely on a mere few assassins to preserve our power. I hope that you will reconsider your decision, Sir Lu Yin.”
Lu Yin indifferently replied, “From the first moment you dared to threaten me, you incurred my wrath, and you must now bear the consequences. I, Lu Yin, will not tolerate any threats to me. Since I don’t even fear the Daynight clan, your Aegis is nothing to me. I hope that the defenses of your headquarters are as tight as the Blaze Realm’s security. Otherwise, it won’t even be a challenge for Smoker.”
After those words, the call immediately terminated. The person from Aegis had hung up, obviously infuriated.
Lu Yin’s lips curled up. Evil could only be answered with evil; this was a contest to see who could outlast the other. After thinking about it, Lu Yin contacted Smoker again. His next target was Black Tiger, the tenth ranked individual on the Assassin Ranking, and he was another one of Aegis’s assassins.
Over the next few days, a bitter war broke out in the Great Eastern Alliance. Following the deaths of several of its top assassins, Aegis went crazy and sent a large number of assassins and mercenaries to different weaves of the Great Eastern Alliance, all of them ordered to assassinate several key officials. This provocation of war sent many of the large weaves spinning into chaos. However, they had no choice but to grit their teeth and try to fight off Aegis’s attackers.
Over the course of just a few days, more than a dozen powerhouses of the Great Eastern Alliance were eliminated. Around a thousand important officials from the various weaves were assassinated, sending the entire Great Eastern Alliance into panic.
There was a never-ending series of messages being sent to En Ya, each one requesting Lu Yin’s assistance and for the alliance to send the Allied Forces over as reinforcements. However, when mercenaries and assassins were attacking all over the Great Eastern Alliance, there was no way for the Allied Forces to assist everyone.
Aegis was trying to use these methods to force Lu Yin to yield.
However, after a few more days passed, a picture of Black Tiger being killed by Smoker was spread across the entire network. Powerhouses in the Outerverse were shocked by this latest piece of news, as it had become clear for all to see that this was an all out war between Lu Yin and Aegis.
At this time, Aegis only had one top ranked assassin left. Even though the Great Eastern Alliance had descended into chaos and many people were upset with Lu Yin, Lu Yin had already consolidated his power. Since there were no longer any top ranked assassins left within Aegis, they could not threaten the true decision makers of the alliance. This also meant that, in the near future, nobody would attempt to go after Lu Yin like Aegis had.
Aegis tried to contact Lu Yin again, but this time, Lu Yin did not accept the communication request. It had always been Aegis contacting him while he had remained passive. But this time around, Aegis was the anxious party. If their very last top assassin was killed, then all of their prestige would be gone. Although there were others from Aegis who could fill the void of the eliminated top ranked assassins, Smoker merely had to complete a few more hits or even target Starfox himself in order to deliver a crushing blow to Aegis.
This was also the reason why Lu Yin had not yet instructed Smoker to kill Starfox; he was planning to negotiate.
Not long after, Madam Nalan contacted Lu Yin.
When Lu Yin saw that it was Madam Nalan contacting him, a slight smile spread across his face. This meant that Aegis had admitted defeat.
As he answered the incoming call, Madam Nalan’s alluring face appeared. This time, she had a strange glint in her eyes as she smiled at Lu Yin. “Your Highness, hats off to you.”
Lu Yin laughed. “What is there to admire?”
Madam Nalan laughed. “Over the years, there have been very few people who could force Aegis into retreating. There are very few people, even in the Innerverse, who are capable of this feat, but you are one of them.”
Lu Yin shrugged his shoulders. “There will always be casualties on both sides. Winning is all about who can hold out longer.”
Madam Nalan solemnly replied, “To be honest, Aegis could afford to continue the war if they really wished to. In the central weaves, as well as the western and eastern weaves, they have countless training grounds, and these locations are able to churn out about ten thousand mercenary officers and assassins each day. If these people are then scattered throughout various parts of the Great Eastern Alliance, the alliance would be reduced to utter chaos in a matter of months.”
Lu Yin nodded. “I believe you. However, I also believe that, when that happens, Aegis will no longer have a top level or a second level of management.”
“That is why I wish to act as a peacemaker. I want to mediate this dispute between both sides,” Madam Nalan explained with a laugh.
Lu Yin sat down and made a gesture for the temptress to continue. “Go ahead.”
Madam Nalan’s expression grew serious. “Aegis does not want to remain your enemy. They will not do anything else to the Great Eastern Alliance for as long as you remain the leader. As for the weaves that do not fall under the Great Eastern Alliance’s control, both of you are allowed to have a fair competition. In return, you are not to hire Smoker to kill anyone else from Aegis.”
Lu Yin contemplated these terms.
Madam Nalan cautioned him, saying, “Your Highness, this is the best deal that you can hope for. Aegis is one of the Outerverse’s four great corporations, and they need to maintain their reputation. You cannot truly expect them to apologize to you before the entire universe.”
Lu Yin coldly answered, “Am I just supposed to forget about the deaths that they caused on Zenyu Star? Tens of thousands of people died at that time, and a large number of them were citizens of my Zenyu Star. I will not let this matter rest so easily.”
Madam Nalan continued her persuasion. “Aegis can offer you compensation and will remove all of their secret bases that are within the Great Eastern Alliance’s territory. Actually, this deal is already a show of sincerity from them, and everyone will know.”
Lu Yin tapped his fingers on the table.
Madam Nalan stared at Lu Yin through the screen. She had never in her wildest dreams expected that Lu Yin would make it this far. In her opinion, the Great Eastern Alliance should have been on the losing end of this conflict since Aegis was hidden in the shadows with all of its resources and members. The second level managers were all people connected to countless powers from all over the Outerverse, and they naturally had deep pockets and extensive influence. No one would have imagined that a lone Smoker could change all that.
This was how the universe worked: absolute experts were able to change the entire situation.
One question that she still could not find an answer to was, just how had Lu Yin managed to pay Smoker? Even the Nalan family did not have that many natural treasures that had reached the level of avoiding danger, but Smoker had actually killed three top level assassins from Aegis in recent days. The amount needed to pay for all these assassinations could not be any less than ten natural treasures, so where had Lu Yin gotten them? Could the rumors that he was supported by the Hall of Honor actually be true? If so, then why had the Hall of Honor not struck on their own?
With a loud thud, Lu Yin loudly hit the table with one finger and looked towards Madam Nalan as he said, “I have one more condition. If this can be met, I will wipe the slate clean with Aegis.”
“Let me hear it,” Madam Nalan replied.
Lu Yin’s gaze turned deep. “I want to join the second level management of Aegis.”
Madam Nalan was shocked. “You want to join Aegis?”
A smile spread across Lu Yin’s face. “Yes, I want to be one of the second level managers.”
Madam Nalan did not understand Lu Yin’s request. “Why do you want to join Aegis? Based solely on the fact that you can hire Smoker, there is no assassin in the Outerverse who can pose a threat to you. There are absolutely no benefits to you joining Aegis, Your Highness. Aegis will not share any portion of their profits with you either.”
“I know, but this is my condition. Please ask them if they are amenable to this condition. If not, we will continue to drag things out. If worse comes to worse, then I’ll simply dismantle the entire Great Eastern Alliance. I have a wealth of resources and can hire Smoker many more times, at least enough to wipe out Aegis’s assassins,” Lu Yin said firmly.
Madam Nalan cut off the call and quickly contacted Aegis.
Very soon, an unfamiliar call request came through, which Lu Yin answered promptly. It was once again that certain sinister voice. “Sir Lu Yin, the word is that you want to join Aegis, is that correct?”
“That’s right,” Lu Yin replied.
“May I ask why? Most of the people who wish to join our second level management do so to avoid being targeted by us, but you do not have such a worry.”
Lu Yin replied coldly, “Not only do I want to join the second level managers of Aegis, but I also want to meet Starfox. I want to be able to weigh in on Aegis’s decision making.”
“On what grounds?” The sinister voice asked.
Lu Yin replied, “Based on the fact that I can hire Smoker at my pleasure. Based on the fact that I am the leader of the Great Eastern Alliance. Based on the fact that I have the Hall of Honor as a backer.”
The opposing party paused for a moment before answering, “I am Starfox.”
Lu Yin was not surprised by this information. “Alright then, so what is your answer?”
“You may join Aegis and offer us some suggestions. However, I cannot guarantee that your suggestions will be accepted. If Aegis faces problems that we are unable to handle, then I hope that you will step up to help us in any way you can. Are you agreeable to these terms?” Starfox asked.
Lu Yin agreed, “Not a problem.”
He ended the call as soon as he said those words.
Lu Yin had only come up with the thought of joining Aegis a few days ago. He had come to the conclusion that although he could use his power to hire Smoker as a threat, he would never be able to completely eradicate Aegis simply because they had too much hidden power. In fact, he was still uncertain just how much influence Aegis held among the powers that made up the Great Eastern Alliance.
In the past, Wei Rong had joined forces with Aegis when he had attacked Sourcepeak Planet. Lu Yin was worried that Wei Rong might try to slowly gain influence from within Aegis and possibly even lead the company. Since Lu Yin knew that he could not completely eradicate Aegis, this was the best Lu Yin could do to ensure that Aegis would not help Wei Rong work against him.
Lu Yin had correctly assumed that, left with a choice between him and Wei Rong, Aegis would rather let go of Wei Rong than have Lu Yin as their enemy.
During the recent conflict with Aegis, Lu Yin had revealed his power to the entire Outerverse. He had proven that he had the strength to force Aegis out of the Great Eastern Alliance’s territory, shocking many people with his ruthlessness and determination.
