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Before the Qiong's Banquet came to a closure, Qiong Shanhai proved that his words were not just for show. The Qiong Family's Banquet was a feast to welcome everyone, but it was also a place where all the guests could resolve their conflicts.
“Grudges are to be resolved during the Qiong's Banquet, and no force of any kind is to be used in Millions City. I believe that everyone has heard this rule before, so right now, everyone can battle to their hearts’ content beneath the waterfall. After the banquet, I hope that everyone will give me some face and not use any sort of force in Millions City,” Qiong Shanhai said.
The crowd ate their food and drank their wine as some of them exchanged glances.
They had mentally prepared themselves before arriving, and had not planned to do much in Millions City. Since the Qiong family respected these people enough to host this banquet, they also had to give the Qiong family some respect in turn.
Very few people actually fought during a Qiong's Banquet, but this banquet turned out to be an exception.
Taylor Phoenix stood up and looked towards Lu Yin. “I heard that you defeated Puyu, so let’s have a go.”
The crowd grew excited, as the younger generation’s most famous members were those in the Top 100 Rankings, and Lu Yin had become famous in both the Innerverse and the Outerverse by stepping over experts on the Top 100 Rankings. This was the reason why Cool Sis had challenged him earlier, as well as why Taylor Phoenix wanted to challenge him at this moment.
The crowd all looked over.
Qiong Xi'er looked at Lu Yin with interest, as this person was known as the Enlighters’ Bane. However, that name had been gained through his extraordinary external items. In that case, what was Lu Yin’s personal strength? Everyone was quite curious about this.
Several of the Enlighters also looked over. While there were only a few in the junior generation who could catch their attention, at this moment, the most famous one of those few was Lu Yin, the Enlighters’ Bane. This was a title that really upset them.
Lu Yin looked back at Taylor Phoenix. “I’m sorry, but I can’t think of any sort of grudge between us, so there’s really no reason for us to fight.”
Lu Yin had already defeated Cool Sis on his way to Millions City, and even though news of that battle had not spread, he had no interest in sparring with someone at Taylor’s level. Lu Yin already had a reputation, and he did not need to defeat Taylor to make a name for himself. Things might be different if one of the top ten experts on the Top 100 Rankings had challenged him, as that would benefit Lu Yin’s reputation, but Taylor was not on that level.
“You don’t dare?” Taylor sneered. “There are rumors claiming that you always use some kind of external item when you fight, which is a despicable method to fight. It turns out those rumors are true—you can only back down when facing an expert.”
Lu Yin’s face sank.
“Seventh Bro, this fellow isn’t being very friendly, so just give him a beating,” the Ghost Monkey said.
Next to Lu Yin, Zhu San looked at his dinner companion in surprise. “You can only rely on external aids? That’s disgusting! Even though this young master has so much money, even I don’t use any foreign objects. If you can’t beat your opponent, then you just can’t beat them.”
Starfox smiled. The truth was that, in the battles where Lu Yin had become famous for relying on external items, most people did not consider who he had been fighting. Lu Yin was actually just an Explorer, but he typically fought against experts who were at least in the Hunter realm, and he had even fought against many Enlighters. The fact that he had used external items to contend against such people was not something to be ashamed of, and Lu Yin had no need to explain himself to anyone.
“Taylor, there’s no need to force him. Some people will do whatever it takes to become famous, but they’re only able to shrink back in fear when faced with a true challenge. This is very normal,” Sall Phoenix said with a laugh.
Many looked over at Lu Yin, and some of the guests even started looking down on him while others were puzzled. Others were even rejoicing at how the scene was unfolding, especially the other youths. They were all of similar ages, so what had this Lu Yin relied on to step onto the Enlighters’ battlefield, and how had he even gained a title from it? At least he was not being exposed!
Wei Rong stared disdainfully at Sall Phoenix. These people often thought that their towering backgrounds and Enlighter realm backers meant that they could look down upon others. But in the future, when these people started crying, it would already be too late. The times were changing, and the old powers were being eliminated one by one. Wei Rong and Lu Yin were the ones who were walking the correct path.
Lu Yin stood up and rolled his sleeves up. “If you just want to fight, then that’s fine.” His eyes suddenly turned fierce as he stared at Taylor. “But don’t cry later.”
Taylor was infuriated. “How arrogant!”
He leaped towards the waterfall, clearly eager for the fight.
Lu Yin took a step forward, and his body suddenly vanished. He had moved at a speed that was so fast that not even Starfox and the other Hunters could track his movements. The Enlighters were all surprised, as his speed was so fast that an ordinary Hunter would not even be able to catch up to Lu Yin.
Yuehua Mavis looked at Lu Yin with a bit of interest. The Mavis family had recognized this youth a long time ago, and they were already reasonably positioned to invest in him. This person should be proud that he had been able to grab the attention of the Mavis family, and it should be known that not even the top ten experts in the Top 100 Rankings were guaranteed to draw the notice of the Mavis family.
Qiong Shanhai stared at Lu Yin with astonishment. As soon as Millions City had been unsealed, most of the information that he had received and accessed had been about this youth whose reputation had risen like a comet while everything else had gotten more and more out of hand. This person had unified the eastern weaves, and his personal growth was also overwhelming. Qiong Shanhai had always been very curious about this person, no matter if it was the youth’s power level, personality, methods, or anything else. This person was outstanding in every aspect, though he still had not reached a sufficient level in Qiong Shanhai’s view.
The so-called “Great Eastern Alliance” still was not enough to enter his sight, and if he wished for it, his Millions City could easily destroy the alliance. But despite all that, Qiong Shanhai still had to take this youth seriously.
Sall Phoenix frowned, as the youth’s speed was not simple. This kid had become famed throughout the universe, and he had even been hailed as the unequalled Limiteer for a time, and such things could not be achieved just through relying on foreign objects. Otherwise, if such feats were possible by relying on external items, then powers like the Daynight clan, which had far more items and resources than Lu Yin, would have long since claimed them.
Sall Phoenix looked back at Taylor as a bad premonition welled up within him.
“Both brothers are among the universe’s most elite experts of the same generation, and this fight is merely a spar, though you may even receive some appraisal from the seniors here. Please keep things to nothing more than a spar, and please maintain the peace of the city,” Qiong Xi'er said loudly.
Below the waterfall, Taylor arrogantly faced Lu Yin. Before the Innerverse and Outerverse had been separated, he had heard too many legends about the fellow currently in front of him. This brat was supposed to be some champion of the Tournament of the Strongest, an unequalled Limiteer, and the Starfall Sea’s son-in-law. It was as if the entire universe revolved around this Lu Yin, and it bothered Taylor a great deal.
When the energy that had isolated the Dark Phoenix family lifted, Taylor had heard legends of Lu Yin yet again, though they had become even more exaggerated than before with him even gaining the title of Enlighters’ Bane. Before, Taylor had been irritated, but he had not thought much of the brat. However, everything had changed when he learned that Lu Yin had killed Puyu.
Puyu had been ranked thirteenth on the Top 100 Rankings while Taylor was ranked fourteenth. However the rumors all claimed that Puyu had died to Lu Yin. Didn’t that mean that Lu Yin should be able to crush Taylor? This brat was still just an Explorer.
Ever since the Dark Phoenix family had received the news of Puyu’s death, Taylor had heard countless taunts. He had once been regarded as the child who brought pride to the Dark Phoenix family, and he had been heralded as an absolute genius who represented the Dark Phoenix family in their contest against the Innerverse’s Phoenix family. But now, all of that limelight had been stolen by this bastard, which was what had triggered Taylor’s hatred. These old and new grudges had motivated Taylor to challenge Lu Yin at the first opportunity he got; Taylor thirsted to defeat this bastard and show the entire universe that this person was a liar who had used foreign objects to gain his fearsome battle reputation. No, Taylor had to completely crush him.
“I will show everyone the liar that you are and that you’re just another piece of trash,” Taylor shouted with a sneer as a black blaze that distorted the void shrouded his body. These were the black flames of the Dark Phoenix family, and they gradually took the form of a black Undying Bird before soaring into the sky and letting out a clarion cry. As it flapped its wings, it tore through the void.
The crowd exclaimed in surprise, as these were the flames of the black Undying Bird. Just the release of these flames was enough to scorch the void and reach the destructive power of a Hunter. Taylor was just a Cruiser, which showed that this flame was extremely powerful, and it was no wonder why the Dark Phoenix family was able to rival the Innerverse’s Phoenix family.
The Dark Phoenix family was one of the Outerverse’s three powers that everyone knew should not be provoked, as they had an extremely powerful strength.
Taylor was pleased by the crowd’s attention, and as the black flames of the Undying Bird surged around his body, three black feathers appeared.
Hoffman was surprised at the appearance of these feathers. “It’s rumored that the Dark Phoenix family powerhouse’s flames can give rise to plumes. Since he can manifest three plumes, it’s no wonder why he’s a genius of the Dark Phoenix family and a top expert in the Top 100 Rankings.”
Sall Phoenix humbly responded, “It’s still not enough. He has to train more.”
“He indeed has to train more,” Yuehua Mavis said, which was the first sentence she had uttered since arriving. Her words, however, caused Sall Phoenix’s expression to turn ugly. He had just been acting humbly whereas this woman was actively mocking him. Although, with her status, he did not even dare to respond.
Even in the face of Taylor’s mighty flames, Lu Yin’s expression remained calm. “Are you done with your performance yet?”
Killing intent flashed through Taylor’s eyes. “You will regret that sentence for the rest of your life!”
He then pushed both of his hands down as the black flames converged upon the area and blasted towards Lu Yin. The waterfall began to rapidly evaporate, and even the void started to shatter apart in layers.
It had to be recognized that the runes lines representing Taylor’s flames were very numerous, and they could even rival an elite Hunter’s. His position as fourteenth on the Top 100 Rankings and his reputation as a Realmbreaker were both well deserved, but unfortunately, it still wasn’t enough. Not even close.
Lu Yin slowly raised a hand that turned into a claw. A beast’s howl tore through the void, transcending the ages and shocking everyone. As the Skybeast Claw descended, it tore straight through the black Undying Bird and landed directly on Taylor, ruthlessly flinging him an unknown depth into the lake while his Undying Bird was split in half and burned away in the void.
The crowd went silent, and all the spectators looked at Lu Yin in shock. One move—just one move had defeated the expert ranked fourteenth on the Top 100 Rankings. This could not be real!
Lu Yin retracted his hand, as the power of his Skybeast Claw was second only to his Dream Finger. The only reason why this technique had not been very effective against his recent enemies was simply because most of his recent enemies had been too powerful. Only his Dream Finger was able to injure them, but against experts of his own generation, even someone like Cool Sis, who was ranked tenth on the rankings, would have their limits tested by this Skybeast Claw.
Cool Sis had been able to freeze and shatter his Skybeast Claw, but she had only been able to do so by relying on her best technique, which she had wanted to reserve for when she challenged Hai Dashao. Using that kind of technique would harm both the practitioner and their enemy, and it had forcefully bolstered Cool Sis’ strength to the point where it had been able to rival Aden’s. In other words, that technique could even cause Enlighters to raise their brows, and it had already surpassed a Hunter’s power level.
Cool Sis had been forced to use such an absolute technique to break through the Skybeast Claw, so there was no need to mention Taylor.
The top ten of the Top Hundreds Rankings and those who were ranked beyond them, even eleventh, were simply on completely different levels. The difference between Taylor and Cool Sis was simply too vast.
Skybeast Claw: one form was more than enough to instantly kill. This was Lu Yin’s current strength, and of his generation, only the top ten experts of the Top 100 Rankings were able to challenge him. This was also in the circumstance where he did not use his secret technique.
Sall Phoenix sprang to his feet and stared at the scene in disbelief. How was this possible? Taylor had not even been able to receive one move from his opponent! Even if the rumors were true, Lu Yin should have been able to rival Taylor’s strength at best, and Taylor should not have been defeated this easily.
Qiong Shanhai’s eyes flashed, and he looked at Lu Yin appreciatively. This youth was an absolute genius.
Villa Mistress Lian had a smile on her face; the head of the Nalan family had been right, and this youth had boundless potential.
Yuehua Mavis stared at Lu Yin with a serious expression. This person’s value had risen once more in her heart, and the amount that they were willing to invest had increased.
Lu Yin glanced across the banquet area, and his focus streaked past everyone before finally landing on Sall Phoenix’s face. “Relax, he’s not dead, though he may have started crying.”
Sall Phoenix became furious. “Junior, you are too arrogant!”