Chapter 370: Huge Ruckus (1/2)

Within the Blazing Mist Flowzone, the space was filled with flames. The heat there had clearly reached extreme levels, but it had no effect whatsoever on the void. This was the Blazing Region.

“Poison Flame, you’ll be the one to spectate the competition at Northgate Platform as a representative of the Blazing Region.” An aged voice called out. It was impossible to tell how close or far away the person speaking was, and it was also impossible to tell if the voice even came from a real person at all. It almost felt like a transmission that had crossed over from ancient times.

In a corner of the Blazing Region, the void distorted, and a man walked out, surrounded by turquoise flames. “Yes, sir.”

As the flames disappeared, Poison Flame’s true appearance was slowly revealed. He was a middle-aged man with a malicious face. As he gazed deep into space, he asked, “Is the competition at Northgate Platform about to start again?”

After speaking, he took a step and left Blazing Region to next appear atop a stone platform that was floating in space. There was a whole row of people kneeling there, and in front of the group was Jared.

“I was unable to achieve good results in the Astral Combat Tournament. I’ve let you down, master,” Jared said mournfully while he quivered.

Poison Flame glanced at him coldly. “Where’s the Karmic Flame?”

Jared gritted his teeth, and a venomous glint appeared in his eyes as he answered, “Arikar returned, so the sect gave him the Karmic Flame. If not for that, I wouldn’t have been defeated so easily.”

Poison Flame’s gaze went cold. “It seems that I’ve been gone for too long. Some people have clearly forgotten how terrifying I can be.”

Jared did not dare speak and only ducked his head, revealing fear in his eyes.

“When I return from the Northline Flowzone, you’ll tell me who it was that gave the Karmic Flame away,” Poison Flame casually ordered.

Jared’s eyes lit up. “Are you going to the Northline Flowzone? Is it for the competition at Northgate Platform?”

Poison Flame looked at Jared curiously.

Jared sucked in a breath and hastily explained, “I have an enemy from the Astral Combat Academy called Lu Yin. He participated in the Astral Combat Tournament. Since then, he’s joined the Council of Astral Academy and was put in charge of Northline Flowzone. He’ll probably attend the competition, and I-” But before he could finish speaking, Jared started coughing up blood due to the pressure that Poison Flame was giving off.

“You want your master to interfere in your matter with someone of your generation?” Poison Flame icily questioned Jared. As the older man spoke, the flames in the area miraculously froze and took on a green shade.

Jared’s fear became more apparent as he trembled while staring at Poison Flame.

A long while later, Poison Flame let his pressure abate, releasing Jared before moving away.

In another part of the Blazing Mist Flowzone, in the region controlled by the Ross Empire, a gigantic hawk flew through the vastness of space, passing by planets and numerous bits of technology as it headed deeper into the universe.

“It’s Duke Blackhawk! Duke Blackhawk seems to be heading towards the Northline Flowzone.”

“There are rumors that the next round of the Northline Flowzone’s competition at Northgate Platform is about to begin. Duke Blackhawk must be attending as the Ross Empire’s representative this time.”

“So they managed to get him to go? He’s a powerhouse whose power level has reached nearly 200,000 units, and his innate gift, Glorious Hawk, shocked the universe when he first revealed it. He’s one of the top figures within the Ross Empire, and this is just a tiny competition at Northgate Platform. Did they really need to send him?”

“Who knows.”

…

The Northgate Platform, located within the Northgate Flowzone, wasn’t just some tiny stone platform. On the contrary, it covered a huge area, and even though it was just a stone platform, it could hold numerous people. Shangwu Academy had also been built at this site.

Shangwu Academy had been built by the seventeen families as a place for them to nurture the younger generation of their flowzone. This competition at Northgate Platform was primarily a means for the families to display their contributions to the flowzone over the past few years, as well as to announce the direction that the Northline Flowzone would take in the future. The gathering was also used to allow the young generation to compete against each other, as well as show off the most powerful people from each of the families.

Only by rising above the others and fulfilling all four parts of the competition would a family be able to gain control of Northgate Platform.

While the gathering was formally known as a competition between the seventeen families, merely three families were actually qualified to compete for control, since only three families had powerhouses with power levels that exceeded 200,000 units. They were the Northgate family, Lily family, and Barthe Jacques family.

In the past instances of the Northgate Platform competition, the victor had almost always been from one of the three families.

Shangwu Academy had been built on the Northgate Platform, and next to it were wide, commercial streets.

Northgate Platform was a stone platform with a strong foundation. Even those who were able to move in the universe without a spacecraft would have difficulty damaging this platform. There was no flowing water, mountains, or any seas on this platform, so it wasn’t suitable for people to live on it. All of these resources needed to constantly be transported in from the outside world, and these items were all available for purchase on the commercial streets located on either side of Shangwu Academy.

Currently, within one of the restaurants along a commercial street, there were about a dozen young students engaged in heated discussion. The restaurant served authentic, traditional food, but it had a modern screen, and the decor was a fusion of some sort between modern and ancient styles.

“My mentor said that the Northgate Family will definitely win this time. Their family heir, Northgate Lie, is an Explorer who has a power level of over 30,000 and is ranked ninety third on the Top Hundred Rankings. Nobody from the younger generation is a match for him!”

“The competition for the younger generation is just one part of the competition. You also have to look at the family’s contributions to the Northline Flowzone. No family can match the Barthe Jacques family in this area. They’re a financial powerhouse even outside of the Northline Flowzone, and they have extensive dealings with the Outerverse. Even the four financial powerhouses of the Outerverse can’t claim to be superior to them. A huge portion of the Northline Flowzone’s economy is supported entirely by the Barthe Jacques family.”

“But the Barthe Jacques family is a commercial family that doesn’t have much strength on their own. If they hadn’t hired the Scarlet Mercenaries, then they wouldn’t even have an Enlighter within their ranks.”