Chapter 998

Lu Yin heaved a heavy sigh of relief. Whether or not the Fifth Mainland would be able to take back the Champions' Stage would all depend on their final push. He had no confidence in succeeding by himself since two of the Daosource Three Skies were present, but even if it cost some people their lives, they had to fight and take it back.

The miniature mainland continued to fly towards the west, and soon, several more days passed.

Lu Yin spent all of his time during these days recuperating, though the occasional aftershocks from the surrounding battles did wash over him. However, he did not go back to the central battlefield, and the ripples from the other battles were not strong enough to significantly affect him. 

Little Arrow Saint did not reappear, as Lu Yin had long since escaped from Little Arrow Saint’s sight. Unless Lu Yin directly appeared in front of the Realmling, it would be very difficult for Little Arrow Saint to track down Lu Yin again. 

Lu Yin looked towards the sky once more. Yesterday, the miniature mainland had passed through Chaos Flowzone and arrived in a familiar area of the Innerverse. This was where Hai Qiqi and Lu Yin had appeared when they had passed through the Astral River to reach the Innerverse. It was also where the chaotic battle on the transportation continent had occurred. 

Lu Yin had not expected the Starsibyl Sect’s methods to be so extraordinary that they could actually allow one to travel across half of the Innerverse. That was on the level as what Mister Mu was capable of. 

Since they had arrived in this place, then it meant that they were not very far away from the Starfall Sea, which was where this miniature mainland would connect to the Mara River. 

Lu Yin stretched out his arms. With the speed at which the miniature mainland was traveling, it would not take long for it to arrive at the Mara River. Once it did so, the final battle would commence. Otherwise, if they entered the upward current of the Mara River, then they would be leaving the area under the cosmic phenomenon’s suppression, which would spell deep trouble for them. 

Lu Yin was not the only one who had recognized where the miniature mainland was in the Innerverse. Others had as well, and they all knew that this would be the final battlefield.

Atop the Champions' Stage, Nightking Zhenwu had joined forces with Tai Yishen to fight against Bu Kong. Qiu Shi’s status was unknown. 

Bu Kong was indeed frighteningly powerful. While they fought with him, Nightking Zhenwu had a solemn expression, and Tai Yishen was breathing heavily. They had fought for more than ten days now; these members of the Daosource Three Skies were simply too fearsome.

Bu Kong’s eyes swept past Tai Yishen, looked over at Nightking Zhenwu, and then moved past the Arbiter towards the distant battlefield. He did not actually care about Nightking Zhenwu, as this Arbiter’s reputation was undeserved—he had already been struck by Bu Kong multiple times, and Nightking Zhenwu had likely sustained some rather serious injuries during this battle. This member of the Daosource Three Skies was more concerned about Qiu Shi; while he did not know what that woman was scheming, she was definitely plotting to seize back the Champions' Stage. 

The Champions' Stage could not be lost. Bu Kong’s gaze turned sharp, and he attacked again. His use of the Time Reversal Technique forced both Tai Yishen and Nightking Zhenwu to be wary. 

Even further away, Zhi Yi was battling against Liu Tianmu, and nobody could interfere in the battlefield of these two women. One had an unfathomable defense and the other a penetrating attack. Thus, very few could approach their battlefield. 

Liu Tianmu could clearly see that Zhi Yi wanted to keep multiple Fifth Mainland experts occupied on her own, as her impregnable defense allowed her to do so. However, in response, Liu Tianmu had cleaned up the battlefield on her own, rendering Zhi Yi unable to stall anyone else. The Sword Sect’s Arbiter was helping the Fifth Mainland by keeping one of the Daosource Three Skies busy. 

Zhi Yi was feeling quite helpless. Although Liu Tianmu was unable to defeat Zhi Yi or even injure her, this woman’s sword techniques were simply too sharp. One time, Zhi Yi had once tried to shift their battlefield, but the swordswoman had used her Eleventh Sword, which was something that not even Zhi Yi could be complacent about. More importantly, Zhi Yi was constantly on guard against Liu Tianmu using the Twelfth Sword, as Zhi Yi had a feeling that the swordswoman was saving that technique for an opportune moment. 

Di Fa, the Sword Scholar, Qiu He, and the others were fighting in an intense battle against the Fifth Mainland’s Xing Kai, Xia Tian, Shu Jing, and Serati Phoenix. On top of these peak elites, even Ye Xingchen, Gu Xiao'er, and Zi Jun—who had participated in the Tournament of the Strongest—were all staying close to the Champions' Stage during their battles. 

Even if they were unable to step onto the battlefield where the Realmlings and Ten Arbiters were fighting, everyone wanted a chance to snag the Champions’ Stage. If they somehow managed to succeed, then they would rise above everyone else in a single step. 

Even Gu Xiao'er, who seemed like a simple-minded person, had these thoughts. Thus, there was no need to mention any of the others. 

However, with their current situation, it did not seem very likely that they would be able to steal back the Champions' Stage back, as there was nobody who was capable of defeating Bu Kong. 

When Lu Yin arrived, he was quickly spotted by Gu Xiao'er. The young man struggled to extricate himself from the battle as he moved over next to Lu Yin. “Bro, take out that toy to disgust them again.” 

Lu Yin was puzzled. “What toy?” 

Gu Xiao'er looked very excited. “That thing with the nasty smell.”

Lu Yin pursed his lips. “It’s no use. Zhi Yi is being held up by Liu Tianmu, and Liu Tianmu won’t be able to break through that barrier, not even if that girl is grossed out. On the other hand, people like Bu Kong are already busy with their own battles.”

“There’s no other option! I’ve already used up the last of my white smoke, and I can’t help anymore. Also, there’s no way you want to go to the Champions' Stage to fight with Bu Kong, right?” Gu Xiao'er asked with clear frustration in his voice. “If we really can’t do this, then we can only retreat. This mainland is about to fly up the Mara River, and when it leaves the suppressed region, we’ll all be done for.” 

Lu Yin frowned, as this battle was indeed drawing to a close. He looked over at the Champions' Stage, which was a place that he had avoided early due to his caution of Nightking Zhenwu. At this time, Lu Yin could only remain on guard towards Nightking Zhenwu while thinking of some way to knock Bu Kong off the Champions' Stage and take it away. 

After thinking about it, Lu Yin dashed over to the Champions' Stage. He did not plan on directly joining the battle directly, but with his strength, he could still mess with Bu Kong a bit, even if it did mean helping out Nightking Zhenwu. 

There were so many people engaged in intense battles all around Lu Yin that there was no way that Nightking Zhenwu would brazenly attack Lu Yin. Besides, Lu Yin was no pushover himself. Within this place where power levels were suppressed, not even an Imprinter would be able to defeat Lu Yin in a short period of time. He had exchanged blows with Shi Zhongjian and Little Arrow Saint, so he was also unafraid of Nightking Zhenwu. 

The battles above the Champions' Stage were the most intense. Tai Yishen worked with Nightking Zhenwu to fight against Bu Kong, but neither side had managed to gain an upper hand. Bu Kong had his secret techniques while Tai Yishen had his Truesight and Nightking Zhenwu his spiritual force attacks. All of the techniques being used in this battle were things that ordinary people could not have. 

Lu Yin’s arrival caught all three of them by surprise.

Nightking Zhenwu’s eyes flashed, as he had never expected that Lu Yin would appear in this place. This person was improving far too quickly, as shown by the fact that Lu Yin was willing to step onto Nightking Zhenwu’s battlefield. The Nighking thought about it for a moment, and star energy gathered at his fingertip as he tapped out: Nightking Finger.

The Nightking Finger shot out, and the void exploded while being accompanied by a terrifying spiritual force wave that swept out in all directions.

Bu Kong remained as immovable as a mountain. Something was wrong with this Arbiter’s brain; why would he unleash a spiritual force attack against someone from the Sixth Mainland? The Sixth Mainland cultivators valued imprints the most, and those who wanted to use imprints had to strengthen their spiritual force. Even if they were not proficient with using their spiritual force, their resistance to such attacks was still very robust. Moreover, Bu Kong was one of the Daosource Three Skies. How could he not know how to use spiritual force? 

The Nightking Finger was ineffective against Bu Kong, which was something that Nightking Zhenwu should be aware of. However, this finger had not been directed at Bu Kong, but rather towards Lu Yin, as he needed to demonstrate his qualifications to step onto this battlefield. 

Lu Yin’s body trembled slightly, but he still stepped onto the Champions' Stage with one foot before glancing over at Nightking Zhenwu. Lu Yin’s pupils transformed into runes as he looked over at Bu Kong, directly erasing some of the youth’s rune lines.

Bu Kong frowned, as Tai Yishen’s Truesight alone already made the Daosource Three Skies very uncomfortable, and now, another person who was capable of similarly weakening him had arrived. Bu Kong redirected his attack and slapped a palm at Lu Yin. 

Lu Yin had no thoughts of being struck by this palm, as both Bu Kong’s innate gift and secret techniques scared Lu Yin. He definitely would not allow any attacks to touch him.

“Be careful of his Time Reversal Technique,” Tai Yishen warned.

Lu Yin retreated, but Bu Kong would not let Lu Yin move about as he pleased, and limitless palm prints struck out at him. These palm prints contained a strange power that not even the Ten Arbiters knew about, which might be Bu Kong’s innate gift of decomposition. Regardless, just being touched by these palm imprints was certain death. It was also possible that some of these palm imprints were used to unleash his secret technique, which meant that just a touch would send someone back to their childhood. This was why it was so terrifying to fight against Bu Kong. 

He had power, physical strength, reflexes, star energy, and a deft command of his spiritual force that was comparable to the Ten Arbiters’. On top of all of that, he also had his innate gift and secret techniques, which were actually the thorniest problems. 

Nightking Zhenwu had originally been planning to attack Bu Kong, but he suddenly stopped and allowed Bu Kong’s attack to land on Lu Yin. The Nightking absolutely hated Lu Yin. Even when Lu Yin had been in the Astral Combat Academy, he had already formed a grudge with Nightqueen Yanqing, and all of the various events afterward had contributed to Nightking Zhenwu’s loathing for Lu Yin. In particular, when he had been fighting for the jade talisman back in the Daosource Sect’s ruins, Lu Yin had actually dared to not hand it over to Nightking Zhenwu. Furthermore, Lu Yin had even destroyed the piece of jade. Thus, Nightking Zhenwu wanted nothing more than to see Lu Yin dead. 

Others could not see Bu Kong’s attacks, but Lu Yin and Tai Yishen could since they were both looking at the attack’s rune lines rather than the attack itself.

Lu Yin was not able to dodge all of the palm prints, so he picked the one with the fewest number of rune lines to be struck by. He raised both of his arms, and there was a thump as his entire body was thrown back a hundred meters. After landing, he looked up to stare at Bu Kong.         

Bu Kong frowned, as this person had actually evaded most of his attacks, which was exactly what Tai Yishen did. From this, Bu Kong knew that his enemies were able to see through his attacks. 

At this moment, Nightking Zhenwu’s attack arrived, and Tai Yishen took this opportunity to erase a portion of Bu Kong’s rune lines while Lu Yin did the same. 

Bu Kong had already mentally prepared himself for the double weakening. Thus, even though his rune lines were weakened twice as much as before, he was still able to instantly compensate for the change.

Erasing twice as many of Bu Kong’s rune lines did not equate to a multiplicative reduction in his power. Otherwise, Gods’ Origin would have long since become invincible. Lu Yin and Tai Yishen had joined forces with their Truesight, but that simply allowed them to erase a few more rune lines—their techniques did not reinforce each other. 

Nightking Zhenwu’s attacks were not too effective against Bu Kong, and Bu Kong did not really care about the Nightking. Still, it would not be easy for him to defeat this Arbiter, as he was simply too cunning. 

With Lu Yin added to the mix, the trio stood firm against Bu Kong, though the result was no different from before. Lu Yin’s arrival did not provide too much help to the two experts, but fortunately, he did not hinder them either. At the very least, Tai Yishen and Nightking Zhenwu did not need to distract themselves to assist Lu Yin, and he could also alleviate some of the pressure from their enemy. 

Gu Xiao'er stared at the battle atop the Champions' Stage from a distance, and he felt rather envious. In the end, if someone was able to seize the Champions' Stage, then there would be no piece of the pie left for anyone who was not on the Champions' Stage. Lu Yin was capable of joining that battle, and Gu Xiao’er felt that he could do so as well. Although he would not fight, he could still watch from the side!

Gu Xiao'er comforted himself and then charged over.

There were quite a few other people who felt the same as Gu Xiao’er. They were all elite disciples from the Fifth Mainland’s various powers, and there were also some top ranked experts on the Top 100 Rankings as well as a few experts from the Neoverse like Tai Yishen.

A total of five cultivators charged towards the Champions' Stage, and Gu Xiao'er was among them. 

However, one of them was struck by Bu Kong’s Time Reversal Technique, and he was knocked back to his childhood before being pulverized by a stray aftershock from the fight between the four people atop the stage. 

Another one was caught by the Sword Scholar’s sword qi and cut in two. 

Another two were swept away by Nightking Zhenwu’s spiritual force. They fell down like idiots, and it was impossible to know if they were dead or alive. 

In the end, Gu Xiao'er was the only one who managed to successfully charge onto the Champions' Stage. There, he was faced with the aftershocks of Bu Kong’s battle with the other four. A terrifying destructive force accompanied by a powerful spiritual force swept out, frightening him and forcing him to quickly retreat. Fortunately, Gu Xiao’er still had some white smoke left to block the shockwave. Otherwise, he would have suffered the same fate as the other four.

Bu Kong and the others did not care about these five people, as they were just some random trash in their eyes. 

Lu Yin was left speechless, as that little group had approached the battle only to end up as a joke! Those who did not have the strength to receive the title of King or Queen were not qualified to step foot onto this battlefield. If Gu Xiao'er had managed to replenish his white smoke, then he would have the ability. However, only a small bit of his smoke remained, and it was not enough to even fill the gap between his teeth. 

Gu Xiao'er was scared out of his wits, and he turned to look back at the Champions' Stage after escaping. “So scary! I was almost done for! I should stay away from this place. Actually, something like the Champions' Stage can just be copied, and as long as nobody says anything, who would even know that it was taken away?”