"No wonder he dared to step forward. Lu Xingluo lost to him and lost his qualification as heir. Now even Lu Tiandi probably has to tread very carefully."
"Impressive! As expected of Sword Emperor Black Flame — could he really be that newcomer in Yuantian City's upper district who secured first-tier access?"
"This is getting interesting. Lu Tiandi has really kicked a steel plate this time."
…
When it came to the name Black Flame, not a single person present was unfamiliar with it. However, when it came to Black Flame's real-life situation, most people didn't actually know much. After all, everyone had their own tasks to deal with, and the Divine Realm had too many heroic figures and regional overlords — nobody had the spare time to go around investigating others.
Unless someone was particularly interested in a specific person, they would spend money to hire someone for a detailed investigation. Otherwise, who was who in the real world remained a mystery.
Especially someone like Shi Feng, who had always kept a low profile, never revealing his identity in the real world for any kind of promotion — investigating him was even harder. It was fair to say that apart from the superpowers that paid close attention to Zero Wing, even ordinary first-rate guilds had no idea who Black Flame really was in real life. It was no different from how ordinary people couldn't possibly follow every celebrity's moves and private life.
But the name Black Flame was something else entirely.
Because that name was simply too famous in the Divine Realm. Battle after battle of legendary quality, feat after feat that shook the Divine Realm — even on the official forums of several Divine Realm kingdoms and empires, videos of Black Flame's combat were pinned high as exemplars of the Swordsman class.
In the eastern continent of the Divine Realm, practically every player who had set foot in the game knew the name, let alone the elite experts in the upper district who lived and breathed it.
Although Zero Wing currently had no backing or connections behind it, it had already become a recognized superpower among Divine Realm players. Compared to other superpowers with powerful backers, Zero Wing's influence was even greater and stronger — its reach was even approaching that of the five great super guilds.
It was already an absolute powerhouse in the Divine Realm!
It was precisely because of this that Ji Luorong, looking at the Shi Feng before her, felt as though she were dreaming.
And while everyone was whispering about this, buzzing with excitement, Lu Tiandi — who had been watching everything quietly from not far away — slowly walked toward Shi Feng.
"I've been quite rude. So you're the Zero Wing Guild Master, Black Flame, who defeated Lu Xingluo." Lu Tiandi looked at Shi Feng with a kind expression, his demeanor exuding an indescribable composure and calm. He showed not the slightest trace of anger over his steward Yi Kui having been seriously injured, and said with a smile, "Greetings. I am Lu Tiandi, the current guild master of Star Ring. Guild Master Black Flame, defeating that Lu Xingluo was doing me a great favor. Otherwise, I might have had to go through quite a bit of trouble, and perhaps wait another year or two, before I could take over Star Ring."
"No need for thanks. We're not exactly on the same side," Shi Feng replied noncommittally.
As for the person called Lu Tiandi, others might not know much about him, but Shi Feng knew him all too well.
Because in his previous life, Lu Tiandi had been a well-known sixth-tier god-level expert in the Divine Realm. Back then, he had his own team — an adventuring party — and hadn't joined a guild to serve the Xinghang Conglomerate.
Lu Tiandi appeared kind on the surface, but his scheming ran incredibly deep and never showed on his face. In the past, numerous forces had been played for fools by Lu Tiandi, working themselves to the bone for him, only to realize too late that all the benefits had already been claimed by Lu Tiandi himself. Many superpowers had harbored a deep hatred for him because of this.
But because Lu Tiandi was extraordinarily powerful, and on top of that served as the captain of the Thrilling Clown — one of the seven great dark adventuring parties in the Divine Realm — there was absolutely nothing anyone could do about it…
"Why must Guild Master Black Flame keep me at such arm's length? Lu Xingluo is Lu Xingluo, and I am I. Many people within the Conglomerate actually had objections to Lu Xingluo's domineering behavior, but he was ultimately the patriarch's own son. Even if people had objections, the Conglomerate didn't dare do anything about it and could only let things slide. Now that Guild Master Black Flame has brought down Lu Xingluo, the entire Xinghang Conglomerate is celebrating." Lu Tiandi smiled and continued, "Since Miss Ji Luorong is Guild Master Black Flame's friend, I naturally won't continue trying to recruit her. And I've long admired the Zero Wing guild — I wonder if Guild Master Black Flame would be interested in some form of cooperation? To demonstrate Star Ring's sincerity and to apologize for our rude treatment of Miss Ji Luorong, I can make the decision to sell a large batch of Phantom Heart Potions at their original price to Guild Master Black Flame and Miss Ji Luorong as an apology. What does Guild Master Black Flame think?"
With Lu Tiandi's offer to sell Phantom Heart Potions at their original price, everyone present couldn't help but feel envious.
Phantom Heart Potions were treasures to every major conglomerate. Forget about the original price — they would happily pay two or three times as much. For them, enhancing mental strength came first, whether for themselves or for their children.
Even Ji Luorong couldn't help but feel tempted. She currently only had second-tier access, and if she could obtain some more Phantom Heart Potions to push her mental strength further, she could upgrade to first-tier access. Life in the upper district would become much easier — after all, the entire Haitian City upper district had only a little over three hundred first-tier access holders, and each one was a key target of attention for the Green God Corporation.
Even the major powers in the upper district, if they wanted to target someone, would face considerable difficulty. As for resources, there would be less need to worry, since certain first-tier access tasks occasionally rewarded Phantom Heart Potions.
"Thank you for your generosity, Guild Master Lu, but I already have collaborators and currently have no plans to partner with additional guilds. I'm afraid I can't help you there." Shi Feng declined directly. "If there's nothing else, we'll be taking our leave."
"Is that so? What a pity." Lu Tiandi couldn't help but sigh. "If Guild Master Black Flame ever changes his mind about cooperation, you're welcome to contact me anytime."
Shi Feng simply nodded with a faint smile, then turned and led Ji Luorong and Mu Xin out of the Mental Training Room, leaving Lu Tiandi and steward Yi Kui watching the three of them depart in silence.
After the crowd dispersed, steward Yi Kui finally recovered fully after drinking a Life Potion.
Looking at Shi Feng's retreating figure, Yi Kui said in a low voice, "Young Master, that Black Flame is far too arrogant. You invited him to cooperate so sincerely, and he didn't even give you face. No wonder Lu Xingluo was furious with him and considered him a thorn in his side. How about I find an opportunity to teach that brat a lesson?"
He was absolutely seething about being injured by Shi Feng's surprise palm strike. If he had been more careful, he never would have been seriously hurt. Moreover, after Shi Feng executed that palm strike, he had clearly noticed Shi Feng's complexion turn somewhat pale — the backlash from that move was clearly significant. He could have easily delivered a fatal blow to Shi Feng.
"For some reason, that Shi Feng is extremely wary of me. We've only just met for the first time, yet he's already so on guard. It seems using him as a tool to pave the way for us is out of the question." Lu Tiandi shook his head and said calmly, "In that case, let's give him a little lesson. But you won't be able to handle it alone. That Shi Feng actually managed to use the signature technique of the Nine Heavens Dragon Clouds in real life — that clearly means both his physical fitness and mental strength have reached an extraordinarily high level. You won't be able to deal with him by yourself. I'll notify Brother Wang to coordinate with you."
"Brother Wang is coming too?" Yi Kui was startled at first, but quickly erupted with delight. "If that's the case, then that brat is as good as dead."
The Brother Wang Lu Tiandi spoke of was an External Cultivation Grandmaster who was only half a step away from becoming a Spiritual Master, and was also Lu Tiandi's senior martial brother — someone who had always lived in the middle district.
Having such an expert deployed against someone living in the basic district would be child's play.
"Oh, and once we return, immediately notify the others in the Conglomerate. Have them move against Ji Luorong's adventuring party right away — make sure to destroy them quickly." Lu Tiandi said flatly. "Since I can't have her, there's no reason to let that Shi Feng have Ji Luorong's party either."
"Don't worry, Young Master. Those people have all been watched closely. If it weren't for your appreciation of talent, they would have been finished long ago," Yi Kui said with a grin.
Lu Tiandi nodded, then walked into the Mental Training Room.