Chapter 2425: Gong Mao

In the Main Hall, Cui Can's persuasion yielded no results, so she could only continue arranging Lu Ye's next opponent. Just then, however, someone approached her and ordered, "If that human, Lu Ye, requests another fight, arrange an eighth-level Dao Integration realm opponent for him!"

Cui Can looked up and saw that the speaker was her superior. He had clearly noticed Lu Ye's presence, which was not surprising. Any promising talent marked as important would draw the attention of superiors. For a sixth-level Dao Integration realm cultivator to have fought so many battles in a short time, and repeatedly won against stronger opponents, it would be a dereliction of duty if her superior didn't notice him.

"Yes," Cui Can replied with some reluctance. She could try her best to look after Lu Ye within her authority and capabilities, but when her superior gave an order, she had no choice but to obey. *He should be able to win, right?* she thought to herself. Lu Ye had taken very little time to defeat those seventh-level Dao Integration realm cultivators, which meant his true strength was not merely at the seventh level of Dao Integration.

Soon, Lu Ye received information about his opponent in the arena. What slightly surprised him was that his opponent's cultivation level had changed, increasing by one minor realm. He could, of course, refuse, in which case the arena would provide him with a different opponent. But for him, there was fundamentally little difference whether it was a seventh, eighth, or ninth-level Dao Integration realm opponent.

A few moments later, he and his opponent appeared simultaneously in a fragment of the starry sky. This opponent was very seasoned and had clearly sensed something unusual. He had never seen a cultivator with such a low cultivation level in a deathmatch arena. For a sixth-level Dao Integration realm cultivator to dare to fight him to the death, it either meant they were crazy or they had something to rely on.

So, from the very beginning of the fight, he stayed outside the combat zone, only unleashing long-range attacks, intending to gauge Lu Ye's strength. Lu Ye had no desire to waste time. After perceiving his intent, he immediately activated his Blood Evasion Art, rapidly closing in on his opponent with a swift dash.

When the distance between them closed to an extreme degree, life and death were decided. "Good!" In the Main Hall, as the outcome of the battle was determined, the superior couldn't help but praise. Although from Lu Ye's previous performances, he could roughly infer that Lu Ye was very likely to win this battle as well, before the result was out, no one could guarantee that no accident would happen. Now Lu Ye had survived, while his opponent quickly fell in battle. This made the superior's heart stir, because the arena hadn't seen such an interesting promising talent in a very long time. A competitor capable of defeating enemies across two minor realms, if properly managed, would undoubtedly bring enormous profits to the entire arena!

But to be safe, he decided to observe further. "Sir, he has requested another fight. Should I continue to arrange an eighth-level Dao Integration realm opponent?" Cui Can asked. "Arrange it, but this time, choose someone with over twenty wins!" the superior ordered. Although the previous opponent was also an eighth-level Dao Integration realm cultivator, they weren't particularly strong. An eighth-level Dao Integration realm cultivator with over twenty wins was different. To still be alive meant they had fought more than twenty life-and-death battles in the deathmatch arena and personally killed over twenty Dao Integration realm cultivators. Such Dao Integration realm cultivators were all exceptionally ferocious, and at the eighth-level Dao Integration realm, they were definitely among the top tier.

"Arrange him in Arena 63. I'll go and observe in person," the superior said, then his figure abruptly vanished from the spot. Cui Can, having received the order, carefully selected a suitable opponent after a thorough search.

In Arena 63, the superior appeared, found a spot with an excellent view and sat down, then eagerly looked towards the center of the arena. To his astonishment, he found that this battle ended even faster than the previous one! Lu Ye's opponent in the previous fight at least knew to probe his strength first, but this opponent aggressively approached Lu Ye from the very start, seemingly intending to decide life or death relying on their superior cultivation. The result was that the battle concluded in less than ten breaths. The one who survived was still Lu Ye.

The nearly ten thousand cultivators watching in Arena 63 had never witnessed such a bizarre scene. Even though they knew a sixth-level Dao Integration realm cultivator who dared to fight an eighth-level Dao Integration realm opponent must possess extraordinary abilities, such a swift and decisive victory of the weaker over the stronger still left them utterly astonished. They did not recover their senses until Lu Ye's figure disappeared from the arena.

Lu Ye suddenly appeared in a secret room. He frowned slightly, because after the previous battle, he had intended to continue fighting. Participating in one battle yielded at least 500 Dao Fish, and he could also seize decent spoils of war. Naturally, the more such battles, the better. The only regrettable thing for him was that the Star Abyss Will did not extend to the Integration Realm. Therefore, no matter how many enemies he killed, he would not gain Star Abyss coins.

After a brief moment of thought, Lu Ye generally understood what had happened. Perhaps his previous performances had been too eye-catching, so the arena wanted to discuss something with him; otherwise, there would be no need to bring him here. As expected, a moment later, a short, stout man with four pupils in his eyes walked in. As soon as they met, he enthusiastically cupped his hands and introduced himself: "Greetings, Fellow Daoist Lu. My name is Gong Mao, a humble minor steward of the arena. I apologize if it was presumptuous to invite you here."

Lu Ye nodded. "Is there something you need?" A flicker of surprise crossed Gong Mao's eyes. Although he humbly referred to himself as a minor steward of the arena, anyone familiar with the situation knew that his status as a "minor steward" in the entire Integration Realm was not low. Countless people wished to curry favor and get to know him, simply because his "minor steward" title was prefixed by "arena." Yet now, he had lowered himself to personally come, and a sixth-level Dao Integration realm cultivator could remain calm and composed. This was rather uncommon.

"Indeed, there are some matters I wish to discuss with Fellow Daoist," Gong Mao said with a faint smile, then sat down. Immediately, a maidservant brought tea and a fruit platter. Lu Ye glanced casually and noticed that he didn't recognize any of the spiritual fruits on the platter, but they looked quite extraordinary. He didn't look further, nor did he reach out to take any, so as not to reveal his "country bumpkin" nature. He simply gazed at Gong Mao silently, his eyes deep as an abyss, awaiting what he would say next.

Gong Mao increasingly found Lu Ye to be extraordinary. He originally had many questions he wanted to ask, but now there was no need to ask anything. Under these circumstances, it was best to go straight to the point. "May I ask, Fellow Daoist, if we arrange a ninth-level Dao Integration realm opponent for you, do you have confidence you can win?"

A sixth-level versus an eighth-level Dao Integration realm fight was certainly interesting, but the spectacle wasn't quite enough. However, if it were a sixth-level versus a ninth-level Dao Integration realm fight, it would be different. Such a life-and-death battle with a vast disparity in cultivation, if properly promoted and managed, would undoubtedly bring enormous profits to the arena! Had there not been sufficient benefits, why would Gong Mao specifically come to meet Lu Ye? He was busy with many affairs and simply didn't have much time.

"What if I do, what if I don't?" Lu Ye countered. He generally knew what Gong Mao wanted to do. There were things he hadn't experienced, but that didn't mean he couldn't see through them. Evidently, his numerous previous victories had made the arena realize there was a profit to be made, thus they wanted to use his strength to achieve certain goals. Thinking of this, Lu Ye suddenly had an idea. If that were the case, he should be able to propose some conditions! He happened to have a rather troublesome matter he didn't know how to resolve, and Gong Mao's arrival presented an opportunity.

Lu Ye's calm tone undoubtedly pleased Gong Mao. Although from the two previous clashes against eighth-level Dao Integration realm opponents, he estimated Lu Ye should at least possess ninth-level Dao Integration realm strength, some things still needed confirmation. "It's like this," he said, "if Fellow Daoist doesn't mind, I plan to arrange a ninth-level Dao Integration realm opponent for you. Before the battle begins, the arena will conduct extensive promotion. At that time, if Fellow Daoist wins, you will surely become famous throughout the Integration Realm!" Gong Mao described his plan with an excited expression.

"What's in it for me?" Lu Ye asked, his face calm. Gong Mao was taken aback. Benefits? Killing a ninth-level Dao Integration realm cultivator as a sixth-level one, and shaking the Integration Realm with one's name, wasn't that a benefit?

"Fellow Daoist may not know," he said, steadying his mind. "The arena is not merely a place for cultivators to compete for profit. If one can gain fame in the arena, there will be many conveniences afterward. I don't know if Fellow Daoist is affiliated with any Integration City, but if Fellow Daoist truly wins the upcoming battle, I, Gong, can guarantee that many Integration Cities in the Inner Realm, apart from the Ten Great Ones, will surely be interested in Fellow Daoist. At that time, Fellow Daoist can join whichever Integration City you desire. Perhaps even the Ten Great Ones might take an interest in you."

Lu Ye slowly shook his head. What Gong Mao described might not just be empty promises, but a very likely scenario. It was just that Lu Ye had little interest in joining other Integration Cities after gaining fame. Although Yuanxi City wasn't outstanding, its people were decent. He didn't know the temperaments of other Integration City lords, so he naturally wasn't willing to join rashly. Regarding the current situation, he couldn't say he was satisfied, but at least he wasn't averse to it. Moreover, he had contributed an Integration Orb to Yuanxi City.

If he were to truly go to those larger Integration Cities, while cultivation efficiency would be higher, there would certainly be many inconveniences. Therefore, what Gong Mao referred to as "benefits" simply didn't exist for him.

"Since Fellow Daoist came to talk to me, let's discuss some tangible benefits." Gong Mao suddenly found this human in front of him a bit difficult to handle. Weren't the things he just mentioned tangible benefits? Fortunately, he had already prepared. He deliberately pondered for a moment before continuing: "How about this? I, Gong, can decide that after this battle, if Fellow Daoist is still alive, the arena will pay you 50,000 Dao Jade."

50,000 Dao Jade, for Lu Ye, amounted to 500,000 Dao Power. That wasn't even enough to advance to the seventh-level Dao Integration realm... He looked at Gong Mao with an impassive expression, seemingly waiting for him to continue.