At Hikari's words, a low murmur immediately spread through the hall.
"Venerable Phantom?"
Someone repeated the name under their breath, their voice tinged with surprise.
This Venerable came from the Virtual Universe Company's Hall of Thousand Treasures and was renowned for his myriad transformations and exquisite command of the laws.
He was especially skilled at concealment and reconnaissance, and had earned great acclaim for his contributions to intelligence warfare.
In terms of seniority, he had been a Universe Overlord for only a hundred thousand eras, making him one of the "younger" generation.
As for strength, though he was a High Venerable, his mastery of soul illusions and several special Supreme Treasures had allowed him to escape unscathed from Top Overlords many times. He had even once pulled off the astonishing feat of successfully spying on the Bug Race's core intelligence.
"His seniority is a little lacking. Would it be appropriate for him to guard a star region?" a Universe Master from the Universe Mercenary Alliance asked hesitantly.
"Seniority comes with time. Venerable Phantom's accomplishments aren't lacking; in fact, he's far more capable than some Universe Venerables who broke through many years ago.
"And only someone of his caliber can properly inspect an entire star region!"
With a wave of his hand, Hikari displayed Venerable Phantom's accomplishments. As far as he was concerned, it made no difference whether he recommended him or not.
After all, top-tier treasure-refining masters were prized by every race.
However, Venerable Phantom was one of his own disciples. Though he lacked talent in research and weapon refinement,
he had the greatest talent for combat among all his disciples. Hikari wanted to see him rise as high as possible!
"Since Lord of Wisdom Light has recommended him, Venerable Phantom shall take charge as a lord of a nation. However, given his strength,
the native secret realms within his territory will be placed under the jurisdiction of other Venerables!"
Giant Axe settled the matter with a single decisive blow.
Soon, the meeting came to an end. The rulers of the other two star regions came from the Universe Galaxy Bank and the Universe Mercenary Alliance, respectively.
The three top-tier secret realms taken from the Bug Race this time went to the Space Garrison.
As for the Universe First Bank, the other major factions would fund it together, as a reward for Lord of Qingdong's negotiations.
Of course, such trivial matters meant nothing to powerhouses at the level of Universe Venerables or above!
Meanwhile, with the Silk-Trailing Map guiding him through the hidden passages between wormholes, Tiga left the Boundless Heavenly Pool.
"Having a map really does make things easier!"
As soon as he got out, Star Crystal Lord, who had been trapped in the Boundless Heavenly Pool for years, sighed.
Tiga, however, stared grimly around them. "They're here!"
Before the words had even left his mouth, a sword beam swept toward them.
"Lord Wuhun?!"
Star Crystal Lord exclaimed. A suit of High-grade Supreme Treasure armor instantly appeared on his body.
Lord Wuhun's figure appeared at the boundary between Cloud Realm and Heavenly Pool Mountain.
"Star Crystal Lord, hand it over. Otherwise... Hmph!"
Lord Wuhun's aura suddenly surged.
His form gradually transformed into that of a Beast God, with four hooves, three pairs of wings, and nine tails and five heads. He looked strangely reminiscent of Cthulhu.
But that did nothing to diminish his formidable strength.
Unlike Lord Fenglei, whom Star Crystal Lord had mentioned as having fused two Paths of the Beast God, Lord Wuhun had directly fused all five space-aligned Paths of the Beast God.
That was how he got the name Wuhun!
His combat strength had long since reached the sixth tier. Though he was no match for Tiga, Tiga had no intention of revealing his trump cards so easily.
"Lord Wuhun, we'll talk after we fight!"
Star Crystal Lord naturally wasn't going to surrender without a struggle. He immediately launched a ferocious attack.
Seeing this, Tiga realized that Star Crystal Lord had probably planned from the start to drag him into the mess.
But he had no time to think it over. Gripping a Top-tier Supreme Treasure longsword, he charged into the fight as well.
"Good! Come on!"
Lord Wuhun had lived through three great cycles of reincarnation and fought countless battles. Faced with Star Crystal Lord and Tiga, who was hiding his true strength, he wasn't the least bit intimidated.
His Peak Supreme Treasure, Extermination God Armor, appeared, and his aura continued to rise.
In Star Crystal Lord's hand was the Star Sword, a top-tier treasure made for slaughter.
Yet when it struck Lord Wuhun, it left not the slightest mark.
"Star-Crushing!"
Star Crystal Lord shouted, and his divine body began to burn in an instant.
Lord Wuhun wasn't a punching bag who would just stand there. Seeing this, he summoned his own Supreme Treasure and met Star Crystal Lord head-on.
As expected of a veteran powerhouse. His experience alone put him far beyond Star Crystal Lord. With a few quick shifts and dodges, he intercepted every one of Star Crystal Lord's attacks.
Tiga's attacks followed close behind!
His target was the enormous horn atop Lord Wuhun's head, formed from the law of gold after his Beast God transformation.
"Five Elements Light!"
Lord Wuhun certainly wasn't going to sit back and take it. His golden horn suddenly flared, firing off an attack condensed from five laws.
Tiga took a small step back and used his longsword to deflect the incoming attack slightly.
Boom—
A thunderous crash rang out. Looking over, they saw a huge hole blasted into the halfway point of Heavenly Pool Mountain by Lord Wuhun's attack.
"As expected of the strongest beneath the God Eye Clan's True Lords. You're impressive!"
Tiga praised Lord Wuhun's attack.
"If that's the case, then why don't you retreat? Once my clan's powerhouses arrive, do you think Lord of Radiance will still have any chance of turning things around?"
Lord Wuhun paid no heed to Tiga's praise. After all, he was facing an equal, and he didn't dare let his guard down.
He could only try to drive Tiga off by invoking his clan's reputation and strength.
"Lord of Radiance, don't listen to his nonsense! If you leave now, will the God Eye Clan ever let you live in peace?"
As Star Crystal Lord spoke, he attacked Lord Wuhun.
Tiga knew that was true, too. Rather than reply, he turned and charged at Lord Wuhun.
But he had to make the act convincing. Tiga was only displaying the strength of a Fifth-Order Universe Master. Against Lord Wuhun, who was at the same level but far more experienced, he naturally couldn't win, so...
"You dare... I'll kill you!"
In the end, even Lord Wuhun's golden horn wasn't spared from the fate of being snapped off by the Horn-Breaking Maniac.
That only ignited Lord Wuhun's fury. He brought out another Peak Supreme Treasure.
"That's... This is bad, retreat!"
Seeing this, Star Crystal Lord didn't hesitate for a moment. He immediately retreated a million kilometers, and kept retreating.
"Too late!"
Lord Wuhun roared, "Water Wave Prison, rise!"
"A Domain Type Supreme Treasure? Not bad!"
Watching the domain rise, Tiga looked panicked, but remained calm inside.
Unless several of the God Eye Clan's True Lords attacked together and used a combined secret technique, he could still withdraw at his leisure.
And now...
"You really think you're the only one with a Peak Supreme Treasure, Lord Wuhun?"
Before you continue