Quiet Mind Room:
"Second Brother, what do you think the owner of this Quiet Mind Room invited us here for?"
"Big Brother said earlier that it should be something good, but he had to leave to take care of something. He told us to decide for ourselves."
"If it's something good, of course we'll accept. But there's no need to worry about anything bad, either. Even if we die in the Virtual Universe, it doesn't matter."
Thunder God and Hong kept exchanging voice transmissions on their way to the Quiet Mind Room.
"I've been observing you for almost a month now..."
After seeing the shocked looks in Hong's and Thunder God's eyes as they entered, Ming Yu calmly began chatting with them.
At the end of their conversation, he also invited them to join the Virtual Universe Company.
But unsurprisingly, Hong and Thunder God both chose to join the outer ranks of the Virtual Universe Company as external members.
"By the way, where's the man who was with you earlier? I haven't seen him."
"Oh, that's our big brother, Li Xin. We met him while traveling through the universe."
"Big Brother is taking part in betting matches in the Ganwu Betting Space right now, so naturally, he isn't on Black Dragon Island."
Hong and the others had already fabricated a story about how they had met and paid someone to falsify the records, all to conceal the fact that they were Earthlings.
The Ganwu Betting Space? Isn't he afraid of losing everything?
Still, losing would be good. Only defeat can knock down his arrogance, which would give me the perfect opportunity to recruit him into the Virtual Universe Company.
Hearing Hong's explanation suddenly put Ming Yu in a better mood.
This was his usual method of recruiting geniuses: using the Virtual Universe Company's geniuses to defeat those unaffiliated geniuses.
He let those unaffiliated geniuses learn that there was always someone better out there. That way, when he recruited them, they would understand how formidable the Virtual Universe Company was, and his chances of success would be higher.
"By the way, when Li Xin returns, please invite him to the Quiet Mind Room for me. I'd like to invite him to join our Virtual Universe Company, too."
Though Ming Yu was secretly delighted, he remained completely composed on the surface.
Little did he know that his failure to recruit Li Xin this time, coupled with the lack of importance he placed on him, would ultimately cost him the greatest opportunity of his life.
"Sure, no problem. I'll tell Big Brother when he gets back."
Thunder God nodded as he spoke.
What Ming Yu did not know, however, was that while he waited for Li Xin to visit, Li Xin was already tearing through opponents in the Betting Space.
With his strength at Star Level Five, he had challenged a hundred higher-ranked opponents ranging from Star Level Six to Star Level Nine and won a hundred matches straight.
Afterward, Li Xin had gone straight to challenging Universe Level One opponents in Gambling Battles without the slightest hesitation.
When those Universe Level One fighters saw that he was merely at Star Level Five, with stakes as high as one million Universe Coins in a Gambling Battle, the vast majority accepted without any hesitation.
None of them had expected this little fellow at Star Level Five to be so powerful.
And so, Li Xin fought a hundred Gambling Battles against Universe Level One opponents, a hundred against Universe Level Two opponents, and a hundred against Universe Level Three opponents, never losing once.
Because of this, the name "Dugu Qiubai" had earned a measure of fame in the Betting Space.
"Hahahaha! So you're Dugu Qiubai? I finally ran into you! Those four million Universe Coins of yours are mine!"
Although Peak Killer had heard of Dugu Qiubai, the sight of the four million Universe Coins at stake in the Gambling Battle, combined with his confidence in his current Universe Level Three strength, made him steel himself and accept the match outright.
To entice those Universe Level fighters into accepting his Gambling Battles, Li Xin kept raising the stakes without holding back: one million Universe Coins against Universe Level One, two million against Universe Level Two, three million against Universe Level Three, and four million against Universe Level Four.
He understood human greed and the love of gambling all too well. In particular, eighty percent of the people in the Betting Space were gamblers, and enormous stakes were the best way to tempt them.
"If you can win it, why shouldn't I give it to you? Not a single person who's fought a Gambling Battle against me has managed to take the stake money from my hands."
Even though Li Xin had now spent ten full days in the Betting Space, his fighting spirit remained high.
He especially enjoyed fighting those Universe Level fellows. Their mastery of domains and power-exertion techniques might fall short of his, but they relied on their powerful genetic origin energy. Combined with the feverish, greedy atmosphere, that made these Gambling Battles immensely enjoyable for Li Xin.
At first, he had come to earn money through Gambling Battles. Now, he no longer fought for money, but purely to enjoy battle and improve his strength. He fought match after match, wanting to see exactly where his limits lay.
"It's Dugu Qiubai! I finally get to see him again! Last time, I bet on him to win, and that upset gave me all the spending money I needed. I'm betting on him again this time."
Feng Ling was not a seasoned gambler. She had only come to the Betting Space to try her luck because she never felt she had enough spending money, and her luck had been terrible before.
But on one occasion, she had unexpectedly steeled herself and bet all her spending money on Li Xin to win. That single bet multiplied her spending money a hundred and seventy times over, leaving her with more than enough to spend!
No matter what, she was betting on Dugu Qiubai to win this time!
"Tsk, tsk. This kid must be a genius trained by some faction. That's why his win rate is a hundred percent. But this is his first challenge against Universe Level Four. I'd better play it safe and bet on him losing."
Spectators in the Betting Space were assigned matches at random each round and could not choose a particular fighter's Gambling Battles to watch. This was meant to prevent outsiders from colluding with both fighters to stage fixed matches and fleece the bettors.
"Kill!!"
As the barriers of light around the two fighters faded, Peak Killer's fivefold wind domain emerged with him at its center, filled with countless azure wind blades.
Anyone who entered his domain would be constantly harried by countless wind blades, while those with insufficient defenses would be sliced to pieces by the domain itself.
His domain was a wind domain devoted entirely to offense.
Peak Killer moved incredibly fast, charging straight at Li Xin with his wind domain around him.
"Just what I wanted!"
At the sight, Li Xin unleashed his eightfold light domain. Intense holy light filled the domain, carrying an empowering effect.
Its primary effect was to strengthen its master within the domain while suppressing the strength of any enemies who entered it.
Compared with Peak Killer's offensive wind domain, Li Xin's domain was more supportive, specifically designed to aid him, its master.
Before you continue