As the match approached, Luo Ning could see promotional posters of himself all over Heaven's Arena.
[SUPERNOVA COOL YOUTH LUO NING VS. UGLY GALLEGOS]
This was the poster—the very one that made Luo Ning realize, upon meeting Gallegos, that the man wanted to skin him alive. Milia had certainly maxed out the aggro for him!
However, during these five days of waiting for the fight, Luo Ning also witnessed Milia's incredible efficiency and powerful network. She brought him the news he looked forward to most: information regarding the Scarlet Eyes.
"I've received word that someone has a pair of Scarlet Eyes in their possession. If you can offer a high enough price, the other party might consider selling," Milia said as she handed the intelligence report directly to Luo Ning.
He could see in the provided photographs that the Scarlet Eyes were indeed preserved in a bottle. That bottle looked very familiar to Luo Ning; it was identical to the one containing his predecessor's father's eyes that he had snatched from Uvogin. This forced Luo Ning to consider whether the seller behind this was the Phantom Troupe.
"The price?" Luo Ning asked with a frown.
"The price of Scarlet Eyes has been around one billion in recent years, but this time the seller's asking price exceeds 1.5 billion, and might even reach two billion!"
This price seemed reasonable to Luo Ning. Back then, Kurapika had spent 2.9 billion to purchase them, but that was clearly because someone had been spitefully outbidding him. What truly worried Luo Ning was that if the person selling these eyes was from the Phantom Troupe, he had to consider the possibility of buying a fake.
"I need to hide my identity to trade with the seller," Luo Ning stated his requirement directly.
There was only one reason for doing this: to avoid buying a fake. With his Sharingan, he could easily judge whether the eyes were genuine through a unique sense of attraction. He didn't believe that a pair of Scarlet Eyes copied by Kortopi could also make his own eyes evolve. If they actually could, then he'd accept it! In fact, that would be a good thing for him.
When the time came, he would just need to kidnap Kortopi, and there was no telling how far his Sharingan could evolve then. The Rinnegan? Or perhaps something even beyond the Rinnegan! However, he estimated that this was likely impossible.
As for why he had to hide his identity, given the relationship between him and the Troupe, a conflict would inevitably break out the moment they met. Without sufficient strength, he would choose to avoid them. But once his strength was enough, that would be the time for him to slaughter the Troupe!
Milia had no objections to this; she could even guess a thing or two about why Luo Ning wanted to hide his identity. After thinking for a moment, she nodded in agreement. "Fine. Conveniently, after one match with Gallegos, you should have just about enough to buy those eyes."
"Working with you was indeed the right choice." Luo Ning flashed a satisfied smile.
If he relied solely on himself, earning two billion Jenny in the short term would really not be easy. But if he calculated that one match could net him two billion, didn't that mean that under Milia's management, the net profit of this match would be over four billion? As expected of a gold-medal manager.
But thinking about it, a match on the 190th floor alone could have a prize of 200 million. For a match on the 200th floor with the right promotional hype, earning four billion didn't seem impossible at all. One could only say that once you reach the top of any industry, making money becomes simple. Compared to ordinary people, Nen users were equivalent to reaching a level beyond the pinnacle in combat.
"Actually, if you weren't in a hurry, we could probably push this price down a bit," Milia said, having held it in for a long while.
"How so?"
During his contact with Milia, Luo Ning found that she had her own unique set of ideas and methods for saving and accumulating money. She was like a hoarding squirrel; she loved making money and loved saving it. She hated taking money out of her pocket, but she wouldn't hesitate too much where it needed to be spent—though she would always mutter: 'The money spent now is only to earn more later.'
"Ever since the Kurta Clan was massacred, there have been people selling Scarlet Eyes in the shadows. By now, at least a dozen pairs have been collected by private collectors. I've even heard that there will be several pairs of Scarlet Eyes at this year's Yorknew Auction. If you can wait, you could definitely get them at a lower price. I estimate the price of Scarlet Eyes shouldn't exceed 1.5 billion," Milia's cold, pretty face couldn't help but show a hint of physical pain as she spoke.
It looked as if the money Luo Ning was spending was her own. Perhaps this was just her sense of empathy!
Luo Ning couldn't help but let a smile touch his lips. "No need to wait. I'll be going to the Yorknew Auction when the time comes anyway."
"Alright, your money, your call. I'm just the manager." Milia returned to her cold, older-sister persona.
The 25th arrived quickly during Luo Ning's cultivation. When he stepped onto the ring, Luo Ning found that support banners for him had already been raised in the front rows, and organized groups of fans even erupted in cheers.
As for "Ugly Gallegos" standing opposite him, his expression had become increasingly unsightly. It made him look like a one-eyed squash.
"You damned brat, I'm going to tear you apart in this ring!"
Before the referee could even announce the start of the match, Gallegos was already hurling insults at Luo Ning!
"I understand, Mr. Squash."
Luo Ning responded with only a smile and the description he thought suited the man's appearance best.
"Aaaaaagh!" Gallegos's anger flared, his face turning an even deeper shade of red.
The referee's mouth twitched, his eyes not daring to land on Gallegos's face for fear that he might unprofessionally burst out laughing. So, he quickly retreated and announced loudly, "The match begins now!"
The moment the referee's voice fell, Gallegos erupted with his fastest speed and charged at Luo Ning.
Luo Ning's expression turned serious. Nen gathered toward his eyes, forming [GYO], allowing him to see every trace of Nen flow on Gallegos's body more clearly. At the same time, more Nen erupted to form [REN] around his body. With a slight shift in his footwork, he took up a defensive counter-attack stance.
But when Gallegos was less than three meters from Luo Ning, a brick suddenly appeared in his raised hand. With a burst of arm strength, the brick was smashed directly toward Luo Ning's head.
Luo Ning raised his hand to swat the brick away, but immediately after, a large cloud of lime powder was flung from Gallegos's trailing hand, heading straight for Luo Ning's face.
'This guy really has no sense of martial honor!'
Luo Ning thought as he suddenly threw out a left hook that had been cocked at his waist. At that instant, his eyes glowed slightly red, and the powerful wind from his fist actually blew the lime powder Gallegos had thrown right back at him. It had the same momentum as when Uvogin had blown away a Great Fireball Technique with a single punch in the airship corridor!
And this move was none other than Uvogin's signature ability—[BIG BANG IMPACT]!