"We're still alive?"
Ma Yue and Tian Yi wore expressions of utter disbelief — neither of them could believe they were still alive.
After all, the two of them had been incredibly close to the Hundred-Refined Jade Stone, which meant they had genuinely felt the terror of that lightning just moments ago.
That terror was beyond words. If one absolutely had to describe it, it would be a nightmare that would haunt them for the rest of their lives.
"Just… what happened?"
Still reeling from the shock, Ma Yue and Tian Yi turned their gazes back toward the Hundred-Refined Jade Stone.
By now, the look in their eyes had changed — they increasingly felt that the Hundred-Refined Jade Stone was unfathomably profound.
In their minds, that terrifying lightning had undoubtedly been triggered by the Hundred-Refined Jade Stone itself. And for something to be capable of provoking such terrifying lightning only further proved how extraordinary the stone was.
Swish, swish, swish—
Just then, several figures came streaking through the air and landed outside the altar.
They were Kong Zheng and the elders of the Guardian Clan, including Hu Xuanyi.
"Greetings, esteemed elders!!!"
Upon seeing them, the cultivators from the Lower Realm dared not show any neglect. They hurriedly dropped to their knees and bowed deeply.
Moreover, their expressions were exceptionally tense — especially when facing Hu Xuanyi. None of them even dared meet his gaze.
Although Hu Xuanyi's strength was the same as the other elders — all at the peak of half-Ancestor — his status within the Guardian Clan was special. He held great authority within the Hundred-Refined Grounds, making him the elder that the people of the Lower Realm feared the most.
"Did any of you just see two bolts of lightning descend? Where exactly did those bolts strike?" Hu Xuanyi pointed at the crowd and demanded.
They had clearly seen the direction from which those two bolts of lightning had fallen — both had come down right toward this altar.
"Elder, we did see them. The lightning was triggered by the Hundred-Refined Jade Stone," Zhou Zongzhi's voice suddenly rang out.
"Zhou Zongzhi?" The elders turned toward the voice and were taken aback.
Zhou Zongzhi was currently in a wretched state — his face was so battered beyond recognition that it was unrecognizable, his entire body was drenched in blood, and he didn't even have the strength to stand. Even as he spoke, he was crawling in their direction. The sight was truly pitiful.
"Zhou Zongzhi, how did you end up like this? Who did this to you?" The elders were all shocked to see him in such a condition.
"Could it be…" One of the elders suddenly thought of something. He turned his gaze toward Ma Yue and shouted furiously, "Ma Yue, how could you do something so vicious?"
"Have you lost your mind? Zhou Zongzhi is already a fourth-level half-Ancestor, while Ma Yue is only a third-level halfAncestor. How could Ma Yue possibly have beaten him into this state?" Hu Xuanyi said.
"But…" The elder who had just accused Ma Yue looked around, implying that aside from Ma Yue, there was no one else here who would lay a hand on Zhou Zongzhi.
"Elder, it truly wasn't Ma Yue who hurt me — but the person who did is closely connected to Ma Yue," Zhou Zongzhi seized the opportunity and quickly filed his complaint.
"Connected to Ma Yue? Who could have injured you while being connected to Ma Yue? Who is it? Speak!!!"
"Wait — we'll put that matter aside for now. Zhou Zongzhi… did you just say that the terrifying lightning was triggered by the Hundred-Refined Jade Stone?"
"Also, the Hundred-Refined Jade Stone was sitting perfectly fine — why did it change position?"
"Just what happened? Tell me everything truthfully," Hu Xuanyi said.
"Elder, this is what happened…" Zhou Zongzhi proceeded to recount the entire series of events to Hu Xuanyi and the others in full detail.
"You're saying that someone who claimed to be from the Ancestral Martial Lower Realm came here, moved the Hundred-Refined Jade Stone, and then provoked it — after which the stone first attempted to refine him, and then triggered those two bolts of lightning to fall?"
Hu Xuanyi's face was filled with disbelief. He found it hard to accept what Zhou Zongzhi had told him — and he wasn't the only one. The other elders were equally skeptical.
Setting aside whether the Hundred-Refined Jade Stone could even trigger such terrifying lightning, the most important issue was that the stone was something no one had ever been able to budge — so how could this person have moved it?
"Elder, it's the absolute truth! I wouldn't dare lie to you!!!"
"If you don't believe me, you can ask them — they can all testify," Zhou Zongzhi swore.
"Elder, it is exactly as Brother Zhou said. Everything… was caused by that person who claimed to be from the Ancestral Martial Lower Realm," the others chimed in one after another.
"Describe his appearance to me," Kong Zheng said, stepping forward at that moment.