Old Hong froze. Zhang Qi, Ji Tianxing, and the rest all froze. Everyone froze.
No one had expected the great doors to open so easily.
While everyone was still stunned, Old Hong had already flickered forward and charged into the great hall. The instant he moved, it set every nerve on edge. Open Heaven realm cultivators from all directions surged forward without anyone needing to signal, a torrent of figures flooding toward the entrance.
"Scram!" A furious roar erupted as the burly man in black, Ji Tianxing, barreled forward like a frenzied primordial beast. Everything in his path was smashed aside, sent flying. In the blink of an eye he reached the doorway and was the second to plunge inside.
Close on his heels, the scholar Zhang Qi fanned his folding fan with a leisurely flick and vanished through the entrance as well.
"Sister Lan, let's go in too." Yuan Xiaoman turned her head to look at Madam Lan, who gave a faint nod. The two of them blurred forward and disappeared into the great hall.
Only after these Mid-Order Open Heaven cultivators had all gone in did the rest surge forward in a pack. Naturally, a brief scuffle broke out amid the rush, and suppressed waves of power fluctuated from time to time.
"Senior Brother, what do we do?" Tao Rongfang looked to Wei Que.
"We go in and see," Wei Que said in a low voice. They had come all this way, and the gates of the Golden Crow Divine Palace were already open — there was no question of leaving now. Who knew what awaited them inside, but if they were careful and didn't fight anyone for treasures, there should be no real danger.
When the two from Great Moon Province entered the great hall, a wave of scorching heat struck them in the face.
Looking around, they saw the vast hall swarming with figures flying back and forth, a scene of absolute chaos. On top of that, wisp after wisp of Solar True Fire darted through the crowd, evading the pursuit of the Open Heaven cultivators. The radiance of the Solar True Fire illuminated the entire hall in brilliant light, mingling with the flashes of power from the Open Heaven cultivators launching their techniques.
"This is…" Tao Rongfang stared, stunned. She had not expected such a bustling scene the moment they stepped inside. A rough count told her there were no fewer than a dozen wisps of Solar True Fire zipping about the hall!
Such a spectacle was exceedingly rare. Her heart and Wei Que's burned with excitement.
Massive pillars stood throughout the great hall, and torches burned atop stands around each one. At first Tao Rongfang paid them no mind, but when she looked more closely, her expression changed dramatically.
Those were no ordinary torches. They were clumps of Solar True Fire, blazing away.
The entire hall's illumination was provided by Solar True Fire.
It went without saying that the wisps of Solar True Fire now flying around the hall had originally been torches just like these, startled into fleeing by the intruders with their own spiritual awareness.
The senior and junior sister exchanged a glance. Without a word, they shot forward together, lunging toward one of the torch clusters. Before they even arrived, they launched divine abilities from a distance, attempting to seize the Solar True Fire by force.
There was no shortage of Solar True Fire in the hall — the hall itself was enormous, and there had been over twenty clusters serving as torches. But there were also many intruders, all Open Heaven realm cultivators, several of whom were Mid-Order.
After a flurry of competition, the dust settled in less than half the time it took to finish a cup of tea.
Those Mid-Order Open Heaven cultivators each ended up with two or more wisps of Solar True Fire, some of which were Fifth Grade. The rest were snatched up by the others. The two from Great Moon Province had been lucky — though they entered late, their timing was excellent, and they managed to grab a wisp of Solar True Fire. And it was Fifth Grade!
Wei Que and Tao Rongfang could barely contain the excitement and joy in their eyes.
A single Fifth Grade material could be exchanged for ten Fourth Grade materials on the open market — more than enough to forge one Fourth Grade Open Heaven cultivator, with some left over. Their mission for this expedition could be considered accomplished ahead of schedule.
Neither was willing to leave, though. They had only just entered this hall and already reaped such rewards — who knew what further treasures lay deeper inside?
Plenty of others shared the same thought. Those who had obtained Solar True Fire did not want to leave so soon, and those who had gotten nothing were even less inclined to depart.
Moreover, even though the Solar True Fire in the hall was gone, no one could guarantee there weren't other treasures to be found. So everyone began searching in every direction.
Before long, someone discovered that the entire floor of the great hall was paved with the finest grade of Fire Jade. The discovery was truly astonishing. Across the vast expanse of the Outer Universes, Fire Jade was not exactly rare — its value ranged widely depending on quality — but this top-grade Fire Jade was undeniably worth a fortune. And the hall was vast; yet every inch of the floor was flawless, pure Fire Jade without a single impurity. Such extravagance would cripple even a Second-Class force to arrange. Only a First-Class force could afford such opulence.
The crowd nearly went mad.
There was nothing left to discuss. Open Heaven cultivators, every last one of them, set to work like gophers. The clink and clang of tools echoed endlessly through the hall as slabs of Fire Jade were pried up and stuffed into spatial rings.
Even Madam Lan, the proprietress of the First Inn, made no exception. No one turned down free wealth.
But the good fortune did not last. Whether someone had triggered a restriction or not, a deep, rumbling roar suddenly echoed through the hall, and the wide-open doors slammed shut.
Everyone startled and straightened up. Before they could even assess the situation, a wave of dizziness washed over them. Their vision blurred, and when it cleared, every person who had been inside the great hall found themselves standing in an enormous cavern.
The hall was gone. The Fire Jade floor was gone. No more prying to be done.
Caught off guard by the sudden change, those who knew each other hurriedly gathered together, warily scanning their surroundings in case of danger. Some activated secret techniques and slipped silently into the shadows, vanishing without a trace.