"Do it!" The lean elder witnessed the scene and bellowed without a moment's hesitation, raising the massive silver hammer high and bringing it crashing down toward the center of the stone platform.
With a thunderous boom, lightning flashed within the blue barrier, and a thick arc of silver lightning descended from the sky, slashing straight toward the enormous dark-green tree.
This elder of the merchant alliance knew full well that since all of them were Mahayana-stage beings, launching a direct assault on the opponents would likely prove futile in the short term. So he switched targets to the tree that had suddenly appeared.
Though he had no idea what mysterious function the tree served, destroying it could not possibly be wrong.
The other three elders, seeing this, attacked without hesitation as well.
Seven or eight treasures hummed to life and soared into the high sky, merging together to form a colossal mountain of radiant light that descended menacingly downward.
The mountain radiated ten thousand streams of auspicious brilliance, and before it even landed, countless invisible threads shot downward in dense arrays, as if intending to pierce through both men and the stone platform alike, riddling them with holes.
The black-robed man beneath the barrier, however, let out a wild laugh. His figure flickered once, then blurred and vanished into the giant tree.
As for the long-bearded elder, he expressionlessly formed a hand seal and transformed into a streak of brilliant radiance, plunging into the tree as well.
Boom!
The silver arc of lightning flashed and struck the tree.
The towering giant, dozens of zhang tall, crackled with countless threads of lightning dancing across its surface. A scorched smell wafted out, and the tree rapidly withered and disintegrated into ash.
The two who should have been inside had vanished without a trace.
"They've escaped."
The lean elder was stunned, hardly able to believe his own eyes.
The other three merchant alliance elders exchanged glances, their faces similarly drained of color with shock.
This place had long been layered with the alliance's formations — there were five or six flight-restriction arrays alone — yet someone had still brazenly used an object to teleport away. It was utterly inconceivable.
"Don't panic. This is an inner sanctum, fortified as solidly as an iron wall. Where could they possibly run to? Wait — these two actually obtained the entry talismans that only our alliance elders possess. They tore through the restrictions and escaped the sanctum. Four elders, come with me — quickly, we must pursue!"
Ming Zun's voice drifted down from high above — at first calm and composed, but he immediately sensed something through his spiritual sense and spoke with alarm and fury.
Then a ball of golden light shot through the sky, flickered several times, and vanished without a trace in the distance.
The lean elder and the other three's expressions shifted. They likewise burst into streaks of light, each becoming a brilliant rainbow as they gave chase.
They left behind only the assembly of alien-race participants in the square, staring blankly at one another.
It was only then that Hu Yushuang climbed back onto the stone platform with a pale face, forcing a thin smile as she spoke a few words of reassurance.
Han Li and the other Mahayana cultivators, seated in their floating chambers, had witnessed the entire upheaval and now wore varying expressions.
But none of them made any move to leave their chambers, remaining quietly inside.
Moving about carelessly at a time like this could easily lead the Helian Merchant Alliance to suspect them of being accomplices of the black-robed man, or of attempting to loot in the confusion.
Even if someone truly coveted the Blood of the Ancestral Dragon enough to disregard their concerns about the alliance, the way those two men had carried themselves with such confidence meant that setting out to chase them now would likely be futile.
These old monsters were all cunning and crafty souls — naturally none of them would do something that cost more than it gained. They all settled on the strategy of holding fast and waiting.
Sure enough, just as expected, the merchant alliance's Mahayana cultivators had left quickly and returned just as fast.
A hum resonated from the stone platform. A milky-white light array appeared, and Ming Zun materialized with a dark expression, accompanied by the four great merchant alliance elders.
Judging by the fact that their auras remained unchanged, they had apparently lost the trail of the black-robed man and the long-bearded elder.
The beautiful woman hurried forward to greet them upon seeing the five return.
Ming Zun waved his hand at her and issued an order: "Send word immediately. Distribute images of these two across the entire merchant alliance. You must determine their identities and find their whereabouts in the shortest time possible."
"Yes, your subordinate will see to it at once."
Hu Yushuang's heart clenched. She agreed immediately, formed a hand seal, and her figure vanished into concealment.
At this moment, Han Li, still inside his floating chamber, wore a pensive expression as he mulled something over.
He suddenly reached out and grasped at the empty air. A ripple of fluctuation appeared in his hand, and a dark-green wooden sword materialized, which he seized at once.
Han Li held the sword horizontally before him and swept two fingers along the dark-green patterns etched into its blade, a thoughtful gleam flickering through his eyes.