The magnificent auction arena was packed with experts—pillar-level powerhouses renowned across various factions, and even quite a few top-tier experts from major superpowers.
However, as the Star Ring players walked in, everyone present drew a sharp breath, feeling an immense sense of oppression—as if the players before them weren't players at all, but rather eager Great Lords radiating an overwhelming aura that squashed any thought of resistance.
The dozen or so people leading the way filled the expert players present with an even deeper sense of mortal terror.
"How could they be here?"
Lei Yuan, who had been on good terms with Zero Wing, saw these people and his face changed drastically, his eyes full of shock and wariness.
"Grandpa, who exactly are they? I feel like even the top experts from other superpowers seem wary of them?" Mu Lingsha glanced at the superpower experts who had come to spectate, asking in confusion.
It was true that these people were incredibly powerful, but everyone present belonged to superpowers—so who should fear whom?
Even with some disparity in strength within this auction arena, the top experts of these superpowers shouldn't be displaying such wariness, yet now it was all plainly written on their faces.
Her grandfather Mu Cheng in particular—his title of "Hand of a Thousand Shadows" was no joke. He was a true Domain master. Though his body had problems and his age limited how much power he could bring to bear, handling top-tier experts should still have been effortless. Yet now, seeing the leading dozen or so people, even he was reacting the same way as every other superpower elite.
In her view, it was simply unbelievable.
"For this battle over White River City, Zero Wing doesn't stand a chance," Mu Cheng said with a bitter smile, watching the Star Ring contingent.
Previously, with the Senluo Pavilion stepping forward, he had thought that combined with his own reputation as an old man, it would be roughly enough to hold onto White River City for Zero Wing. After all, every major superpower had its own important NPC cities to capture, and the strength they could divert was very limited. But he had still underestimated Star Ring's attitude toward Zero Wing.
"Are they really that strong?" Mu Lingsha asked, even more surprised by Mu Cheng's declaration.
"Stronger than you can imagine! Against these people, even veteran super-guilds like War Wolf and Holy Law Hall—if they didn't take them seriously—could very well lose!" Mu Cheng's gaze settled on four men with streaks of white in their hair, and he said slowly, "I always knew Star Ring was hiding extraordinary power, but I never expected them to be capable of this. They've even brought out the Four Ghost Shadow Demons, who vanished years ago. War Soul Unfallen is probably going to have a very rough time now."
"The Four Ghost Shadow Demons?" Mu Lingsha mulled it over for a moment, and her eyes widened in shock. "Could they be those four madmen who stirred up chaos across all the major superpowers?"
The Four Ghost Shadow Demons had risen to fame over a decade ago. These four weren't a team, nor did they even know each other—they each operated alone, coming and going as they pleased.
They were called the Four Ghost Shadow Demons simply because each of them had provoked the major superpowers of that era, killing countless top players. Many of War Soul Unfallen's elite fighters were among the fallen, along with numerous other top-tier players.
Each of them had been like a demon lord, and since all four were free players who appeared without warning and vanished without a trace, the superpowers found it nearly impossible to corner them, suffering heavy losses in the attempt.
It had been a sensation at the time—a hotly debated topic—so the Celestial Secrets Pavilion dubbed them the Four Ghost Shadow Demons, and their reputation rang throughout the virtual gaming world.
Such powerfully skilled madmen whom the superpowers simply couldn't do anything about were every faction's worst headache.
Now that all four madmen had gathered together, one could imagine how terrifying that was…
Meanwhile, in the top-floor VIP viewing room, over a hundred players bearing the Black Water insignia watched the scene calmly. The leader—a resolute middle-aged man—looked down at Shi Feng below, a hint of amusement curling at his lips.
If Shi Feng were here, he would have recognized this man as Jing Yang, the Black Water representative who had previously shown up at Zero Wing's headquarters.
"Exactly as the Vice President predicted—these four old ghosts were secretly recruited by Star Ring long ago," Jing Yang said with a faint smile. "Zero Wing probably never imagined something like this would happen."
"Shall we make our move now?" Xue Hen, standing beside him, glanced down at Shi Feng and asked in a flat tone.
"No, it's still too early. Let's wait. Once the match officially begins, once Zero Wing is drowning in despair, we'll make our proposal. At that point, even without us saying a word, Zero Wing will be on their knees begging to hand over the War Puppets." Jing Yang chuckled.
Just as everyone was reeling from the appearance of the Four Ghost Shadow Demons, the atmosphere in the arena shifted completely.
Before, Zero Wing had been in the spotlight—backed by two major superpowers, with limitless future potential. But in this moment, no one believed that anymore.
"Zero Wing's road has reached its end, Qin Yin. You should give it up. This Zero Wing can't serve as your Ninth Heaven's permanent backbone—only our Setting Sun can keep Ninth Heaven thriving forever in Sen Du," said a young, elegant half-elf man in a pristine white mage's robe, his pointed ears visible as he smiled from a second-floor viewing box. "This Zero Wing might have had the capital to deal with the Death God Studio, but now they can barely protect themselves—how could they possibly help you?"
"Don't think Star Ring only has the Four Ghost Shadow Demons. The dozen or so people flanking them are all formidable in their own right. That blue-robed swordsman carries the title of Illusion Swordsman—his individual skill isn't below that of the Sword Maniac Jiu Xiao Long Yun. And that tall Shield Warrior named Lan Jiao is no less capable than Mo Yu Fei Yu of the Scarlet Emperor Guild, who's known as the Iron Arm Giant."
"Every single one of these people is an absolute top-tier expert, and each of them has been equipped with epic-grade gear and weapons by Star Ring. Setting aside Star Ring's deep resources, their sheer fighting power alone could push a guild like War Soul Unfallen into a grueling battle—let alone a mere Zero Wing."
"Is this really the end for Zero Wing?" Qin Yin looked toward Shi Feng, unable to muster a rebuttal, because the half-elf man's words were entirely correct.
Even with superpowers backing them, when facing true superpowers, Zero Wing was ultimately no match.
Contrasting sharply with Qin Yin's despair, Tian Jing—the former Hundred Battle Empire guild master from the Sin Domain—was practically beaming with joy.
"So what if you, Hei Yan, have two superpowers backing you? Now you still have to watch helplessly as White River City becomes someone else's property?" Tian Jing couldn't help but laugh.
Earlier, he had watched helplessly as one powerful figure after another emerged behind Zero Wing, turning it into a future giant in everyone's eyes. He could only lament his own powerlessness.
But who could have predicted this reversal of fortune?
No matter how splendid Zero Wing had been before, in the end, they were nothing but ants on the chessboard of the Divine Realm, easily slaughtered by the major superpowers at will.
And just as the crowd whispered among themselves, the bell signaling the official start of the auction competition suddenly rang out, its chime echoing across all of White River City…