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There were five Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters at the scene while the rest were all Low-Rank. Although many had lost their lives when passing through the Eight Paths of Divination, there were still some sixty or seventy left.
It was imaginable how bloody and chaotic it would be for sixty plus people to snatch three pieces of Sunâs True Gold. However, in front of such treasures, no Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters had flinched; instead, they became energised upon hearing what Old Hong had said.
Amidst the commotion, the people who were either close to one another or came from the same great force gathered together and secretly communicated using their Divine Sense.
Looking down, Old Hong silently hovered in the air and waited. He didnât seem to have the intention of rushing them.
A long time later, a person stepped forward from the crowd. Yang Kai, who had been hiding in the corner, realised that the person was none other than Wei Que of Great Moon Province.
Wei Que was a straightforward man, so it wasnât surprising that he would come forward at this point. After cupping his fists at the Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters, he said, âOld Hong, do you really mean what youâve just said?â
Old Hong put on a meaningful grin and pointed at the people behind him, âEven if you donât believe this Old Master, donât you trust the people behind me? This is our collective decision after a discussion, so itâs definitely true.â
Wei Que went on to say, âThis Wei apologizes for any offence his words may cause, but if three of us are lucky enough to get the remaining pieces of Sunâs True Gold, will all of you come snatch them from us?â
He had asked the most important question. Once the barrier was broken, the five Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters would quickly grasp their own share of the Sunâs True Gold, and the rest of them would fight for the remaining three pieces. However, if Old Hong and the others decided to interfere, all the Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters would have to step aside as they were no match for them.
In this case, they would rather not take part at all so that they wouldnât have to take risks without any chance of reward.
Old Hong stared at Wei Que and replied, âYouâre quite the distrustful one, arenât you?â
Wei Que refuted, âNone of us will be able to be at ease if we donât get a clear answer.â
All the Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters agreed with him as they echoed what he had said.
Old Hong nodded, âSince youâve asked this question, then this Old Master will give you an answer. We wonât have a hand in fighting for the remaining three pieces of Sunâs True Gold. The treasures will go to the most capable people.â
âHow do you guarantee that?â Wei Que asked again.
A tinge of anger flashed across Old Hongâs face and he snorted, âIs this Old Masterâs word not good enough for you? So many people here have heard what Iâve said. Can I even go back on it now?â
âThereâs nothing we can do if you decide to go back on your word,â a person suddenly said.
âWho just spoke! I dare you to come forward!â Old Hong bellowed. The personâs voice was elusive, so it was apparent that he had used a Secret Technique when speaking. With so many Open Heaven Realm Masters around, Old Hong was unable to accurately locate this individual, which was why he had a long face.
Just then, Madam Lan stepped forward and looked smilingly at the crowd, âI will give you all a promise on behalf of First Inn. When the time comes, we will only take our share of the Sunâs True Gold and will not attempt to snatch the remaining pieces from any of you.â
The Low-Rank Open Heaven Masters all relaxed greatly upon hearing this and Wei Que cupped his fists, âSince Madam Lan has given us her promise, we have no more doubts.â
All of them had complete trust in First Inn.
Seeing this, Old Hong appeared slightly displeased as they made him look like he was someone who would go back on his word. Even though he indeed had such intentions before, there was no way he could act upon them now. Madam Lan had given a promise on behalf of First Inn, so if he still decided to snatch the Sunâs True Gold from them, it would give Madam Lan an excuse to act against him. He was wary of her because he wasnât sure what Order she was in. He could tell that she was at least a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, so there was no way he could defy her.
After a snort, Old Hong said, âSince there are no more questions, this Old Master expects you all to cooperate fully when the time comes. If anyone doesnât agree with this arrangement, get the Hell out now; otherwise, this Old Master doesnât mind showing you the exit.â
As he swept a cold glance over them, the Low-Rank Open Heaven Masters started communicating with one another again. Some people decided to leave, thinking that it was too big a risk to take. Although each piece of Sunâs True Gold was extremely valuable, they might not even be able to bring one out while losing their lives in the process. With sixty to seventy people trying to snatch three pieces of Sunâs True Gold, many would die in the process.
Soon, more than ten people had left.
After waiting for over ten breaths, Old Hong nodded, âGo now if thereâs anyone else who wishes to leave. Otherwise, we will begin.â
Certainly, those who had decided to stay didnât have the intention of leaving. Madam Lan came forward then and explained how they would break the barrier. Then, under the leadership of the five Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters, the Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters surrounded the platform and formed a simple pentagonal formation.
Basically, they were going to use brute force to break the barrier, which was why the stronger cultivators needed the help of so many Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters. Otherwise, the Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters would have taken the remaining three pieces of Sunâs True Gold as well.
After they stood on their respective Formation Nodes, they started adjusting their World Force.
Yang Kai felt helpless as he was looking from afar. Countless ideas had flashed across his mind, but he had overruled all them. Strength was the only factor that truly mattered if he wanted to snatch the treasure at this point; however, he had only condensed his Dao Seal. In front of so many Open Heaven Realm Masters, any scheme he thought up would be useless.
Yang Kai was extremely anxious. Even though he wasnât sure what Order those pieces of Sunâs True Gold on the platform were, one of them must be Seventh-Order. If he could get one piece for himself, he could start condensing his Fire Element.
Nevertheless, it was a cold hard truth that he was weak. Even if he used Space Principles to snatch a piece of Sunâs True Gold, he wouldnât be able to leave this place alive when the others made a move on him together. Even his Half-Dragon form couldnât protect him from such an onslaught.
Could he only watch on the side? He was unwilling!
Looking from afar, he realised that Madam Lan secretly took a glance in his direction, but she just as quickly looked away; after all, Yang Kai was too weak to be worth her attention.
She must have discovered him back in the hallway, and the reason she didnât expose him was that his presence made no difference either way.
Just when Yang Kai felt sorrowful over his low cultivation, the pentagonal formation activated. The five Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters took charge of each node respectively while about ten Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters were behind each of them.
World Force undulated as these Open Heaven Realm Masters gathered their strength. Every Open Heaven Realm Master had their own Small Universe, so they could activate World Force on their own without borrowing it from a Universe World.
After they made a move, there seemed to be dozens of worlds that were colliding with the barrier as booming sounds rang out. The violent force was able to flip the Heavens and Earth before shattering them to pieces.
There was an admiring look on Yang Kaiâs face as he envisioned how powerful he would be when he made a move as an Open Heaven Realm Master in the future.
The Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters were fairly powerful, so with them in charge of the formation, they were able to unite everyoneâs strength and concentrate it on their target, ensuring that only minimal fallout was released into the surroundings. If not for this, Yang Kai would have been exposed even though he was shrouded in the Shadowless Veil.
Rumbling sounds were heard as the entire world seemed to be shaking. Ripples spread around on the crimson light barrier on the platform as though countless stones had been thrown into a still lake.
The gap between their powers was soon revealed. There wasnât much difference between the Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters, who assisted in breaking the barrier, but it was pretty conspicuous for the Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters.
Yuan Xiao Man was the first to appear exhausted as her face had turned pale. She hurriedly fished out some Spirit Pills from her Space Ring and stuffed them into her mouth to supplement her strength.
Ji Tian Xing, Zhang Qi, and finally Old Hong followed suit.
It was now that the First Inn Proprietress, Madam Lan, showed her strength. Since they began breaking the barrier, the expression on her face had never changed and she hadnât used any pills to restore her energy.
It was as though she was able to keep expending her World Force at this rate forever.
Yang Kai observed everything from afar and realised that the Proprietress would steal a glance at a particular spot on the platform from time to time. He didnât understand it at first, but he soon realised that the Sunâs True Gold over there must be of a higher Order.
With the barrier in place, no one could tell the quality of these Sunâs True Golds. Nevertheless, everyone had their own speculations.
The fact that the Proprietress had been paying close attention to that particular Sunâs True Gold suggested that she believed it was the best one. After the barrier was destroyed, she would immediately snatch it.
Furthermore, there was one thing that bothered Yang Kai.
Compared to the Sunâs True Gold, the Golden Crow corpse was even more valuable. The carcass was perfectly intact, so its value was incalculable. They had only discussed distributing the Sunâs True Gold, but no one had mentioned the Golden Crow itself.
He was certain that the corpse would ignite a fierce competition between the top Masters present. The other four Mid-Rank cultivators might even join forces to snatch the corpse from the Proprietress.
Whatever the case, it all had nothing to do with him because he was too weak. Fortunately, it had been a fruitful trip for him as he had obtained nine Sunâs True Fires, three of which were Fifth-Order. Therefore, Yang Kai just regarded the sight before his eyes as a good show to broaden his horizons. With this thought in mind, he was able to set himself at ease.
As time passed, except for Madam Lan, the other Open Heaven Realm Masters, including the four Mid-Rank cultivators, had consumed numerous pills.
Their effort wasnât futile, however, as the crimson light barrier on the platform had become visibly dimmer.
At this rate, it would take them one or two hours to completely shatter the barrier.
As hope was right in front of them, Old Hong shouted agitated, âEveryone, donât hold back your strength! This barrier will break soon!â
Certainly, his reminder was not needed as everyone could see the transformation the light barrier had gone through. Nevertheless, they still had to reserve some energy as a chaotic struggle was bound to break out after the barrier was broken.
Otherwise, the barrier would have been broken already.