The lean elder, who had been observing the scene intently, raised his silver great hammer with decisive authority and struck it forcefully at the center of the stone platform. A thunderous boom echoed as a flash of blue light surged within the green barrier, and a silver arc, as wide as a serving bowl, plummeted from the heavens, slicing straight through the massive dark-green tree. Vast mountain qi surged with ten thousand streams, yet before they had fully descended, countless invisible filaments erupted in dense, rapid bursts, as if aiming to pierce the two figures and the stone platform into a thousand wounds. Under the luminous screen, the black-robed man burst into laughter, shifting his form with a sudden movement, then fading into the great tree in a blurred manner. As for the bearded elder, he remained expressionless, pressing a series of gestures, and likewise vanished into the tree as a streak of brilliant light. "Boom!" A silver arc flashed and struck the great tree. On the towering, hundreds-of-zhang-high tree, countless electric filaments leapt incessantly across its surface, releasing a scent of scorched aroma, and rapidly withered into ash. The black-robed figures, who should have been within the tree, were now completely gone. "Escaped!" The slender elder was stunned, almost unable to believe his eyes. The other three senior elders of the merchant alliance exchanged glances, then also displayed expressions of astonishment. Here, their merchant alliance had already laid out multiple layers of magical arrays—there were no less than five or six sealing spells restricting the sky—yet people were still able to move about with ease, using object-based teleportation. It was truly astonishing. "Need not panic. This is a realm of immortality, meticulously cultivated like an unbreachable fortress. Even if they run, where could they go? Wait—these two have managed to obtain the entry seals reserved for our senior elders, and they've even breached the seals, truly escaping the realm! Senior Elders, follow me—let's go after them!" The voice of Ming Zun, the chief official of the alliance, initially calm, quickly turned sharp with alarm as he sensed something amiss through his divine awareness. Then, a golden glow surged through the sky, streaking forward with swift movements, and vanished into the distance without a trace. The four slender elders and their companions exchanged glances, their expressions shifting to concern, and instantly activated their own flight spells, each transforming into a streak of brilliant light, following in pursuit. Only the various alien attendees who had gathered at the plaza remained, now staring at one another, bewildered. Hu Yushuang then stepped back onto the stone platform, pale-faced, with a forced smile, and spoke a few calming words. The great immortals seated within the flying pavilion observed this sudden turn of events, each displaying a different expression. Yet no one moved to leave—everyone remained quietly in place. To move now would easily make them appear as allies of the black-robed man, or even be mistaken as intending to take advantage of the crisis. Even if someone truly coveted the ancient dragon's blood, they might be willing to set aside their concerns about the merchant alliance, but given the confident demeanor of the two black-robed figures, it was likely that any pursuit launched at this moment would fall short. These seasoned masters were all shrewd and experienced, naturally unwilling to undertake actions that would yield little return—each had resolved to remain steady and adaptable. Indeed, as expected, the merchant alliance's great immortals departed swiftly and returned just as quickly. Suddenly, a hum resonated from the stone platform, and a milky-white light array appeared. Then, Ming Zun calmly stepped forward, his expression as still as water, accompanied by the four senior elders of the Four Merchant Alliances. Observing their unbroken breath and energy, it seemed they had lost track of the black-robed man and the bearded elder. Upon seeing the five return, the beautiful woman hurried forward to pay her respects. Ming Zun waved her off and issued a clear command: "Immediately dispatch messages throughout the entire alliance, disseminating the images of these two individuals. We must uncover their identities and locate them as swiftly as possible." "Yes, your servant will attend to it right away." Hu Yuduang felt a sudden sense of urgency, nodded, and then, with a single hand gesture, vanished into the air. Meanwhile, Han Li, now within the floating pavilion, appeared deeply contemplative, pondering something. Suddenly, he extended his hand into the air, and a ripple passed through it—then a deep green wooden sword materialized and was instantly grasped in his hand. Han Li held the sword horizontally before him, then brushed gently with two fingers along the墨green patterns on its surface, his eyes flashing with a moment of thoughtful expression. Xue Po and Zhu Guo'er exchanged glances, hesitating to interrupt Han Li's concentration. "Esteemed friends," Ming Zun turned to face the crowd on the plaza, speaking calmly, "although the final item presented has encountered some issues, according to tradition, the special auction for cross-continent transportation slots will not be canceled. It will proceed today and all slots will be allocated during this session—myself will personally oversee the auction." This announcement stirred another wave of activity among the audience, though few were truly surprised. In regular auctions, once the final item is sold, the auction concludes. However, in the merchants' alliance's grand auction, the cross-continent transportation slot auction is always held last—a well-established feature of their event—and is rarely canceled. Yet it had never happened before in the merchant alliance that the head official from the mainland personally presided over the auction of the slots. Even though most of the attendees had no particular interest in the slots, they nonetheless tried to stay alert and rally their spirits. Upon hearing this, Han Li stirred from his contemplation and temporarily set aside other matters. For him, while the concept of "ancestral dragon's blood" remained somewhat intangible and its authenticity uncertain, the timely establishment of a cross-continent connection to meet Nan Gong Wan was truly essential. The auction proceedings unfolded surprisingly smoothly. Whether due to the fact that all the slots had now been converted into blood-based ones, or simply because few participants expressed interest in traveling to other continents, Han Li secured several slots at only a slight premium over the base price, which brought him a quiet sense of satisfaction. "The auction concludes here today. Please proceed to leave the realm at your convenience. Should the alliance have fallen short in any way, we kindly ask for your understanding and patience." "As the last transmission slot of Ming Zun was auctioned off, he bowed slightly to the gathered audience. Though the various ethnic groups present had many thoughts running through their minds, they all rose at once, respectfully stating, 'We are not worthy.' Under the guidance of some merchant alliance attendants, these ordinary ethnic members then gradually took their leave. In a short while, the vast auction hall was left with only the dozens of senior cultivators from the flying pavilions. 'I hope the above proceedings have not caused any embarrassment to my esteemed colleagues,' Ming Zun said, with a composed tone. 'Since our alliance was established, we have never had an instance where auctioned items were seized. Therefore, I would like to make a solemn promise here: whoever assists our alliance in capturing those two individuals shall be generously rewarded. In addition to being able to make three reasonable requests, the precious drop of the Primordial Dragon's blood may be claimed directly as compensation.' He glanced upward at the row of floating pavilions, speaking with such calm assurance. 'Is this truly so?' "Will your alliance not back out at the last moment?" The great cultivators gasped, some of them astonished. The terms proposed by He Lan's Alliance were so generous that even they, as established powers, were deeply moved. "Hehe, though we may not claim to be the largest force in the Spiritual Realm, we do have a certain reputation. How could we possibly reneg on our word? After you return, please send your disciples or clan members to search for these two individuals. This commitment shall remain valid until this matter is fully resolved," Ming Zun replied with a chuckle. "With your words, I feel assured," said the elder of the Fu Yue Clan, his expression grave, as though he were quite confident about locating the two cloaked figures. "Ming brother, forgive me for asking, but when you and several of your companions pursued them, did you actually fail to catch sight of either of them at all? Do you know what kind of elusiveness they employed—how could they bypass so many restrictions at the auction hall and simply vanish?" "There is another foreign cultivator who asked with caution." "Originally, I and the four senior elders had already caught up with these two thieves outside. Yet they had already set up a temporary teleportation array nearby and simply vanished. I can't quite fathom what alterations were made to this array—despite our thorough patrols, we never detected its presence. As for the means by which they departed earlier, I have never seen anything like it, and thus, I can offer only limited information." The Ming Master frowned slightly and said this. "Thank you, Master Ming, for your candid account. I now know exactly what to do." The foreign cultivator bowed politely and did not ask any further questions. Later, several other senior cultivators also inquired about several matters related to the 'Ancestral Dragon's Blood' and the cloaked man. Unfortunately, however, the Ming Master's responses as the chief representative of the Commercial Alliance on the Fengyuan Continent remained vague and generally lacked specificity, offering no clear answers. At that moment, several great cultivators from foreign nations stepped out of the floating pavilions, directly riding the ethereal light and departing. Seeing this, Ming Zun and the others showed no intention of obstructing them. "Let's go," said Han Li, after glancing at the pavilions for a moment, rising suddenly with a calm tone. "We simply don't have the time to go specifically looking for those two. We'll return to wait for the transmission from Xue Tian Continent. It shouldn't take us more than a few days." Xue Po and Zhu Guo nodded respectfully in agreement. A short while later, a soft, misty glow enveloped three indistinct figures, who then shot out of the pavilion, breaking through the air with a sudden burst of sound, and sped directly toward the exit of the immortal realm. Exactly the inner page from the Golden Pavilion and Jade Scroll obtained in the previous auction.