Neither the Dark Lightning Douluo nor An Litong had expected that Shangguan Wei'er had already defected to Xu Tianran's side.
The Alto Chamber of Commerce had originally come by invitation to carve up the Duskwater Alliance's market share, but in the blink of an eye, they themselves had become the ones being carved up.
The Dark Lightning Douluo also stood up and looked at Shangguan Wei'er, carefully considering how much of her words could be trusted.
Xu Tianran was now the Prince Regent of the Sun Moon Empire, and anyone with eyes could see that ascending to the throne as emperor was only a matter of time. Therefore, no one would dare to impersonate his name to act.
It was obvious that at some unknown point, Shangguan Wei'er had already thrown in her lot with Xu Tianran, and Xu Tianran's side had not informed the Holy Spirit Cult of this news.
Perhaps they simply hadn't had time, or perhaps...
Thinking of this, the Dark Lightning Douluo slightly narrowed his eyes.
It was even more likely that Xu Tianran had done this deliberately, precisely to use the Common Alliance to restrain the Duskwater Alliance's power in the underground market.
It seemed that His Highness the Prince Regent did not trust the Holy Spirit Cult all that much.
While pondering in his heart, the Dark Lightning Douluo exchanged a glance with Lin Xiao, who was about to step onto the arena.
"No, I'm not participating."
An Litong suddenly slammed the table beside him, and the others from the Alto Chamber of Commerce behind him all stood up one after another.
"President An, I'm afraid this matter isn't something you can decide alone."
"What? Are you saying I don't even have the right to concede?"
An Litong's cultivation was not as high as that of the Dark Lightning Douluo or Shangguan Wei'er, but his momentum was not weak at all. As he spoke, faint light began to emanate from his body; it was clearly some kind of new military soul tool.
"President An can of course, concede, but the stakes of this match must still be left behind."
Shangguan Wei'er smiled lightly, but her tone was filled with coldness. Compared to the Dark Lightning Douluo, she wanted even more for An Litong to remain here.
In truth, she had defected to Xu Tianran much earlier than others had imagined.
The Common Alliance did not have the scale of the Holy Spirit Cult, nor did it have so many experts, but to have developed the Common Alliance to its current size, Shangguan Wei'er naturally had her own methods.
In her view, women themselves were the sharpest weapons. Relying on this sharp tool, she had moved among the various nobles, not only grasping intelligence from every channel but also expanding her business farther and farther.
However, ever since Xu Tianran became the Prince Regent, almost all power had been concentrated in his hands alone. No one in the court dared to question his decisions much, and the military had gradually fallen into the hands of the imperial relatives he trusted.
At the same time, the Duskwater Alliance's scale in the underground market had grown larger and larger, to the point where she and the Alto Chamber of Commerce could only barely resist it by joining forces.
Having managed the Common Alliance for decades, with her vision, she could naturally see that if things continued this way, the Common Alliance would only be gradually devoured. The only way out was the most noble on the imperial throne.
Even though she had gone to great lengths to establish a connection with Xu Tianran, and it seemed everything had improved, only she herself knew the truth.
The relationship between the Common Alliance and Xu Tianran was far inferior to that of the Duskwater Alliance. Only by demonstrating her own value could she possibly gain more support from Xu Tianran.
And this match was the stage she had carefully prepared, not only to swallow the Alto Chamber of Commerce here but also to use the trump card she had nurtured for several years to prove to Xu Tianran that the Common Alliance possessed the power to restrain the Duskwater Alliance.
The Alto Chamber of Commerce might not know Lin Xiao's origins, but she was all too familiar with them. She had also heard the rumors circulating among the nobles; in their eyes, he was the second Xuan Ziwen. How could his level in soul tools possibly be lacking?
It was precisely upon seeing Lin Xiao, who had been missing for more than two years and had now returned to Mingdu, that she understood why the Duskwater Alliance had agreed to this soul master tournament so readily.
But Shangguan Wei'er had always understood that sometimes the distribution of benefits did not depend solely on one's own strength. As long as she could demonstrate sufficient value, the outcome of this match was no longer important.
A stage, after all, existed to perform for others to see. Even though the result was already predetermined, this match still had to proceed.
"Shangguan Wei'er—"
An Litong practically spat out these four words one by one.
From the Dark Lightning Douluo's reaction, even the Duskwater Alliance seemed to have been kept in the dark. Although the details were still unclear, he had already understood that this was most likely all arranged by Shangguan Wei'er.
This old woman, whose true age no one knew, had never been worthy of trust from the very beginning.
Asking him to hand over the Alto Chamber of Commerce that he had operated for so long was practically carving flesh from his body. Moreover, even if he could agree, how could the military personnel behind him possibly let him go?
His thoughts raced. With a series of metallic "clanging" sounds, a layer of armor-like metal device completely enveloped him. Though it was not a full humanoid soul tool, it clearly had similar effects to one.
On the other side, Shangguan Wei'er's aura also changed. Nine fluffy tails burst out from behind her. This was also the first time Shangguan Wei'er had taken action in front of so many people.
The audience below the stage still did not know exactly what had happened. They only saw the people from the three major forces stand up one after another, say a few inaudible words, and then begin to fight.
Relying on his strength as an eight-ring Soul Douluo and a full set of soul tools, An Litong was actually fighting Shangguan Wei'er evenly for the moment.
Lin Xiao turned his head and glanced at the Dark Lightning Douluo from afar, seeing him slightly shake his head.
For him, this was also the first time hearing such news. Seeing the internal conflict erupt between the Common Alliance and the Alto Chamber of Commerce, he wished Shangguan Wei'er and An Litong would fight even more fiercely.
However, just as Lin Xiao was watching the two fighting in midair, his expression changed drastically.
The ground seemed to tremble violently all at once. Cracks spread out from beside the arena, and a yellowish-brown light emanated from beneath the ground, pressing toward him with an intimidating aura.
In front of Lin Xiao, Huang Zheng was the first to be unable to withstand it. With a "thud," he knelt to the ground, breathing heavily, blood already seeping from the corners of his mouth.
Huo Yuhao seemed to sense something; his expression changed repeatedly. He wanted to speak but hurriedly stopped himself as something occurred to him.
Lin Xiao could no longer pay attention to Huo Yuhao's reaction. In his perception, a vast aura was approaching from underground. A sharp pain throbbed between his brows, warning of imminent danger.
The next moment, without the slightest hesitation, the cloak on his body was flung open, revealing the black "robe" inside, adorned with dark red patterns.
Black, black, black, black, black, black, red, red, red, nine soul rings suddenly rose, and his entire arm lit up with dark red light. Then, he slammed a palm down toward the ground beneath his feet.
"Boom—"
The earth shattered, soil flew, and from beneath the solid ground, a pair of hands suddenly emerged and collided with Lin Xiao's palm, producing a massive roar.
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