"Attacking the auction house? No, no, no, you've got it wrong. We never attack anyone. We're just movers. These items here are simply too unsafe, so we're helping you keep them in a much safer place," Zhou Yan immediately replied.
Upon hearing this, Diao Chan and the others looked at Zhou Yan in astonishment. They never imagined their lord would say something so audacious. As expected of Zhou Yan, this was truly his style.
"Hmph! This is our territory, and you still want to steal our things? Attack!"
"Kill!"
These individuals were quite skilled, with many reaching beyond the Seventy Heavens. However, An Tian and Liuli were no ordinary powerhouses. Facing an assault from over a dozen strong opponents, they found it not too difficult. Both were at the Eighty Heavens and could face opponents at the Ninety Heavens without the slightest concern, let alone these individuals.
Liuli unleashed her flames, directly igniting three of the attackers. They never anticipated Liuli's flames would be so potent, easily shattering their protective spiritual energy and consuming them entirely.
"Such terrifying flames, everyone be careful." The one who spoke earlier finally made his move. His strength was that of a Ninety Heavens expert. He drew his weapon, blocking Liuli, while the others engaged An Tian. Diao Chan and Wei Zifu also drew their weapons and joined the fray. Cai Yan boosted everyone's stats, instantly enhancing their combat power.
Zhou Yan suddenly cast a gravity spell on the attackers, causing many to stumble and fall to their knees. This was followed by a barrage of attacks from Diao Chan and the others. "Puff!" Several were killed. Zhou Yan unleashed a spatial storm, tearing through three bewildered enemies, then cast a dark spell, pulling one into a black hole. A bolt of lightning directly blew apart one opponent's head, while several vines ensnared three individuals, who were then finished off by An Tian.
Zhou Yan was a veritable devil in their eyes, his terrifying array of spells leaving them clueless about the next attack. Dozens of them were quickly reduced to just a few.
"Damn it!" The leading expert, witnessing the heavy casualties among his subordinates, feigned an attack and began to flee.
But!
An invisible wall materialized before him, slamming him into the ground, causing blood to spurt from his nose. "Spatial Barrier!" The man clutched his nose, glaring at Zhou Yan.
"How does that feel? Comfortable?" Zhou Yan smirked.
Before the man could respond, he felt his footing disappear, and he plunged into an abyss. Zhou Yan began casting earth-elemental spells, resealing the gaping chasm. The man within struggled, his attempts to break free impeded by the shifting earth. Zhou Yan then unleashed a thunder-fire spell, a bolt of lightning and flame raging within the opening.
"Ah!" The man screamed, his resistance finally broken. The ground sealed itself, leaving no trace that someone had died deep beneath.
An Tian stepped forward, intending to open a metal door, but was repelled by a powerful force. "A barrier!" An Tian frowned; this was not his forte. He glanced at Zhou Yan.
"A small matter. Watch this." Zhou Yan stepped forward, projecting his Tai Chi diagram to dismantle the formation's structure. He quickly grasped the array's composition, noting something unusual, but proceeded to break the barrier nonetheless.
The barrier on the door was painstakingly dismantled by Zhou Yan. Soon, the protective layer on the metal door vanished. However, the metal door still required a key; without it, traps would be triggered. Zhou Yan turned to Liuli and said, "Liuli, use your flames to burn the door open."
"Yes." Liuli stepped forward and unleashed her Glazed Flames. Waves of jade-colored flames, ethereal and beautiful, enveloped the metal door. Stripped of its barrier, the metal door couldn't withstand Liuli's terrifying flames and began to melt rapidly. Seeing the metal door breached, An Tian observed that the internal mechanisms had also been destroyed by Liuli's intense heat. He stepped forward, unleashing a surge of power, his fist crackling with dark energy, and struck the door with full force.
"Boom!" The metal door cracked open. An Tian shattered the entire entrance. They stepped inside, only to find piles of treasure stacked high. Zhou Yan sensed something and stopped them, "Don't touch anything."
"Hahaha! Thank you for helping to open the treasury's doors." A group of people suddenly appeared from behind, weapons in hand, laughing as they advanced towards Zhou Yan and his companions. They had been present all along, hidden, only revealing themselves after Zhou Yan and his group had successfully broken into the treasury. They were numerous, with each of them possessing strength above the Fiftieth Heaven, and several even exceeding the Ninetieth Heaven.
Zhou Yan smiled and said to Liuli and the others, "They have numbers. We retreat."
"What? Retreat?" Liuli thought she had misheard. Zhou Yan was telling them to retreat. Then, Liuli understood; with Zhou Yan's astuteness, he wouldn't retreat without reason. He must have detected something amiss. "Oh!" Liuli immediately grasped the situation and obediently returned to Zhou Yan's side. An Tian also quickly realized, knowing Zhou Yan well enough to believe he wouldn't truly retreat; he was undoubtedly setting a trap for these people. Diao Chan and Cai Yan were initially confused by Zhou Yan's words but soon understood that Zhou Yan had discovered something and silently stood by his side.
"Let's go," Zhou Yan said decisively, without any hesitation. This left the attackers bewildered. These people were actually scared off by a single sentence. This... felt illogical. But Zhou Yan and his group did indeed leave.
"Lord, they're gone," a subordinate reported to the leader.
"I have eyes!" the leader retorted.
"Then, do we kill them?" the subordinate asked again.
"Kill them for what? We're here for treasure. If they're smart enough to leave, why fight them? We'll enter the treasury and take everything. Hurry, before others arrive and we can't get as much," the leader urged. Thus, the group quickly entered the treasury. Beholding the dazzling array of wealth surrounding them, they all greedily exclaimed, "Hahaha! We're rich! So much treasure, it's all ours!"
"Lord, we've made it."
"So much wealth!"
"Come on, carry it all away. Everyone will get a reward back home," the leader commanded.
"Yes!" The group eagerly stepped forward, intending to seize the riches.
But!