Looking at the mountain of beast corpses before him, Zhou Huai's expression turned incredibly solemn.

There was no doubt that the only ones who could have caused such large-scale casualties here, besides the elite teams from the Zhou Family and Liu Family, were beyond his imagination.

This also meant that the entrance to this palace area was not the only one occupied by the Eternal Night Guild.

They must have entered from other entrances.

An indescribable sense of absurdity welled up in Zhou Huai's heart.

The Eternal Night Guild had spent nearly a month, invested a massive amount of manpower and resources, and cleared the beast army at all costs.

As a result, they had inadvertently cleared the obstacles for the Zhou Family and Liu Family, allowing them to reach this core area more easily from other entrances.

This was truly infuriating.

It could be said that they had done the enemy's bidding.

Zhou Huai was somewhat speechless.

At this point, regret was meaningless.

The most urgent task was to quickly catch up and see if there was a chance to play the role of the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.

As long as there were no powerful perception-type professionals in the enemy's team, it would be no easy feat to discover Moria, who was hidden in the shadows.

Thinking of this, Zhou Huai no longer hesitated.

He controlled Moria, whose figure silently merged into the ground, transforming into an inconspicuous shadow, and swiftly infiltrated deeper into the palace city.

The closer they got to the most magnificent palace, the more intense the battle traces became.

The scent of blood in the air also grew thicker.

Numerous palace buildings were reduced to ruins in the fierce battle, and the shattered walls were splattered with dark green beast blood.

The corpses of beasts were piled high, almost covering the entire White Jade Grand Avenue.

Soon, human professional corpses began to appear in Zhou Huai's line of sight.

Their deaths were extremely gruesome, most of them torn to shreds by the beasts' sharp claws and teeth.

It seemed that the closer one got to the core area, the more terrifying the power Rank of the beasts.

After another few hundred meters of stealth, waves of intense energy fluctuations, mixed with the angry roars of professionals and the dying shrieks of beasts, came from ahead.

Zhou Huai's spirit was reinvigorated, and he immediately sped up.

Like a phantom, he silently passed through a chaotic plaza, finally stopping behind a broken Dragon-patterned stone pillar.

He raised his head, his gaze fixed on what lay ahead.

The sight before him caused his pupils to suddenly contract.

Ahead was a flight of White [N O V E L I G H T] Jade stairs, hundreds of steps high.

At the end of the stairs, stood an incredibly massive palace.

The palace was entirely cast from an unknown black metal, with flying eaves and upturned corners, its Aura magnificent, like an ancient behemoth prostrate between heaven and earth, exuding a domineering Aura that commanded the world.

At this moment, on the wide White Jade stairs, an incredibly bloody battle was unfolding.

Dozens of professionals, dressed in uniform battle armor, were fiercely fighting countless beasts.

These professionals were extremely powerful, each one at least Rank fifty or above.

They cooperated tacitly, with orderly offense and defense, forming an indestructible steel defense line, firmly blocking the surging army of beasts on the stairs.

And below the stairs, several figures leisurely observed the battle below, as if the blood-soaked Asura field was merely an insignificant play.

Zhou Huai narrowed his eyes.

Indeed, it was the people from the Zhou Family and Liu Family.

Among those figures, he immediately recognized Zhou Feng.

And beside Zhou Feng stood a young man dressed in luxurious clothes, with an arrogant expression.

Presumably, that was the Eldest Young Master of the Liu Family, Liu Zi'ang.

What made Zhou Huai wary were the two grey-robed old men standing behind Liu Zi'ang.

The two had their eyes closed the entire time, their Aura contained, like two lifeless statues.

Yet, Zhou Huai could feel a faint, yet terrifying pressure emanating from them, enough to make his heart pound.

Although far inferior to Principal Lin Zhu, their strength was absolutely not to be underestimated.

Zhou Huai controlled Moria, suppressing his Aura to the extreme.

He cautiously moved a little closer to the group.

Seeing that they still showed no reaction, he finally breathed a slight sigh of relief.

It seemed there were no professionals specializing in perception in this team.

Otherwise, given Moria's current Rank, it would be almost impossible not to be discovered at such close range.

At this moment, Liu Zi'ang's arrogant face was filled with undisguised excitement and ecstasy.

He turned his head and looked at Zhou Feng.

“Zhou Feng, do you think that legendary Divine Artifact might be in this grand hall?”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Feng replied with a polite smile, “This is my first time encountering such a marvel, so I dare not make a rash judgment.”

“However, in my opinion, it is most likely within!”

One of the grey-robed old men standing behind Liu Zi'ang slowly opened his cloudy old eyes and nodded calmly.

“Young Master, Chairman Zhou is correct.”

“In this area, the beasts are also the most powerful.”

“If there truly is a Divine Artifact here, it is most likely hidden within this main hall.”

Hearing this, the smile on Liu Zi'ang's face grew wider.

He seemed to already envision himself holding a Divine Artifact, returning to his Family, and receiving the reverence of all.

“Hahaha! Good!”

“Once I bring the Divine Artifact back this time, I'd like to see which of those old fellows in the Family still dares to look down on me!”

As the group conversed, the battle on the stairs was nearing its end.

Although the beasts here were powerful and fearless, there was no Hell-level BOSS in command after all.

Facing the encirclement of dozens of elite professionals above Rank fifty, their defeat was only a matter of time.

Soon, with the last beast letting out an unwilling wail and collapsing, the entire White Jade stairs were completely cleared.

Blood of various colors slowly flowed down the steps, eventually converging into a shocking small river at the bottom of the stairs.

The strong smell of blood rose into the sky, sickening.

The professionals who had just finished the battle wiped the blood from their faces.

They quickly lined up on both sides, bowing their heads, greeting Liu Zi'ang's arrival with an extremely respectful posture.

Liu Zi'ang's face wore a triumphant smile as he straightened his spotless luxurious robes.

He took the lead, stepping onto the blood-soaked White Jade stairs, walking step by step towards the magnificent palace.

Zhou Feng and the two grey-robed old men followed closely behind.

Soon, the group arrived at the entrance of the massive palace.

Liu Zi'ang looked up, his gaze falling upon the ancient plaque above the palace entrance.

The plaque was entirely cast from an unknown bronze, and three ancient characters, full of endless majesty, were carved upon it in the style of a Dragon and Phoenix.

“Thousand Ancient Hall...”

Liu Zi'ang gazed at the three characters, softly reading them aloud.

He seemed to see, countless ages ago, the emperor who ruled the world, sitting above the Nine Heavens, commanding armies, and looking down upon all living beings.

“What a name!”

“What an Aura!”

Liu Zi'ang couldn't help but let out a heartfelt exclamation of praise, his excitement becoming increasingly difficult to suppress.

He slowly extended his hand, intending to push open the tightly shut palace door.

However, as soon as his hand touched the cold door, a withered hand gently rested on his shoulder.

“Young Master, wait.”

The grey-robed old man who had spoken earlier had appeared beside him at some point, looking at Zhou Feng with a peculiar gaze.

“Mr. Zhou brought us to this ruin.”

“Perhaps Mr. Zhou should open this door.”

At these words, Zhou Feng's expression subtly changed.

Liu Zi'ang, upon hearing this, nodded in deep agreement.

He withdrew his hand and said with feigned politeness, “Zhou Feng, please.”

Zhou Feng's smile, however, grew even brighter.

He bowed slightly.

“It is my honor to serve Young Master Zi'ang.”

After speaking, he took a deep breath, pressed his hands firmly against the cold palace door, and pushed with all his might.

Creak—!

A grating, teeth-aching sound suddenly echoed in this dead silent space!

The ancient door, which had been sealed for an unknown number of years, finally, at this moment, slowly opened a crack!