Chapter 316
Without anyone quite noticing when it had happened, Lin Hui's standing in Black Cloud had risen far beyond where it had begun.
He had ascended like a rising sun—a brilliant force whose light had grown sharp enough to illuminate everything around him. Even experts of their caliber could faintly sense a steadying warmth radiating from that light.
As Lin Hui drew closer, Gongsun Xinlian caught the trace of a faint fragrance diffusing into the air. The wind at this altitude moved with brutal speed; any scent should have been stripped away instantly. Yet this fragrance seemed entirely indifferent to it, lingering stubbornly within the spacious hall at the Moon Tower's peak.
The three Mistborn standing behind Zhang Yao and Gongsun Xinlian had been wavering. The moment Lin Hui appeared, they exchanged mind-spirit transmissions and quietly settled—content, for now, to observe how things unfolded.
They were also genuinely curious. Zhang Yao and Gongsun Xinlian had chosen to antagonize the full weight of the Three Islands Alliance rather than abandon Vice City Lord Lin Hui's Clear Emerald Mountain. In their position, they would have compromised long ago—perhaps even joined the Alliance in seizing the mountain and sharing the array. But Zhang Yao and Gongsun Xinlian had shown an absolute refusal to yield a single inch of Lin Hui's interests.
Across from them, the three Alliance Leaders had also noticed the unhurried approach.
Shen Zhaoming's gaze turned cold and calculating as he sized Lin Hui up. He had gathered intelligence on Dao Master Lin Hui beforehand: not a Mistborn, yet his power surpassed them—a decorated combat record, multiple Mistborn defeated in succession. The man was not to be underestimated.
A top-tier martial genius with a resounding name. But that alone wouldn't explain why two great City Lords would defend him to the death. Some deeper connection had to exist between them. Not that it mattered now. By moving to seize Clear Emerald Mountain, they had already committed to a direct confrontation with Lin Hui.
After all, the gap in power between Mistborn could be enormous. With the three brothers' combined strength, they could face even Xie Chang'an head-on without being without options. And Xie Chang'an was delayed. However strong this Lin Hui turned out to be, he could never equal Xie Chang'an. At most, he would cost them a little extra effort.