The scene resembled the devastation left behind by a tornado. The entire tree didn’t have a single part untouched and was nearly split in half as well. The system suffered heavy losses due to the falling buildings crashing into the ground and breaking into bits and pieces. The casualty wasn’t bad but the survivors had no home to return to now. They stared at the empty tree in a daze. The strike silenced the top part of the tree right away. The aggressive divinity coming from the heavenly monarch earlier was nowhere to be found now. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶 “I can squash all of you like bugs, this is a warning. Feel free to come if you do not heed it.” Li Qiye’s leisure voice came from his palace. He directly provoked everyone nearby after fully humiliating Famed Bamboo System. However, the tree had no response. The monarch himself also closed his mouth like an obedient child. Just one strike alone nearly annihilated the Adamantine Tree. Everyone was stunned because Li Qiye’s power seemed unfathomable. No one could have a good read of his true strength. “The monarch hasn’t seen Fiercest in action before or he wouldn’t have made that mistake. His power isn’t comparable to the five merchants yet he still dared to provoke Fiercest? He asked for this humiliation.” Someone from the last generation shook his head. Sha Yucheng was a powerful master. He was considered one of the youngest Eternals in Imperial, being only a little older than Puresword True Emperor. This meant he had great potential in the future. However, he still couldn’t match the Eternals from the previous generation, especially notorious ones like the five merchants. Thus, he obviously couldn’t take on Li Qiye. “Everything else becomes meaningless after one reaches a certain power level. Background? Backing? Bloodline? All meaningless.” An ancestor had a forceful smile on his face while reflecting. Sha Yucheng was strong on top of having the resourceful Famed Bamboo behind him. He actually didn’t mind antagonizing people stronger than him because of this. His system had mighty ancestors and has never been afraid of anyone. In an actual all-out conflict, they could handle anyone in Imperial outside of the three behemoths. But now, after witnessing the destructive strike earlier, the monarch realized that he had kicked a steel door. What they had here right now wasn’t enough to oppose Fiercest. Thus, keeping quiet was a wise move. Otherwise, all of their disciples might die here and now along with further damage to the tree. “So domineering.” The spectators smiled wryly after seeing a lack of reaction from the monarch. “Fiercest is causing trouble everywhere.” One ancestor said: “Does he really want to fight against everyone?” “Maybe he wants the immortal stone all for himself.” Another ancestor’s eyes flashed brightly with greed. In fact, virtually everyone came from the immortal stone. Li Qiye was just too big of a blockade. They started hoping for the three behemoths to take action and break into Mingluo so that they could take advantage of the chaos. Over to the Mu’s side, they were also intimidated by the attack earlier. Yang Tingyu had nothing to say. All they could do was wait for their emperor. Even the gourd landing on the great plain earlier didn’t make a move. It looked like they weren’t in a rush to siege Mingluo. A while later on the same day, a deer crossed through the sky ever so briefly. Nevertheless, it left hoofprints on the sky, looking just like blooming white flowers. “What’s that?” Some didn’t know what was going on. “Venerable Deer Merchant.” An ancestor became serious. “Buzz.” A wooden stick flew over from the horizon and landed on a thicket outside of Mingluo. The vegetation and trees there started growing at an unbelievable rate, tall enough to blot out the sky. The more magical part was these trees intertwining together to form houses and palaces. This bustling city had specific patterns just like a work of art. One could hear deers playing around among the bushes and gurgling streams. A group began drinking near a stream. Some were galloping around while others were gathering little branches together to make a roost. It didn’t take long before the area turned into a paradise filled with transcending energy. These deers became the guardian spirits of the thicket. “That’s Venerable Deer Merchant.” Another ancestor recognized this. “Where is he?” The juniors looked around but didn’t see Venerable Deer Merchant. “He’s already here.” The ancestor explained: “In there. His location usually turns into a scene of paradise with spirit deers, hence his title.” The juniors observed the thicket with deers happily playing around. One disciple murmured: “That’s very surprising. He looks like an immortal with good taste. How could such a man do something evil like sacrificing several million lives? These young ones were obviously unhappy with the blood sacrifice revealed a while ago. “Shut up!” The senior immediately scolded and glared at him. This disciple’s head shrunk down from fear and didn’t dare to say anything else. Venerable Deer Merchant’s arrival surprised everyone. He was rumored to be the oldest being in Imperial, at least among the known Eternals. His cultivation was great; some believed that it was on the same level as Gu Yifei. However, others claimed that he was old now with withering vitality, one level weaker than Yifei. All in all, if one were to list the top three experts in Imperial, he would certainly be mentioned. Moreover, he created the Trade Federation so he enjoyed great status and authority. Just one word from his could invite many Eternals and systems. Thus, though he was here alone, he represented a great force. People immediately became more cautious in response.