Chapter 497 – Do You Have the Qualifications?

Changing “Transportation Firm” to “Trading Firm.”

…

In front of the Underground Crystal Palace, Scarecrow Fox’s members revealed ugly looks on their faces when they heard the words of the Scarlet Merchant Alliance’s Elder.

The Crystal City of Secrets was now a gathering place for many powers, and as far as they were aware, there were at least four pseudo-apex powers currently operating in the city. Among them, the Scarlet Merchant Alliance vaguely ranked among the top two, so it wasn’t an existence an adventurer team like Scarecrow Fox could afford to offend.

However, the problem was that their team had already paid the entrance fee to enter the Underground Crystal Palace. Right now, they were merely waiting for the NPC guards to complete the registration procedures and let them inside.

If they left now, they wouldn’t get a refund on their entrance fee, and they would have to pay again later. But they didn’t have that much money at the moment, and by the time they collected enough to enter the Underground Crystal Palace, many of the opportunities available in the secret land would have been taken by others.

At this time, River Light, the middle-aged elven Cleric standing behind Ink Qilin, stepped forward and smiled, saying, “Dear friends of the Scarlet Merchant Alliance, I am River Light of the Scarecrow Fox adventurer team. We have already paid the entrance fee and are only waiting to enter the Underground Crystal Palace. Do you mind waiting for the NPC to complete the registration procedures?”

As soon as River Light spoke, many of the players present revealed shocked expressions.

“Scarecrow Fox’s River Light!”

“Is he the River Light who entered the Sacred Glory List’s top 100 over a decade ago?”

“I have heard of River Light. Back when he was still on the Sacred Glory List, I heard that he was on good terms with an Honorary Elder of the pseudo-apex power Azure Wave Temple. He even participated in several large-scale Crusade Quests with the Azure Wave Temple. It’s a pity he rose to fame a little too late. Had he been given another one or two years, he could have most likely fought for a spot among the Sacred Glory List’s top 30.”

Some of the various powers’ players started a discussion among themselves when they heard River Light introducing himself. They didn’t expect the team currently first in line would have someone of such significant origins in it.

As for River Light, the target of the surrounding players’ discussion, although he remained calm on the surface, he inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.

It was true that he was quite well-known in the Greater God’s Domain. If he were only dealing with an upper-ranking hegemonic power, the other party would most likely back off out of respect. However, it wasn’t necessarily true for the Scarlet Merchant Alliance. Only an existence of a similar caliber, such as the Azure Wave Temple, could get the Scarlet Merchant Alliance to back off. The problem was that he couldn’t directly mention the Azure Wave Temple in this situation. Otherwise, the pseudo-apex power would definitely find trouble with him later on.

Now that others had brought up the Azure Wave Temple on his behalf, things couldn’t be better.

“Who do you think you are? So what if you have some connection with the Azure Wave Temple? Do you think the Scarlet Merchant Alliance will be afraid of it?” The Scarlet Merchant Alliance’s Elder sneered. “Our Vice Guild Leader is standing here right now. Even if that Honorary Elder you’re acquainted with comes here in person, he will still have to step aside for Vice Guild Leader Abyss Water! I’ll say this one last time! Get lost!”

River Light’s face turned pale when he heard this, but he didn’t dare say anything. And to think that he had only recently told Gentle Snow that Scarecrow Fox was a major power with quite a lot of influence in the Greater God’s Domain. Yet, now, not even an Elder from the Scarlet Merchant Alliance was showing Scarecrow Fox any respect.

At this time, Ink Qilin finally decided to speak up, “Friends from the Scarlet Merchant Alliance, although you have significant influence in the Crystal City of Secrets, it won’t benefit either of us to fight, don’t you think?”

As soon as Ink Qilin finished speaking, the intensity of her aura also began to rise. Like a lioness about to go on a rampage, the aura she exuded intimidated many of the Tier 5 experts nearby, causing them to subconsciously step away from her.

Ink Qilin might only be a vice commander in Scarecrow Fox, but she was a Saint who had climbed to the Sacred Glory List’s top ten over a decade ago. At present, she had even created a complete set of Exclusive Absolute Techniques for herself. Paired with the Legendary Spear and Shield in her possession, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that she was one of the apex experts of the current Eternal Realm.

As soon as Ink Qilin expressed her willingness to fight, the members of the Scarecrow Fox present and Gentle Snow also prepared themselves for a fight to the death.

For players operating solo or in adventurer teams long-term, they were usually people unafraid of getting into trouble. Not to mention, they were currently in the Eternal Realm, where even apex powers were unable to exhibit their full strength.

“You want to pick a fight with the Scarlet Merchant Alliance?” The Scarlet Merchant Alliance’s Saint-ranked Elder laughed when he saw the behavior of Scarecrow Fox’s members. “Do you have the qualifications?”

When the Elder finished speaking, three old men whose faces were hidden by the Black Cloaks they wore stepped out from the Scarlet Merchant Alliance team.

“What?! Is the Scarlet Merchant Alliance really planning to fight?”

“If I’m not mistaken, that person is Ink Qilin, one of Scarecrow Fox’s vice commanders. I heard that if Ink Qilin advances to Tier 6, she could absolutely be ranked among the Divine Glory List. Even if the Scarlet Merchant Alliance should have difficulty dealing with her.”

The spectating crowd couldn’t help but be surprised to see the Scarlet Merchant Alliance’s strong attitude. While the Scarlet Merchant Alliance was indeed powerful, it still needed to pay attention to experts of Ink Qilin’s caliber in the Eternal Realm. Not to mention, there were still many powerful experts from Scarecrow Fox standing behind Ink Qilin.

If the two sides fought, there was no doubt the Scarlet Merchant Alliance would emerge victorious, but this victory would come at a considerable price.

Just when everyone was finding this situation strange, the three old men removed their Black Cloaks and revealed their faces.

“Impossible…” Ink Qilin fell into a daze when she saw the faces of the three old men. “Why are the Demon Cave Trio here?”

The Scarlet Merchant Alliance, as a pseudo-apex power, had been around for a very long time, and many of its old monsters had already retired from the active scene. Of these retired old monsters, some of the more famous ones were the Demon Cave Trio, who had risen to fame more than a century ago.

The Demon Cave Trio were blood-related brothers, each of whom was a Saint-ranked expert who had created a set of Exclusive Absolute Techniques for themselves. Under the training of the Scarlet Merchant Alliance, they became able to fight as if they were of one mind. On top of that, they possessed a secret technique that allowed them to form a natural battle array that enhanced their Basic Attributes and let them share their five senses.

When the Demon Cave Trio were still active at Tier 6, they had once successfully killed a Tier 6 God.

Later on, they even assassinated many experts capable of killing Tier 6 Gods. Although they had failed more times than they had succeeded, it was still a fact that they had succeeded sometimes, and these achievements made the trio famous throughout the Greater God’s Domain.

Now that the Demon Cave Trio had appeared in the Eternal Realm, even though they were currently only Tier 5 Assassins, it would still be a piece of cake for them to annihilate Scarecrow Fox’s team…

When Gentle Snow saw Ink Qilin’s reaction to the three old men, even though she personally didn’t know who the Demon Cave Trio were, she still understood that they were most likely doomed. Although they should currently be safe, considering they were still in the city, it would be a different story once they entered the Underground Crystal Palace or left the city. At that time, these three old men could attack them without worry.

“I’m sorry, Guild Leader. I thought we could get some extra help for the Guild, but I didn’t expect to attract an even stronger enemy,” Gentle Snow apologized to Shi Feng, her face full of regret.