However, at this moment, the Shaking Light Disc suspended in mid-air suddenly underwent an anomaly; the pitch-black top instantly became as smooth as a mirror, pure as water.

After a brief moment of astonishment, someone in the crowd suddenly shouted, "How did the Hunter suddenly disappear?!"

Upon hearing this, everyone looked over and indeed saw that the previously leading Xiao Tian had somehow vanished from the arena, and no method could detect his presence.

Soon, the crowd discovered something new: not only Xiao Tian had disappeared, but also his counterparts, Thunder King Salon and Hidden Needle, had vanished from the arena as well.

The experts, who couldn’t help scanning around in confusion, found nothing, when someone with sharp eyes had already noticed an unusual phenomenon.

"Oh my gosh! Look quickly!"

Everyone was stunned for a moment, then instinctively followed the direction of that person’s finger, only to be horrified by what they saw!

In mid-air at the top of the Shaking Light Disc, an image began to appear as clear as the bottom of a well.

And on the manifested image, there were Xiao Tian, Thunder King Salon, and Hidden Needle, the three who had disappeared.

Seeing this scene, the crowd was terrified, looking at the bizarre scene in mid-air as if they had seen a ghost, and their feet subconsciously started to retreat, as if afraid that getting too close would cause the Shaking Light Disc to pull them in as well.

When the crowd backed away to what they considered a safe distance, they focused their gaze again on the mid-air, observing an even clearer scene and an unexpected event.

The image projected by the Shaking Light Disc showed Xiao Tian, Thunder King Salon, and Hidden Needle, whose feet were now on a giant ring.

The three were placed at three different locations, but their faces were equally unpleasant, clearly unprepared for this turn of events.

In the next moment, an old man with a gray beard and rosy cheeks suddenly appeared in the center of the ring, as if descending from the sky or emerging from the earth.

Even Xiao Tian and the other two on the scene couldn’t figure out where the old man came from.

However, the three of them being smart individuals, realized the prevailing situation within a few breaths.

Xiao Tian frowned slightly, knowing they must be inside the internal space of the Shaking Light Disc.

As for the energetic-looking old man, though he couldn’t quite see through him yet, one thing was certain: the old man was definitely not a "human" in reality.

If the world inside the Shaking Light Disc were likened to an online game, then the old man would be akin to an NPC.

After the gray-bearded old man appeared, his slightly murky eyes rotated rapidly and when they stopped, it shocked everyone in the real world.

Because, surprisingly, although the old man was in what seemed like another world, at that moment, everyone had the feeling that he could somehow see them.

The next moment, the old man showed a benevolent smile and said, "Well, I didn’t expect to wake up to such excitement. Since it’s a tournament, how could it lack an audience?!"

These words left everyone bewildered, but the old man’s kind features now looked inexplicably eerie, prompting a nagging urge to flee. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

However, everyone was ultimately a step too late...

Because just after the old man finished speaking to himself, the top of the Shaking Light Disc, as bright as a mirror in mid-air, turned pitch-black once more, and started spinning on its own.

The Shaking Light Disc spun faster and faster, the hearts of the crowd pounded like drums as if they were about to burst from their chests, and no amount of effort could steady them.

The strange phenomenon made everyone instinctively detect danger, with some highly perceptive people already beginning to run at full speed as if chased by someone.

Before long, the mid-air swirling Shaking Light Disc stopped, but when it became a bright mirror again, it reflected the dense but unmissed images of everyone present.

At the same time, whether it was those quick to flee or those slow to react just starting out, all felt their vision blur, followed by the sensation of world-spinning dizziness in their minds, making it impossible to maintain balance, while the operation of True Qi also stalled...

...

As everyone regained consciousness, they were terrified to find that the surrounding scenery had completely turned into a boundless darkness, with only a bright area on the ring platform ahead.

And on the platform, Thunder King Salon, Hidden Needle, and Xiao Tian stood at three different points, with the earlier seen old man at the center.

"Welcome to my world, having so many guests at once makes me so excited I can barely contain my emotions!" the old man said with a hearty laugh.

Yet, everyone clearly couldn’t laugh; suddenly and inexplicably drawn into this bizarre world, they only felt despair, let alone sharing the old man’s hearty laughter.

"Have you seen those dark areas around you?" the old man said, waving his furrowless hand, "Here, you can create at will; you can also be the master of this world."

"Just turn around and take your first step, and a thought can turn imagination into reality, creating a world of your own."

Saying so, the old man, like issuing an order, pointed to the endless darkness, "Now, take the brave steps. Just one step, and you will all become omnipotent!"

Seeing the old man on the stage, passionately red-faced, the crowd glanced at each other but none yielded to his allure, or truly walked towards the darkness behind them.

After a long while, the old man lowered his finger, sounding a bit dissatisfied, "What, do you all not wish to stay here?!"

The crowd was baffled again, where did this line even come from, who said they wanted to stay?!

However, quickly, a learned person made a conjecture regarding the situation.

"The situation we are in now is likely that we were forcibly brought into this space by the former master of the Shaking Light Disc."

At these words, someone immediately asked, "You mean, he’s actually the legendary Artifact Spirit?!"

This notion received widespread agreement, because, as it stood, the only possibility of something living within treasure and freely utilizing its abilities was the Artifact Spirit.

However, moments later, the first person who spoke shook their head, "While it’s not impossible, what we’re encountering seems unlikely to be an Artifact Spirit-type entity."

"Not an Artifact Spirit?!"

The crowd exclaimed as they began to participate in the discussion, their theories all wild and imaginative yet lacking substantial proof to hold ground.

Just then, Xiao Tian on the stage spoke seriously, "Does anyone know what is the most basic characteristic of an Artifact Spirit?!"

With that one sentence, the room fell silent...