Fragments of mental messages drifted through the void, flickering uncertainly like dying candles in the wind.
Those scattered thoughts were the silent clashes of Authority Holders. Before anyone truly made a move, their probing intentions had already drawn countless invisible boundaries across this dim cosmic backdrop.
Alvin had originally intended to step forward and mediate.
He had operated in this region for years and knew several Authority Holders. Perhaps he could say a few words.
But just as he prepared to release his aura and declare his stance, a gentle yet irresistible force lightly suppressed the power fluctuations about to surge from him.
It was Shen Yi.
Alvin glanced sideways. Shen Yi still stood where he was, calmly gazing at the coveted region ahead, where a relatively intact fragment drifted slowly through the void.
Setting aside ownership of this shattered universe, that Rule Fragment alone was already quite valuable.
Before Shen Yi, Alvin, and the others arrived, several Authority Holders had already been fighting fiercely.
The fragment was like an isolated island amid the chaotic spatial currents around it. Traces of an ancient civilization still remained upon it, and Rule Veins seemed to flow faintly through the broken walls and ruins, making it exceedingly mysterious.
There's no need to go this far over a single fragment... Alvin muttered inwardly.
Beside him, little aura flowed from Shen Yi's body, but Alvin could sense that the unique oppressive presence of the Flame of Continued Combustion had become more restrained than before—and more lethal as well.
It was not merely an increase in power, but an advancement of Authority. Like a sword that had once displayed all its sharpness, it had now learned to hide its edge within its sheath, revealing only a lethal sliver when necessary.
What surprised Alvin even more was