In the blink of an eye, the time came for the assembly on Soul Ring allocation. It had originally been scheduled for Sky City, but considering that the proceedings would be entirely public, the venue was eventually changed to the plain north of Sword City, where a temporary platform had already been erected.
During this period, the lack of Soul Rings had led factions large and small, and even mercenary groups, to launch attacks of varying scale against Emerald Merchant Guild branches across the land.
But the Iron Golems and Illagers had repelled them all. Those factions that had inflicted severe losses on the guild had even been beheaded as a public warning, and the forces behind them were permanently blacklisted, never to receive Soul Rings again.
As for whether someone had secretly ordered these attacks, the presence of Elephant Armor Sect members among the attackers made the answer obvious enough.
Because Soul Rings were a matter of immense importance, almost every faction on the Douluo Continent, large or small, had sent representatives, apart from those blacklisted. Bibi Dong had come in person on behalf of Spirit Hall, and the sect masters of all the Upper Three Sects had personally attended.
Yet even after nearly all the factions from the Douluo Continent had arrived, roughly a third of the seats remained empty.
Everyone wondered whether those seats were meant for hidden factions on the continent, but they soon received their answer.
Green Robe led a group of people in and arranged for them to take their seats one after another.
"Which faction are those people from? How come I've never seen them before?"
"Those patterns on their clothes... I've never heard of an emblem like that on the continent."
"Look at where they're sitting. Those seats are reserved for people