Despite the high price offered by the VIPs on the third floor, the young man on the ground floor cinched the winning bid. Much to the ire of the other bidders. The man could feel their ire, malice even, but he paid them no heed. He radiated confidence, like he would come out on top no matter how many hurdles appeared before him.
Of course, that confidence only appeared after he won the auction for the five element peacock’s blood. It made him, a nameless face among the throng of people on the ground floor, stand out like a lightbulb.
Tianyi leaned back in his chair and rested his chin on his knuckles, eyes narrowed in interest. He wanted to watch how everything would play out. He watched as the auction continued. More and more items were brought forth, even a fifth-rank pill, but he didn’t care for them. He only studied the young man.
The young man bid two more times in the auction, winning each time. Tianyi could sense unconcealed malice radiating from half the suites on the third floor. He was really looking forward to seeing what happened after the auction ended.
A few hours later, the last item was successfully won by a customer on the third floor. In Tianyi’s eyes, it wasn’t as valuable as the depleted five element peacock’s blood, but only if they knew how to use the blood. Next, it was time for the guests to leave.
Although Tianyi didn’t bid on anything, the manager still personally led him to the exit. Tianyi thanked the manager and walked out of the auction house. A few people who heard about his “identity” stepped forward to start a conversation, but Tianyi and Su Bojing’s figure disappeared in a flash.
The people who wanted to form a relationship with a five star alchemist, even if only by indirect relation, all became puzzled. They looked around, but couldn’t find a hide nor hair of him or his servant. Even if Tianyi was in the same spot, they would not be able to spot him, or even touch him.
From his spot in the air, Tianyi zeroed in on the young man. He could sense the hidden maliciousness of a group of people in the dark. Tianyi’s lips quirked upward.
He followed the young man as he left the city gates. The young man picked up the pace and ran with his companion. Finally, he stopped once he was outside of the city’s vicinity. He turned around. “How long are you going to skulk? Come out, I know you’re here.”
Silence answered him. Then a sinister chuckle filled the air. Three men rose from the ground, like bamboo shoots. “You got a lot of nerve leaving the city after what you did.”
“You should have stayed in the city. It would have extended your life,” his companion added.
The young man snorted. “Why do I need to be scared? I won those items fair and square.”
“Fool, don’t you know the crime of possessing jade? Only strong people like us have the right to keep those items,” one of the three said.
“Strong?” the young man asked. He sneered. “We’ll see about that.”
The man leaped forward, his figure blurred from the sheer speed. Even among the master warriors, he was at the peak. The three men didn’t expect his speed to be so fast, so they were unable to stop him as he incapacitated one of them.
“Don’t look down on us, you bastard!” one of the men shouted, swinging his horse-decapitating saber.
The young man twisted his body, moving out of the way of the saber. However, he was not out of danger yet. The other man took out an awl-shaped bone and thrust it toward the young man’s head. Another twist, and the young man distanced himself from them.
The two men stepped forward, intent on not giving the young man a chance to breathe. They were so focused on him that they forgot about the woman, thinking of her as nothing but a weak warrior. They were wrong.
While the three fought, the woman appeared in front of the downed man and pulled out the soft sword wrapped around her waist. She stabbed and slitted the man’s throat.
Still, that was far from enough to defeat the core formation master. Especially since he controlled nine spiritual artifacts that attacked the woman from all sides.
Mo Ling wasn’t taking it easy, either. He had retreated in order to perform a technique. Three different colors of wind gathered between his palms, forming a spherical vortex. The condensed to such a point that the wind gained physical form.
Even the core formation master noticed him during his battle with the woman. Half the spiritual artifacts circling the woman shot toward Mo Ling, who was still standing in the same position.
“Mo Ling!” the woman cried out in fear and worry.
Mo Ling showed no fear and launched the condensed sphere at the core formation master. “Spiraling Demon Sphere!”
The moment it left his hand, the Spiraling Demon Sphere unraveled, increasing in size and forming blades of wind as it shot toward the core formation master. Even the spiritual artifacts could not destroy the technique, only hinder it for a moment before they were deflected.
A grim and fearful expression appeared on the core formation master’s face as he controlled his remaining spiritual artifacts to shield him while he fled into the distance. It was all for naught. His shield of artifacts was demolished by the Spiraling Demon Sphere before it arrived before him.
“Damn it! Break for me!”
The core formation master erupted with all his strength as the sphere’s mass consumed him. When the technique dissipated, he lay beaten on the ground breathing his dying breath. There was not a single patch of unharmed skin on his body. His robes had been torn to shreds. He looked worse than a man who had been skinned alive.
“They won’t let you go,” the man uttered. His eyes had been destroyed, but he still looked at Mo Ling. “The Emperor Hall won’t let you off!”
‘I’m sorry, say that again?’ Tianyi said in his mind. He turned toward Su Bojing. “Was there such a person in the Emperor Hall?”
“I think he’s a servant-disciple,” Su Bojing said.
Tianyi sighed. “Welp, there goes any good relationship. He probably hates the Emperor Hall now.”
“Then should we not destroy him now?”
Tianyi shook his head. “Not yet. He might be able to solve the mystery of the Impermanence Realm. Still, it won’t hurt to have some insurance.”
He pointed his finger at Mo Ling, who was fleeing the scene with his companion. Nothing seemed to have changed, but only Tianyi knew that he had already left his mark on Mo Ling. “Collect his body. Even if he seems really despicable, he’s still a member of the Immortal Court. And I want a report on what he has been doing in the Impermanence Realm, too.”
“Understood,” Su Bojing said.
A few days later, Tianyi sat in a chair reading the report Su Bojing handed to him. “This is worse than I thought.”