Chapter 90
Translator: penny
Chapter: 90
Chapter Title: Fortuitous Encounters Come with Dangers (1)
Yong Yoo slapped down two hundred high-grade spirit stones, and in that instant, all the cultivators who had been competing with mid-grade stones in the hundreds froze solid.
Two hundred high-grade spirit stones.
It was an amount no ordinary cultivator could possibly amass.
Only someone with peerless mastery in one of the Four Great Arts, or perhaps someone who had secretly discovered a high-grade spirit stone mine, might possess that many.
But the cultivators familiar with the local scene knew there were no such masters around, nor had they heard any rumors of a new spirit stone mine being found anywhere.
"Then... he must be from some massive sect."
"Is this okay? What if the sect gets involved...?"
"You think a sect would step in over something as trivial as an auction? Truly valuable treasures never hit auction blocks like this. That's why sects don't bother with them."
While some cultivators fretted anxiously, others racked their brains for ways to outbid those two hundred stones and claim the Feather of the Qibai Orchid.
"I'll add my hundred spirit stones, plus treasures worth more than another hundred. You can appraise them."
The simplest approach among them was to cover the shortfall with whatever assets they had on hand.
The cultivator who spoke flew straight up to the platform, showing his treasures to the auction host. After a discreet inspection, the host nodded.
"The treasures are confirmed worth over a hundred spirit stones. We'll value them at two hundred and three. So..."
"Two ten."
Yong Yoo immediately raised the bid, slapping down ten more high-grade spirit stones. Some cultivators gasped in horror and fled the auction house.
Not just the two stubborn old monsters still lingering, but this mysterious figure recklessly pouring out vast wealth—it all promised a massive storm once the auction ended.
So they bolted early to safeguard themselves.
Gwak Ja-yeon had been glaring at Yong Yoo's room since earlier. Knowing full well he had let the Sun-Moon Star Grand Harmony Scripture slip past him, yet brazenly tossing out more stones than he had—it bruised his pride.
'How dare he ignore me and ruin my face...?'
Gwak Ja-yeon hated this situation with a passion.
He loathed losing the scripture to that old Gong Ga-jin, and he despised this show-offy spender even more.
Ignoring the blatant threats beaming from Gwak Ja-yeon, Yong Yoo waited as a few cultivators began whispering among themselves.
"To enter the forbidden zone we're aiming for, we absolutely need something like the Feather of the Qibai Orchid."
"True."
"Since it'll benefit all three of us anyway, why not pool our resources?"
"I'm fine with it. But my assets outstrip yours both, so..."
"Of course, we'll make up the difference with our items."
"Agreed."
After quietly hashing it out, one of the three cultivators received the stones and spoke up as their representative.
"We'll bid two thirty!"
As the bidding for the Feather of the Qibai Orchid climbed endlessly, the one who had brought it—the mysterious man in black—couldn't have been more delighted.
'As expected, dangling a fine treasure draws in the big fish.'
The man quietly scanned the surroundings with eyes that seemed filled with blood. Those eyes held mystical powers, piercing the formations in each private room to identify the guests within.
'I'd learn more watching them fight directly, but... the Fan Realm's treasures are inferior to the Demon Realm's, so the cultivators here seem weaker overall.'
The man in black was none other than Mak Ho-gan.
Defying his sect's orders to stick with Wi Hong-taek and lay low upon arriving in the Fan Realm, he wandered alone, utterly fascinated by the caliber of Fan Realm cultivators.
Especially the average strength of those at Nascent Soul Realm or above—the sect's true heavy hitters.
'Cowardly old fools. What's so scary about upstart nobodies like High Heaven Sect or Heavenly Church? If I become sect master, I'll remake such sects. I'll dominate both Demon and Fan Realms, becoming the sole supreme sect of the Two Realms.'
Men should dream big, Mak Ho-gan always said. He chuckled to himself, envisioning the day he'd fulfill the grand ambition he'd harbored since childhood.
It was a dream far too vast for someone not even at Soul Transformation Realm yet, a wildly delusional ambition—but Mak Ho-gan meant every word.
'That one bugs me, though.'
With that thought, Mak Ho-gan eyed a certain cultivator who hadn't even reached mid-Core Formation Realm.
That striking appearance captivated even Mak Ho-gan, a man, and the natural auspicious energy radiating from him grated on his nerves.
'Buddhist methods are trending lately thanks to High Heaven Sect's Heavenly Church nonsense... but this guy's no bandwagon idiot switching arts for fashion. He feels like a true orthodox practitioner who's trained in Buddhist methods from the start.'
As a denizen of the Demon Realm and a demon himself, what Mak Ho-gan feared most were beings brimming with pure sacred energy like this.
'The women around him carry some sacred energy too. Must be from some Buddhist sect.'
All Mak Ho-gan knew about Yong Yoo was his handsome looks, High Heaven Sect affiliation, and Heavenly Church ties.
Yong Hae-jong, aware of Mak Ho-gan's temperament, had withheld detailed descriptions of Yong Yoo. Thus, seeing the whole group radiating sacred energy, Mak Ho-gan could only assume they hailed from a Buddhist sect.
'Eh... Core Formation with one early Nascent Soul companion? No real threat.'
Mak Ho-gan ceased observing Yong Yoo's group and turned his gaze to other Nascent Soul cultivators.
Meanwhile.
"Any more bids? Then... the Feather of the Qibai Orchid goes for two sixty!"
After squeezing every last resource from the competitors, the Feather of the Qibai Orchid fetched a staggering two hundred sixty high-grade spirit stones.
But every participant knew this wouldn't end here. They began preparing for the 'minor commotion' to follow.
After the auction wrapped, we left the pavilion where it was held and wandered aimlessly.
Our targets had already split: Gong Ga-jin with the Sun-Moon Star Grand Harmony Scripture, and another cultivator with the Feather of the Qibai Orchid.
'Gong Ga-jin and Gwak Ja-yeon will clash first. Knowing that, other cultivators will prioritize the Feather over the scripture.'
I couldn't gauge their true value, but by auction price, the Feather outstripped the scripture.
Plus, the two most threatening late Nascent Soul cultivators were fixated elsewhere, so naturally, everyone would go for the Feather first.
"So-hu."
I called out to So-hu, nestled in my spiritual root.
"Make yourself as small as possible and come out."
Upon reaching Nascent Soul grade, So-hu gained three divine abilities.
The spatial separation power shown in the sect ruins.
The ability to transform its body into lightning, like the Thunder Dragon Storm Armor.
And finally, the power to freely resize its body.
All innate to So-hu, unnamed but each incredibly useful and potent.
At my command, So-hu emerged mouse-sized and began sniffing for the Feather's scent I'd memorized earlier.
"How is it?"
"The scent hasn't moved much. Still lingering in this ward."
"Hmm."
Hearing that, I consulted the group.
"As expected, they won't bolt right after the auction—too risky for pursuit. They'll hide first."
"Once they slip past the cultivators' eyes and leave the ward, they're safe."
"Then... shall we quietly ambush them?"
Saying so, I pulled out the Non-Existent Sumeru Dharma Wheel.
"You there, with the veil—could you hold up a moment?"
We were plotting how to use the dharma wheel when three cultivators approached us.
Their ominous demeanor put us on high alert. Pyeong Yu-ran especially slipped her hand into her storage pouch, ready to draw the Great Material Heaven Sword at any second.
"...What do you want?"
I shrank the dharma wheel, hiding it under my palm, and asked them.
"That dharma treasure you took—I need it badly. Mind handing it over?"
"Buddhist dharma treasures require sacred energy to unleash their true power. You don't cultivate Buddhist methods, so it won't be much use to you, right?"
"Hahaha. Everything in this world has some use somehow. No need for you to know the details."
At those words, I subtly shifted my left hand, revealing the hidden ghost acupuncture needles in my sleeve. Their attention flicked there naturally.
Meanwhile, I concealed my right hand in my sleeve, quietly activating the dharma wheel. Silently, I ordered So-hu, who used my divine sense as cover to slip unseen into the wheel.
'The Feather nags at me, but... deal with the fire coming to us first.'
Seeing we wouldn't yield peacefully, their faces darkened.
"Sigh. We don't want a scene in the ward, so let's end this quietly..."
"Lady Pyeong."
Ignoring them, I asked Pyeong Yu-ran,
"Can you handle three early Nascent Souls at once?"
"Who knows? Shall we find out?"
Pyeong Yu-ran grinned at my words. I grinned back, then unleashed Cloud Concealment Art in a flash.
"Urk!"
"His body turned to cloud?!"
Using Cloud Concealment, I surged toward them and swung my right hand at the most off-guard man. He vanished into the dharma wheel in an instant.
Blindly dumping foes into the Sumeru space risked them breaking out, but So-hu inside would use spatial binding to protect it.
Stunned by my ambush, the remaining two drew talismans and formed hand seals to strike my clouded form—but Pyeong Yu-ran's Great Material Heaven Sword sliced their talismans first.
"So fast?!"
As their eyes snapped to Pyeong Yu-ran post-slice, I swung my right hand again, sealing the second foe just as easily.
The dharma wheel trembled—So-hu clashing with the captives inside.
I poured more sacred energy to stabilize the space while firing a Feather Sword Palm to dispel their spell.
Boom!!
My Feather Sword Palm collided with their spell, mutually annihilating. Their shocked face crumbled.
"How can a Core Formation Realm counter my spell?!"
"With spiritual power purity this low, even a Nascent Soul spell loses."
I couldn't use Harmonized Arts yet, but my sacred energy's intensity, density, and purity rivaled Nascent Soul—perhaps surpassing in purity.
So while I lacked raw power to fell them, I could melt and cancel their spells by exploiting the purity gap.
Squelch!
Pyeong Yu-ran pierced the gaping foe without hesitation. I swept both her and the enemy into the wheel.
"Let's get out of here first."
"O-okay!"
"Yes, Master!"
Having dispatched the three, we evaded the gathering stares and slipped out of the ward.