They say men become corrupt when they get rich. But for Jiang Hai, that saying... well, it wasn't exactly true—or false.
He was the kind of person without a fixed personality. You could say he was unrestrained, free-spirited. In Northeastern slang, he was someone who just acted on impulse. Even at twenty-eight, he wasn't very consistent.
Most of the time, Jiang Hai was calm and quiet. Unlike other young people who constantly talked about dreams, ambitions, revenge, or justice—he didn't really buy into any of it.
Country, nation, hope, seeds of the future—these lofty ideals meant little to him.
The only thing he truly cared about was himself: eating well, drinking well, living comfortably, playing freely, and making tons of money. Everything else? Not his concern. There was nothing noble or patriotic about his character.
As for the "seeds of the future"... well, let's just say those didn't concern any downloaded files either.
Perhaps it was because he had been poor for so long that, even after becoming rich, he never showed the flamboyance of a nouveau riche.
Sure, he had more than enough money to buy luxury jets and supercars. He could afford anything, but he still preferred driving his War Shield SUV. And to be honest, that SUV cost more than most supercars anyway.
Today, though, maybe it was the thrill of the bidding—or maybe this money-spending spree had a justified purpose. Either way, it made him feel good. Still, he hadn't lost sight of his priorities and managed to restrain himself from buying too many people.
So far, he had purchased six: three Alpha Wolves, one Bush Wolf, a Poison Spider, and a Wolf Spider. Overall, he was quite satisfied.
As he absentmindedly fidgeted with a trinket in his hands—changing it into various shapes—Jiang Hai continued watching the auction.
Truthfully, he did feel a twinge of pity for the girls being auctioned. But he wasn't in a position to change anything. All he could do was adapt. And he didn't really want to change the world anyway.
Soon after Jiang Hai requested manual service, there was a knock at the door. Azarina handed a check to the staff member. After a quick confirmation call, Jiang Hai's deposit was raised from $50 million to $70 million. His remaining available balance rose from $14.5 million to $34.5 million.
In Jiang Hai's view, that should be more than enough.
He'd been watching the auction all night and was starting to feel a little tired. After the deposit was handled, Jiang Hai handed Azarina the bidding tablet.
"You take over. I'm getting a bit sleepy," he said.
Azarina nodded and took the tablet. She would make sure to secure the final Wolf, and if she spotted anyone else with potential, she'd bid on them too.
As she settled in to observe the next listings, the Poison Spider—who had been curled up in Jiang Hai's lap—suddenly sat up and knelt before him. Her movements surprised him.
"I sensed the master had this need. Since you're no longer bidding, let me serve you," she said with a smile.
Before Jiang Hai could respond—though, honestly, why would he object?—she had already begun. Her movements released a kind of energy Jiang Hai couldn't put into words.
Then she opened her mouth gently... using the same parts Jiang Hai had been absentmindedly rubbing earlier to envelop something else that couldn't be described in polite company. It wasn't Jiang Hai's first time experiencing this kind of service—his life back home was already quite indulgent.
But he had to admit—this Poison Spider had the largest... assets he had ever seen.
"How big are you? Must be hard to find bras," Jiang Hai asked, curious.
"40E. Definitely not easy to find," she replied, wrinkling her cute little nose.
"E? There's an E-cup?" Jiang Hai blinked in surprise. Wasn't the size supposed to stop at D? Maybe 36 or 38?
"There's E, and even G or H. But those sizes make it hard to move, so they're not worth it," she giggled, then went back to her work.
Jiang Hai nodded as if he understood.
"You too—go massage the boss's shoulders. If needed, serve him with your mouth as well," Azarina said to the nearby Wolf Spider, who had been standing silently all this time.
Hearing this, the Wolf Spider immediately understood that her direct superior from now on would be Azarina. She nodded, walked behind Jiang Hai, guided his head to rest on her soft chest, and began massaging his shoulders.
Whatever their private thoughts, if they wanted to survive in Wulan, they had to accept Jiang Hai as their master—for now. What happened after Wulan was a different story. Would Jiang Hai be able to subdue them long-term? Probably not on his own.
But with Azarina by his side, he wasn't worried. She had already promised to handle that part.
As Jiang Hai enjoyed their dual service, the auction continued. One by one, the "items" were claimed by different boxes.
Eventually, the platform rose again—this time for the last item of the night. Azarina trembled slightly as she saw who it was.
Jiang Hai also looked up.
The woman on the platform was unlike the previous ones.
She wasn't standing freely—she was tied to a metal frame, her limbs bound tightly to each corner. Her body formed a restrained arch. She wore only a thin vest and shorts, her skin exposed and covered in scars—evidence of serious resistance.
Even now, she stared coldly out at the audience. If she could break free from those restraints, Jiang Hai had no doubt she'd fight to the death.
But despite her hostility, she was undeniably beautiful. And her figure? Just as good as the others.
This organization couldn't afford to train someone who was overweight. These women weren't just spies—they were seductresses and assassins. They needed to be lean and capable. And she was both.
As Jiang Hai gazed at her fierce, wolf-like aura, he suddenly felt a tightness in his waist. The Poison Spider paused, cleaned herself up, and stood again after swallowing what she had taken in.
"Is this our final target?" Jiang Hai asked Azarina while holding the Poison Spider.
"Yes. She's the last one," Azarina replied, visibly excited.
Just then, the auctioneer's voice came over the speakers:
Codename: Wolf Head 1-1
Age: 25
Blood Type: O
Height: 176 cm
Weight: 121 lbs
Measurements: 93-62-96 (M)
Training Start: Age 7
Graduated: Age 16
Mission Completion: 168 A-rank, 136 B-rank, 0 C-rank, 0 D-rank
Confirmed Kills: 1,941
Skills: Elite close combat, disguise, espionage, top-level assassination, vehicular mastery, fire control, firearms, electronics
Note: Weakness—extremely resistant to surrender
Starting Price: $8 million
Minimum Bid Increment: $100,000
Jiang Hai was stunned. She had a major weakness, yet the starting price was this high?
"She's infamous," the Poison Spider whispered in his arms. "Strongest among all the teams. She was the top candidate for the Twelve Double-Headed Eagles. Normally, she wouldn't have been auctioned. She was meant for a high-ranking Wulan official."
"But that night, he tried to take her... you know, like all of us will eventually experience. Most of us accept it—it's inevitable. But she? She cut off his... part. So here she is."
Jiang Hai glanced at Azarina, a bit nervous. Would he be her next victim?
But Azarina smiled and reassured him. "Leave that to me."
She immediately placed a bid of $10 million.
But this time, that wasn't enough to scare off the others.
Within seconds, offers flooded in: $11 million, $12 million, $15 million...
Eventually, the bidding slowed around $17 million, but it was still rising steadily in six-figure increments.
"$20 million," Jiang Hai said.
Azarina entered it without hesitation.
The room fell silent.
$20 million for one woman.
Eyes widened, jaws clenched.
"Baga! Who is this guy? Does he think money grows on trees?" roared the Japanese in Box 17.
The guests in other boxes hesitated—but only briefly.
The Japanese raised the bid: $21 million—their maximum limit, considering they only had $21.87 million in total.
Then a Mexican box joined: $21.5 million—clearly their ceiling as well.
"Add $300,000," the Japanese leader commanded grimly.
But before they could even act, Box 8 displayed a new number: $25 million.
The silence that followed was deafening.
Everyone was stunned.
Jiang Hai had now spent over $60 million—and this was in U.S. dollars, not yen, not dong, not won.
The sheer financial pressure was overwhelming.
Most of the big players in the room were gang leaders or private military contractors. Their net worths might be in the billions, but cash liquidity was another story. They had to cover arms, bribes, property, payroll—it wasn't easy to spare tens of millions just for human assets.
But Jiang Hai?
He had just crushed them all with raw cash.
They could offer more—but they had to consider: was it worth it? Would it jeopardize their other operations?
Unlike Jiang Hai, they had families, empires, obligations.
They couldn't afford to be reckless.
(To be continued...)