The heavy, suffocating silence inside the Grand Pavilion's vast auction arena lasted for only a fleeting breath before collapsing into an absolute, chaotic explosion of sound.
"Did he just say... a blueprint for a Tier-Three Soul-Nourishing Jade Pill?!"
"Is this youth insane?! Tier-Three pill recipes are practically mythic secrets guarded by the grand sects of the central continent! How could an unrenowned junior in a border city possess such an ancient legacy?!"
In the vast realm of cultivation, authentic pill recipes were infinitely more valuable than bags of gold taels or individual spirit herbs. A spirit herb, no matter how rare, was a single-use resource. But an authentic, high-tier pill recipe was a perpetual fountain of wealth and power—it could sustain a major clan or martial sect for a thousand years, producing endless batches of pill medicine to raise generations of invincible geniuses.
On the central stage, Madam Su's charming, practiced smile completely froze. Her breath hitched in her throat, her alluring almond eyes widening in utter disbelief. As the chief auctioneer of the Grand Pavilion's Azure Mist branch, she was a seasoned veteran who had overseen transactions worth millions of gold. Yet, the casual mention of an authentic Tier-Three pill recipe made her delicate fingers tremble beneath her embroidered crimson silk sleeves.
"Young gentleman," Madam Su called out, her melodic voice straining slightly as she desperately tried to maintain her professional composure. "Are you... serious? A Tier-Three Soul-Nourishing Jade Pill recipe is a supreme treasure capable of stabilizing damaged spiritual souls and breaking through cultivation bottlenecks. The Grand Pavilion cannot accept unverified verbal claims for an auction bid."
Up in the grand First VIP Suite, the young royal prodigy Ye-Xue leaned her slender body forward against the polished crystal railing. Her striking, icy-blue eyes narrowed into sharp slits as she scrutinized the navy-robed youth standing in the far back row.
Beside her, the white-haired guardian in dark gray robes, Uncle Yan, let out a low, dangerous hum that vibrated through the floorboards. His terrifying spiritual sense flared invisibly, sweeping toward Li-Wen like an incoming tide to probe the boy's true depth.
"An authentic Tier-Three recipe?" Uncle Yan whispered gravely. "Princess, even in the Imperial Capital, grandmaster alchemists who can concoct Soul-Nourishing Jade Pills are revere as holy guests by the Imperial Court. This boy is either a lunatic making a deadly mockery of the Pavilion, or he harbors a background far terrifying than we can imagine."
Down in the audience, Li-Wen remained entirely unbothered by the hundreds of shocked, suspicious, and greedy gazes drilling into his back. He stood calmly, his hands tucked inside his sleeves, his face as tranquil as an ancient frozen lake.
He casually reached into his inner pocket, pulling out a plain, unadorned white jade slip.
With a subtle, imperceptible twitch of his right forefinger, a needle-thin strand of golden Divine Will emerged from his fingertips, penetrating the jade slip. In a fraction of a second, Li-Wen carved a microscopic portion of the pill's intricate medicinal formula, furnace temperature curves, and soul-soothing array nodes directly into the stone core.
"This jade slip contains only the first twenty percent of the refining process," Li-Wen said, his quiet voice instantly overriding the surrounding clamor and echoing clearly in everyone's ears. "Pass it to the Grand Pavilion's chief alchemist. If he possesses even a fraction of genuine alchemy knowledge, he will recognize its authenticity within three breaths."
Li-Wen flicked his wrist. The jade slip transformed into a streak of white light, shooting across fifty paces of open air and landing with absolute grace onto the silver tray held by Madam Su.
Madam Su didn't dare hesitate for a single second. "Hurry! Deliver this to the inner pill chamber!" she ordered sharply. Two Seventh-Stage guards stepped out from the shadows, carefully shielding the tray as they sprinted toward the backstage doors.
The massive auction arena fell into an agonizing, silent waiting period. Nobody shouted, and nobody dared to cast further bids. The atmosphere was so tense that the crackle of the spirit lamps high above sounded like thunder.
Less than sixty seconds later, the heavy ironwood doors behind the stage crashed open with a violent slam!
An elderly man wearing a dark blue alchemist robe adorned with three glowing silver cauldron badges burst onto the stage. His white hair was disheveled, his sleeves were stained with furnace soot, and his hands trembled uncontrollably as he clutched the white jade slip against his chest as if it were a sacred artifact from the heavens!
This was Grandmaster Gu—the Chief Alchemist of the Grand Pavilion's Azure Mist branch, a proud Tier-Two Alchemist whose status eclipsed even that of the city governor!
"Authentic! It is ninety-nine percent authentic!" Grandmaster Gu shouted frantically, his voice cracking with sheer, unadulterated ecstasy. "The structural alignment of the medicinal flames... the soul-stabilizing array nodes... it is an ancient, lost refinement method from the central continent! Madam Su! Accept the trade! ACCEPT IT IMMEDIATELY!"
BOOM!
The entire auction hall exploded into sheer, unrestrained pandemonium!
Grandmaster Gu was famous throughout the province for his icy, arrogant demeanor. For a Tier-Two Alchemist of his caliber to lose his composure so completely proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that the navy-robed youth had told the absolute truth!
"Grandmaster Gu..." Madam Su swallowed hard, taking a deep breath to steady her hammering heart. She turned her eyes back toward Li-Wen, her gaze completely transformed from professional courtesy into deep reverence and intense curiosity. "Young master... the blueprint for a Tier-Three Soul-Nourishing Jade Pill far exceeds the market value of the Six-Hundred-Year Twin-Lotus of Ice and Fire. Are you truly willing to exchange such an ancient heritage for a single dual-element herb?"
"I am," Li-Wen replied smoothly. "However, the Twin-Lotus alone is insufficient to match the complete blueprint's value. In addition to the herb, the Grand Pavilion must provide three hundred pieces of low-tier spirit stones, and guarantee my immediate, unhindered exit through your private VIP corridor tonight."
Grandmaster Gu didn't even wait for Madam Su to evaluate the terms. "AGREED! The Grand Pavilion accepts all your conditions without exception!"
Up in the First VIP Suite, Ye-Xue's delicate, frost-like brows furrowed tightly. The Twin-Lotus of Ice and Fire was the exact dual-element catalyst she needed for her upcoming ice-heart bottleneck. Yet, no matter how vast her royal gold reserves were, she could not possibly compete with the absolute value of an authentic Tier-Three pill blueprint using physical currency.
She stood up gracefully, her ice-blue silk dress rustling softly against the floor. "Young gentleman," Ye-Xue's crisp, melodic voice echoed from the elevated VIP balcony, carrying a natural, icy majesty. "I am Ye-Xue of the Imperial Capital. I require the dual-element balance of that herb for a crucial cultivation breakthrough. If you are willing to yield the Twin-Lotus to me, the Royal Family will owe you a major personal favor, and I shall compensate you with ten thousand gold taels."
The audience gasped once more. A personal favor from a royal princess of the Imperial Capital was an intangible treasure that could alter the fate of an entire city!
Li-Wen slowly looked up toward the crystal balcony. His golden-tinged eyes met Ye-Xue's icy-blue gaze through fifty paces of misty air. His expression remained entirely indifferent, devoid of the slightest flicker of desire or intimidation.
"A royal favor holds no value to me," Li-Wen said quietly. "The Twin-Lotus belongs to me."
Ye-Xue's eyes flashed with a hint of cold shock. In the Imperial Capital, countless top-tier geniuses from supreme sects fought desperately just to earn a single word from her. Yet this youth in a remote border town had dismissed her royal status and ten thousand gold taels without giving it a second thought!
Uncle Yan's aura flared slightly in anger, his gray robes billowing, but Ye-Xue raised her slender, pale hand, stopping her guardian. "So be it," she said softly, stepping back into the velvet shadows of her suite. "It seems this border city conceals deep, unpredictable waters."
Within minutes, Madam Su personally brought the heavy iron chest containing the six-hundred-year-old Twin-Lotus of Ice and Fire to the private guest room, along with a heavy leather satchel holding three hundred sparkling, energy-dense spirit stones. In return, Li-Wen handed over a second jade slip containing the remaining eighty percent of the Tier-Three recipe.
Having obtained his core objective, Li-Wen did not linger in the Grand Pavilion for another second. Guided by a silent attendant, he stepped into the secluded underground VIP exit, vanishing into the cold, misty night of Azure Mist City.
The midnight air was biting cold, carrying the damp, metallic scent of river water and wet stone.
Li-Wen walked down a narrow, deserted alleyway three streets away from the commercial district. The quiet cobbled street was illuminated only by the pale, sickly moonlight filtering through the heavy rain clouds above.
Suddenly, Li-Wen paused his footsteps, stopping in the middle of the dark alley.
"You have followed me for three full streets," Li-Wen spoke quietly into the damp night shadows. "Since you desire what is in my hands, why hide like sewer rats?"
Rustle...
From the rooftops on both sides of the alley, five dark figures leaped down simultaneously, their heavy leather boots landing with a soft thud on the wet cobblestones, sealing both ends of the narrow passage.
The leader was a tall, heavily built man wearing a scarred bronze mask, wielding a massive, blood-stained executioner's axe. The thick, violent aura radiating from his body reached the formidable Seventh Stage of Ki-Refine!
This was Blood Axe—the ruthless deputy leader of the Blood Skull Mercenary Corps, a notorious group of black-market bandits operating along the city borders.
"Heh, sharp-eared brat," Blood Axe sneered, his voice raspy and cruel behind his metal mask. "You possess an ancient Tier-Three pill recipe and three hundred spirit stones, yet you walk through the dark alleys alone without a guard escort. Did you really think the Grand Pavilion's protection extends beyond their front doors?
The four mercenaries surrounding Li-Wen drew their notched short blades, their eyes burning with intense, murderous greed. They were all experienced killers at the Fifth and Sixth Stages of Ki-Refine, their hands stained with the blood of dozens of travelers.
"Deliver the iron chest, the spirit stones, and the original pill manual," Blood Axe ordered, resting his heavy axe onto his shoulder. "Do so, and I might leave your corpse intact for your family to bury.
Li-Wen slowly turned around. He looked at the five deadly mercenaries surrounding him, his expression completely devoid of fear, tension, or anger. A cold, faint smile slowly curved the corners of his lips.
"I needed a quiet place to test the refined strength of my second rune," Li-Wen murmured softly, adjusting his navy sleeves. "You have arrived at a very convenient time."
"Arrogant little bastard! Chop him into meat paste!" Blood Axe roared in fury.
The four mercenaries lunged simultaneously! Their blades flared with chaotic, blood-red Ki as they slashed toward Li-Wen's throat, chest, and limbs from four different angles with lethal, practiced coordination!
Li-Wen didn't draw a weapon. He didn't even shift his footing.
Abyssal Bone Rune—Activate!
Deep within his spine, the burnished gold and purple divine rune flared with blinding, subterranean luminescence. One hundred and forty thousand jin of pure earth magnetic pressure erupted through his bone marrow and muscle channels!
BOOM!
A visible, circular shockwave of heavy gravitational force burst outward from Li-Wen's body!
The incoming four mercenaries felt as if an ancient mountain had suddenly dropped onto their shoulders from the sky. The heavy air pressure shattered their internal Ki barriers in an instant. Their sharp steel blades snapped into dozens of flying fragments before even touching Li-Wen's robes!
"WHAT?!" the mercenaries shrieked in absolute terror.
Before they could recoil or process the horror, Li-Wen moved. His body dissolved into a black blur, passing through the four men like a phantom traversing the mortal plane.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
Four rapid, crisp bone-crushing explosions echoed through the narrow alley!
Li-Wen's bare palms struck their chests with terrifying, absolute force. The heavy impact pulverized their ribs, shattered their heart vessels, and launched all four mercenaries backward like broken puppets. They slammed violently into the stone walls of the alley before slumping dead into the mud, their eyes wide with unexploded shock.
The entire fight had lasted less than two seconds!
Blood Axe stood frozen in place, his heavy executioner's axe trembling violently in his hands. His eyes behind the bronze mask were wide with pure, unadulterated horror.
Instantly killing four mid-tier cultivators with bare hands without using external sword Qi or spiritual armor?!
"You... you aren't a junior!" Blood Axe yelled in terror, taking frantic steps backward. "Monster! What kind of monster are you?!"
Blood Axe didn't hesitate for another second. He dropped his heavy axe onto the stone floor, turned around, and unleashed all his Seventh-Stage Ki into his thighs, leaping toward the high stone wall to escape for his life!
"Can you escape?" Li-Wen's quiet voice echoed right behind Blood Axe's ear.
Blood Axe's heart nearly stopped beating. Before he could turn his head, a smooth, pale hand reached out from behind, clamping down onto his thick neck like a vice of cold iron!
Li-Wen effortlessly dragged the two-hundred-pound Seventh-Stage mercenary down from mid-air, slamming him face-first into the wet mud!
CRACK!
"AAAGHH!" Blood Axe let out a strangled, agonizing scream as Li-Wen's boot came down heavily onto his right shoulder, shattering his collarbone and shoulder joint into splinters.
Li-Wen leaned down slightly, looking into the eyes of the panicked mercenary leader.
"Who told you I left the Grand Pavilion alone?" Li-Wen asked calmly.
Blood Axe coughed up black blood, his body trembling uncontrollably beneath Li-Wen's boot. "It... it was Young Master Bai! Bai-Chen from the Bai Clan! He saw you win the Twin-Lotus at the auction... he paid our Blood Skull group fifty spirit stones to ambush you here, murder you, and steal the herb!"
"The Bai Clan..." Li-Wen's eyes narrowed slightly.
The Bai Clan was one of the Three Great Families of Azure Mist City, long standing as a fierce rival to the Wu Clan. It seemed that after crushing the internal traitors of his family, the external snakes of the city were finally raising their heads.
"You have answered honestly," Li-Wen said smoothly.
SNAP!
With a casual flick of his forefinger, a sharp needle of Ki pierced straight through Blood Axe's skull, ending his life instantly.
Li-Wen pulled a clean handkerchief from his robe, calmly wiping his fingers before tossing the cloth onto the corpse.
He picked up his iron chest and the pouch of spirit stones, stepping out of the blood-stained alley.
He looked up toward the northern horizon, where the dark, jagged silhouettes of the mountains stood against the night sky.
"The Bai Clan can wait," Li-Wen thought, his eyes reflecting a cold, divine glint. "First, I will enter the Primeval Ghost Forest, refine the Twin-Lotus, and forge the Ignis-Frost Astral Rune. When I return for the Family Assessment, no force in Azure Mist City will be able to stop my path.
See you in next chapter.....