The two tokens in Li Yu's storage ring were a heavy, tangible representation of the new, invisible webs he had begun to weave in Sunken Treasure City. The golden sea lion of the Guild and the fiery cauldron of the Alchemist were not just symbols of favor; they were keys to doors he had not even known existed. He knew that in a city of sleeping dragons, a small fish needed powerful friends and deep, hidden currents to navigate.
Back at the inn, the atmosphere was one of quiet, focused energy. The four of them gathered around the main table, a map of the city spread between them, marked with the intelligence they had each gathered.
"Jin Ao's faction is staying at the Heavenly Jade Pavilion," Lin Tao reported, his voice a low, precise murmur. "It's one of the most expensive establishments in the city, owned by a clan that has business ties with Elder Jin's family. They have a dozen disciples with them, all at the Qi Condensation Realm. Jin Ao himself has not left the pavilion, but his followers have been active, visiting various shops and spreading their influence."
"Spreading their influence is a polite way to put it," Hu Jian grumbled, taking a large bite of a meat bun. "I heard them in a tavern in the merchant's district. They're telling everyone that the Green Mountain Sect's new 'prodigy' is a coward who hides behind his master's name and relies on tricks. They're trying to poison your reputation before the auction even begins, Junior Steward."
"Let them talk," Li Yu said calmly. "A barking dog is less dangerous than a silent one. Their arrogance makes them predictable." He looked at Brother Kai. "What have you learned?"
"The competition for the Heart of the Deep Sea will be fierce," the old steward said, his expression grim. "The Blackwater Demonic Clan has sent a delegation led by their Young Matriarch. The Myriad Beast Sect is here, led by their chief elder's son. And I have heard rumors that a private room has been reserved for someone from the Royal Family of the Eastern Sea Dynasty." He let out a long sigh. "Junior Steward, these are all factions with wealth that can rival our entire sect. One hundred thousand spirit stones… it may not be enough."
"Then we will have to be smarter than them," Li Yu replied, his gaze unwavering. He knew his master had not sent him on an impossible task. The test was not just about wealth, but about cunning.
The next day, Li Yu did not visit the opulent Azure Pavilion district. Instead, he made his way back to the Fisherman's Wharf, alone. He found Old Man Feng skillfully mending a large net, his Spirit-Eyed Cormorant perched on his shoulder, its feathers a vibrant, healthy black.
"Young Master Li!" the old man exclaimed, his face breaking into a wide, joyful smile. He quickly stood and bowed, a gesture of deep, genuine respect. "To what do I owe the honor of your visit?"
"Please, Uncle Feng, there is no need for such formality," Li Yu said with a warm smile. "I was simply exploring the city and thought I would see how your companion was doing."
"He is better than ever!" the old man said, stroking the cormorant's head. "His spirit is strong, and his eyes are sharp. My catch has doubled in the past week. My family… we are eating well, thanks to you." He looked at Li Yu, his expression sincere. "The wharf is a place of gossip, Young Master. I have heard the stories the other high-and-mighty disciples are spreading about you. Do not listen to them. The common folk, we know the truth. We know you are a good man."
Li Yu sat with the old fisherman for over an hour, not as a powerful cultivator, but as a young man listening to the stories of an elder. He learned about the best places to buy fresh, non-spiritual seafood. He learned which of the city's canals were the cleanest, and which were used as dumping grounds for alchemical waste. He learned about the subtle rivalries between the different fishing crews, and about the strange, phosphorescent shrimp that only appeared during a full moon.
It was a wealth of simple, practical knowledge that no information broker would ever bother to record. But to Li Yu, it was a detailed, living map of the city's hidden currents. And it was during this conversation that he learned a crucial piece of information.
"The Grand Auction is always a big event," Old Man Feng said, weaving his net with practiced ease. "But this year, there is a strange tension in the air. The city guard has been quietly buying up massive quantities of a single, common item: Deep-Water Ink Sacs, the kind from the giant Rank 2 squids."
"Ink sacs?" Li Yu asked, his curiosity piqued.
"Aye," the old man nodded. "Thousands of them. They say it's for a special formation to bolster the security of the auction house. Strange, isn't it? Using something so common for such an important task."
Li Yu filed the strange detail away, a small, interesting piece of information. It was probably nothing though. He thanked the old man for his time and left, promising to visit again.
Two days before the auction, as Li Yu was meditating in his room, the blue communication stone given to him by Elder Quan grew warm. He infused it with a thread of his True Qi, and the elder's low, rumbling voice echoed in his mind.
"Junior Brother Li. I hope I am not disturbing your cultivation. We have… a small, delicate situation. I was wondering if we might borrow your unique expertise."
"Of course, Elder Quan," Li Yu replied. "I am at your service."
He arrived at the Golden Sea Guild's pavilion to find Elder Quan not in his opulent office, but in a sealed, high-security chamber in the building's lower levels. The room was dominated by a single, massive tank, but the water inside was not clear; it was a swirling, inky black.
"It is a Shadow-Ink Octopus," Elder Quan explained, his face a mask of frustration. "A rare, variant Rank 5 beast. Its ink is a priceless ingredient for crafting high-grade invisibility and concealment talismans. We acquired it a month ago, but it has not eaten. It simply remains in its cloud of ink, and if any of our beast tamers try to approach, it attacks with a powerful psychic assault."
Li Yu extended his spiritual sense towards the tank. He was immediately met with a wave of profound, paranoid fear. The octopus's mind was a storm of anxiety, its thoughts a jumble of danger-threat-hide.
He listened deeper, sifting through the creature's terror, and found the source. The tank was perfectly round. For a creature like a Shadow-Ink Octopus, whose primary survival instinct was to find a dark, enclosed space to hide in, a perfectly round tank with no corners, no crevices, and no caves was a form of absolute torture. It was a prison of infinite, exposed space. It had surrounded itself with its own ink as a desperate, last-ditch effort to create a hiding place.
"Elder Quan," Li Yu said, his expression thoughtful. "This beast is not aggressive. It is terrified. It is a creature of the deep, a creature of caves and crevices. It needs a place to hide."
"We have tried placing artificial caves and rocks in the tank," the elder replied with a sigh. "It destroys them. It seems to perceive any foreign object as a threat."
Li Yu looked at the inky water, his mind delving into the vast library of knowledge he had absorbed from the sect's archives. He feigned a look of deep concentration, as if trying to recall a distant memory. "Elder, I remember reading about this in an ancient, obscure text. It said that Shadow-Ink Octopuses are extremely sensitive to spiritual energy. Any normal rock or ore radiates a faint aura that they perceive as a predator. The text mentioned they only make their lairs in a specific type of rock called 'Void-Veined Iron Ore'."
"Void-Veined Iron Ore?" Elder Quan's brow furrowed. "I have heard of it. It's a low-grade, porous ore, almost useless for forging. Why would it prefer that?"
"According to the text, the ore's unique porous structure causes it to absorb spiritual energy from its surroundings, making it a 'dead zone' to a beast's spiritual sense," Li Yu explained, his lie sounding like a passage from a scholarly journal. "To the octopus, a cave made of this ore would not feel like a foreign object. It would feel like a natural, safe, and completely empty hole in the world. A perfect hiding place."
Elder Quan's eyes widened, a flicker of understanding dawning on his face. The logic was strange, but it was sound. It explained why the beast destroyed every other type of shelter they had provided.
An hour later, after the guild's servants had scrambled to procure a large quantity of the common, almost worthless ore, Li Yu stood before the tank again. The servants had hastily constructed a simple, cave-like structure from the dark, porous rock and lowered it into the tank.
The moment the ore cave settled on the bottom, the frantic, terrified energy within the tank ceased. The cloud of ink began to part, and the Shadow-Ink Octopus, sensing a safe, dark, and spiritually silent space, immediately swam into the cave and settled down, its paranoid aura replaced by a profound sense of relief and security.
Elder Quan stared, speechless. He had been trying to solve this problem with force and medicine. This boy had solved it with obscure knowledge and a deep, empathetic understanding.
"Your debt is repaid, and now I owe you another," the elder said, his voice filled with a deep, genuine respect. "A simple payment would be an insult to your skill. As a token of our gratitude, I will allow you to select a reward from this list of our Guild's surplus treasures."
He handed Li Yu a jade slip. Li Yu infused it with his spiritual sense, and a list of several dozen valuable items appeared in his mind: rare spiritual herbs, high-grade ores, and a few powerful defensive artifacts. He scanned the list, his face a mask of polite interest, until his eyes landed on one particular item near the bottom of the list. His heart skipped a beat, but his expression did not change.
"Elder Quan," he said, his voice filled with a convincing, cultivator's curiosity. "This item… the 'Heart of the Deep Sea'. The description says it is a heaven-grade treasure, yet it is on this list. Why is that?"
Elder Quan let out a long sigh, a pained expression on his face. "Ah, that. It is a long story. We acquired it a century ago, but its energy is too pure, too profound. None of our guild's disciples have a foundation stable enough to absorb it. It is too powerful for the young, and of little use to us elders who have already established our foundations. It is a priceless treasure that has been collecting dust in our vault. We had planned to put it in the auction, but the patriarch is hesitant. It feels… wasteful."
"I would like to choose this as my reward," Li Yu said, his voice firm.
The elder chuckled, shaking his head. "Boy, your ambition is as great as your talent. The service you rendered was immense, but the value of this pearl… is higher than the services you've rendered so farl. I cannot simply give it to you as a reward."
"Then allow me to purchase it," Li Yu countered smoothly. "My master has entrusted me with one hundred thousand spirit stones for the auction. I will give you all of it now. As for the remainder… this one would be in your debt."
The elder stared at him, a slow, cunning smile spreading across his face. "You are a shrewd negotiator. Very well. The pearl is of no use to my guild, and your friendship is valuable. Eighty-five thousand spirit stones. That is the cost of the materials we used to acquire it. Not a single stone more."
"Done, knowing that the Elder was giving him face and also investing in his skills in the future" Li Yu said without a moment's hesitation, transferring the spirit stones from his master's storage ring.
"Hahaha!" Elder Quan let out a great, booming laugh. "Excellent! A deal is struck!"
He handed the Heart of the Deep Sea to Li Yu. The mission his master had sent him on was now complete, two days before the auction had even begun.
He left the pavilion, a new, powerful piece of the puzzle falling into place. As he walked back through the bustling streets, he passed a small, unassuming stall selling common herbs and plants. On a whim, he remembered the words of Old Man Feng.
Back at the inn, he now held the ultimate prize. He knew Jin Ao and his allies were preparing to wage a war of wealth over the Heart of the Deep Sea. They would be bidding furiously, driving the price to insane heights, all for a treasure that was already resting safely in his storage ring. The auction was no longer a competition for him.