Seven days later, at six in the evening.
A black soul-guided vehicle departed from the Wang Family residence, speeding toward the Sun Moon Auction House.
Inside the vehicle sat a young man with sharp sword-like brows and starry eyes, his features perfectly sculpted.
Wang Chen sat quietly, his gaze drifting through the window as he admired the glittering nightscape of Mingdu. Driving, of course, wasn't something he needed to worry about—his guards took care of that.
Nighttime Mingdu was far more dazzling than its daytime self. This was the largest city on the entire Douluo Continent.
The combined capitals of Star Luo, Heavenly Soul, and Dou Ling Empires could not compare to Mingdu.
Unlike other walled cities, Mingdu had no borders—just endless stretches of buildings, boundless to the eye. The sea of lights painted the city bright, nearly outshining the starry heavens.
With its highly advanced soul tool technology, Mingdu's brilliance rivaled even Wang Chen's memories of his previous world. Compared to Mingdu, the capital of the Heavenly Soul Empire, Heaven Dou City, with its enclosing walls, seemed like a relic of feudal times—backward and rustic.
Leaning back, Wang Chen silently admired the grandeur of Mingdu's technological light.
In the past seven days of cultivation, his strength had once again advanced.
He had eaten well, drunk well, and even his daily Foundation-Fortifying elixirs were of a higher grade than before. On top of that, he had enjoyed medicinal baths.
By his estimation, within just one more month, he would break through to the 30th rank—Soul Elder level. The speed was simply terrifying.
For even a prodigy born with innate full soul power, breaking through from Grandmaster to Soul Elder usually required several months at this bottleneck. Wang Chen, however, only needed half their time.
This made him all the more satisfied with his new cultivation method, the Meridian-Connecting Technique. Compared to his old one, this was like trading a rusty spear for a cannon—an instant upgrade.
Not only that, Wang Chen had grown another centimeter taller, inching closer to 1.7 meters in height. With the high-nutrition meals he had been enjoying—crafted from century-old spirit beasts and herbs—and his body still in its prime growth stage, growing taller was only natural.
During these seven days, he had also pushed his Black Book's crystal imprint to perfect several skills—ones that normally consumed immense amounts of spiritual power.
For example, his trump card is the secret technique Ring Tempering (Cuihuan).
Now, instead of activating all his spirit rings at once, he could selectively trigger one or several, depending on the battle.
Against an opponent just slightly stronger than himself, there was no need to burn through everything. Using only one ring's energy would be enough.
Before, he had no such control and would waste power by releasing them all.
Now, thanks to the Black Book's crystal imprint refinements, not only was the technique more efficient, but the backlash was reduced.
Originally, using Ring Tempering once required a three-day cooldown. Now, it was down to just one day.
Even more shocking, the refinement unlocked a more destructive form—directly detonating a spirit ring to unleash its full energy.
That's right, it was the fabled secret technique of the Clear Sky Sect—Ring Explosion (Zha Huan).
But Wang Chen's version, improved by the Black Book, had fewer side effects and greater control.
The Clear Sky Sect's version left users unable to summon the detonated ring for three days, with lingering weakness that lasted over a month before the skill could be used again.
Wang Chen's version reduced the backlash to just one-third. His exploded rings would begin recovery in a single day, and within twelve days, he could use Ring Explosion again.
Not only did his version have less backlash, but it was also stronger, easier to control, and even more devastating.
Such was the Black Book's terrifying ability—to surpass the accumulation of a thousand-year-old sect in just one refinement.
If the Clear Sky Sect ever discovered that their supreme art had been not only learned but perfected and outclassed by someone else, they would probably vomit blood in rage.
Still, the technique's drawbacks were severe enough that it wasn't for casual use—it was reserved for true life-and-death battles.
As Wang Chen's gaze lingered on Mingdu's glittering lights, time slipped by quickly.
Ten minutes later.
His sleek, black soul-guided vehicle stopped before a twelve-story building glittering with gold and jade.
Above its center hung a massive plaque with five bold characters: Sun Moon Auction House.
"Young master, we've arrived," the driver-guards said respectfully.
Donning a black cloak and mask to conceal his identity, Wang Chen disembarked with his two guards. They stored the soul-guided car in a storage device before entering.
Both his guards were Soul Kings and fifth-rank soul engineers—not weak by any measure. In Mingdu, with its safety guaranteed by the imperial family, they were more than sufficient.
Of course, for dangerous expeditions like hunting spirit rings, Wang Chen would have Soul Saints accompany him. Soul King guards alone would not suffice outside.
Wang Chen's eyes flickered with determination as he gazed at the resplendent auction house.
To ensure he could win the Soul-Devouring Carving Knife without mishap, he had even borrowed money from Meng Hongchen, his little rich "sister."
After receiving his request, Meng Hongchen—terrified that Wang Chen might not have enough—sent him not ten thousand, but a full one million gold soul coins on a golden bank card.
She even wrote in her letter:
"Brother Wang Chen, if this isn't enough, I'll raid my brother's stash too!"
Xiao Hongchen: (｀)Ψ "Meng Hongchen! Enough! I'm your real brother! Why do you always side with outsiders?!"
Reading the letter, Wang Chen's heart softened. Such deep affection… perhaps only giving himself to her in marriage would be enough repayment.
But that was for later.
Now, with Meng Hongchen's help, Wang Chen's funds reached a staggering 1.1 million gold soul coins.
In the original story, the Soul-Devouring Carving Knife had gone unsold in the Sun Moon Empire and ended up in the Star Luo Empire, where Huo Yuhao bought it for only ten thousand gold soul coins.
But Wang Chen was certain that this time, no one could outbid him.
Still, he was never one to gamble on luck—he prepared fully, determined not to leave room for regret.
Following the guards into the auction house, Wang Chen paid a one-thousand coin service fee, received an anonymous room card, and entered a private box.
There, he lounged on a plush sofa, holding a bidding device while waiting for the auction to begin.
He eyed his guards cautiously—he didn't want them to know he was bidding on the infamous Soul-Devouring Carving Knife.
That cursed tool had killed many well-known soul engineers in Mingdu. If his guards knew, they might report it to the Wang Family elders, who could confiscate it "for his safety."
He couldn't let that happen.
So, with quick thinking, he handed them five thousand gold soul coins and instructed them to run errands at Baibao Tower and Baiyao Hall. The leftover funds would be their "bonus."
Seeing such generosity, the guards' eyes gleamed. They eagerly accepted, reasoning that Wang Chen would be perfectly safe in the auction house, guarded as it was by Soul Douluo-level engineers and backed by the imperial family itself.
As they left, Wang Chen stretched lazily, a smile curling on his lips.
Now, he could bid without worry.
He sipped fruit juice as he waited.
The auction began.
On the soul-screen, a cheongsam-clad beauty appeared, hammer in hand, her professional smile radiant.
"Honored guests, welcome to the Sun Moon Auction House. Tonight's auction begins now—I hope you all leave with treasures of your heart."
Item after item was displayed and bid upon—medicines, herbs, rare metals, soul tool blueprints.
Wang Chen did not move his bidder's device. He waited patiently for his true target.
At last, midway through the auction, the item appeared:
A small, exquisite carving knife. Half a foot long, no thicker than a finger, its blade widened slightly before narrowing into a razor-sharp tip. Its surface was dark, inscribed with faint, ancient patterns, exuding a heavy, somber aura.
On-screen, the hostess introduced:
"This next item, many of you have heard of—it is the infamous Soul-Devouring Carving Knife.
This tool is extremely dangerous… its owners have never met good ends. So please consider carefully.
Of course, danger comes with great power. Its strength rivals the top thirty-ranked carving knives, making it a rare treasure indeed.
The starting bid is 100,000 gold soul coins. Each raise no less than 1,000."
The hall fell silent.
Not a single bid came.
The soul engineers of the Sun Moon Empire were all wary of the knife's cursed reputation—who would risk becoming its next victim?
The hostess grew anxious. No way! If this gets passed over, my commission is ruined!
She tried hard to sell its merits, but time ticked away, and the item was about to be withdrawn.
At the final five seconds—
Wang Chen pressed his bidder's device.
"100,000 gold soul coins!"
The hostess's eyes lit up. Ecstatic, she slammed her hammer down.
100,000 gold soul coins—sold!