The Golden Toad Auction House in Silver City was a playground for the rich and the wicked. It was a place where spirit stones flowed like water, and morality was checked at the door along with weapons.
Tonight, the atmosphere was electric. The Zhao Clan, reeling from the loss of their Clan Head and the destruction of their caravans, was liquidating assets. Vultures from every minor sect and merchant guild had gathered to pick the carcass clean.
In the VIP box on the second floor, a young man sat on a velvet throne.
He wore robes of midnight blue silk, embroidered with silver thread that formed patterns of weeping skulls. His face was pale, handsome, and sharp as a razor. He held a fan made of black iron feathers.
This was Young Master Nether.
Behind him stood a shadow (Ghost One) and a massive, robed figure radiating the stench of blood (Gu Sha).
"The Zhao Clan is desperate," Mo Tian said, his voice smooth and aristocratic. "Look at them."
He pointed his fan at the box across the hall. A fat Elder of the Zhao Clan—Elder Zhao Fat (literally, his name was Zhao Fu, but Mo Tian preferred the nickname)—was sweating, wiping his brow with a silk cloth.
"They are selling the Spirit Iron Mine deed today," Ghost One whispered. "It is their main source of weapon ore."
"And we will buy it," Mo Tian smiled. "With the money we stole from their caravan."
The auctioneer, a woman in a revealing red dress, stepped onto the stage.
"Ladies and Gentlemen! Welcome to the Golden Toad! Tonight, we have treasures that will shake the heavens!"
The auction began.
Pills, artifacts, and beasts were sold. Mo Tian sat silent, sipping wine. He wasn't interested in trash.
"Next item!" The auctioneer announced. "Lot 44. The Deed to the Black Iron Mountain Mine. Proven reserves of high-grade ore. A stable asset for any clan!"
"Starting bid: 50,000 Spirit Stones!"
"60,000!" shouted the Iron Fist Sect representative.
"70,000!" countered a merchant from the Violet Sword Sect.
"80,000!" Elder Zhao Fu looked hopeful. If he got a good price, he could stabilize the clan's finances.
Mo Tian tapped his fan.
"200,000."
The hall went silent. 200,000 was double the market value.
Elder Zhao Fu looked across the hall. "Who is that? Which family is 'Nether'?"
"I heard he is a mysterious merchant from the Capital," an aide whispered. "Very wealthy. Very dangerous."
"200,000 going once... twice... Sold!"
Mo Tian casually tossed a storage bag to the attendant. He didn't even look at it.
Elder Zhao Fu bowed toward Mo Tian's box. "Thank you, Young Master Nether! The Zhao Clan appreciates your generosity!"
Mo Tian covered his mouth with his fan to hide his smirk. You are thanking the thief who robbed you for buying your house with your own money. Idiots.
"Now," the auctioneer's voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper. "For our Finale. A special item. Not for the faint of heart."
A massive iron cage was wheeled onto the stage. It was covered by a black cloth. Runes of suppression glowed on the bars.
"This item," the auctioneer said, "was found in the ruins of a battlefield near the Borderlands. She killed fifty Foundation Establishment cultivators before she was captured."
She pulled the cloth.
Inside the cage sat a woman.
She was chained by her neck, wrists, and ankles. She wore ragged rags that barely covered her body. Her skin was covered in dried blood—mostly not her own. Her hair was a matted mess of crimson.
But her eyes.
They were red. Not the glowing red of a technique, but the dull, flat red of a sea of blood. She looked at the crowd not with fear, but with a hunger that made seasoned cultivators shiver.
"We call her The Red Witch," the auctioneer said. "She has no name. She does not speak. She only kills. A perfect battle slave for a powerful master."
"Starting bid: 10,000 Spirit Stones."
The crowd hesitated. She looked dangerous. Too dangerous.
"System," Mo Tian narrowed his eyes. "Scan."
[Active: Eye of Truth]
Target: Unknown Female Race: Human (Mutated) Physique: [Asura Blood Physique] (Rank: Heaven) Law Affinity: Slaughter / Blood Potential: SSS (Empress Class) Current Status: Starving. Bound by a Slave Seal.
Mo Tian's fan snapped shut.
An Asura Blood Physique?
This was one of the legendary Physiques of the Ancient Era. It fed on war. The more she killed, the stronger she got. There was no bottleneck.
"This is not a slave," Mo Tian whispered. "This is a General."
"15,000!" A fat merchant bid. "I need a guard for my harem."
The woman in the cage snarled. She bit the iron bars, her teeth cracking on the metal.
"20,000!"
"50,000!"
The bidding was heating up. People wanted the novelty of a feral beauty.
Mo Tian stood up. He walked to the railing of the balcony.
He released a sliver of his [Blood Monarch Aura].
The woman in the cage froze. Her head snapped up. Her red eyes locked onto Mo Tian. She sniffed the air. She smelled it. The scent of a King.
"500,000 Spirit Stones."
The hall gasped. 500,000? That was the price of a Sect's entire annual budget!
"Young Master Nether," the auctioneer stammered. "Are... are you sure?"
"Did I stutter?" Mo Tian asked coldly. "Bring her to me. And keep the cage locked. I like them wild."
Elder Zhao Fu stared in shock. This man is insane. He spent half a million on a slave?
"Sold!"
Mo Tian sat back down.
"Ghost One," he commanded. "Prepare the carriage. We are taking our new weapon home."