Shen Yao heard Marcus curse.
Her smile widened.
Then her hand moved faster than thought.
The slap cracked across Marcus's face like thunder. Lightning exploded behind his eyes. His head snapped sideways. Pain detonated through his skull.
The world tilted.
His vision went white. Then black. Then nothing made sense.
His body hit the ground. Convulsions ripped through him. Muscles locked. Foam bubbled from his mouth.
Seizure.
Liu dropped beside him. "Sir! Marcus!"
Chen grabbed his shoulders. "Don't let him choke. Recovery position. Now."
They rolled Marcus onto his side. Kept his airway clear. Liu held his head steady while his body thrashed.
Two minutes felt like hours.
Finally the convulsions stopped. Marcus went limp. His breathing steadied. Unconscious but alive.
Shen Yao looked down at him. Her expression was cold. Bored. "Carry him. Follow me."
Liu and Chen lifted Marcus between them. His head lolled. Blood trickled from where he'd bitten his tongue.
They followed the Black Swan cultivators into the building.
---
The main hall of the Slave Trader Association teemed with people.
Different races. Different languages. All waiting in lines that stretched toward reception desks staffed by bored looking clerks.
Shen Yao walked past the crowd. People parted like water. No one dared block her path.
A fat man behind the reception desk saw her coming. His face went pale. He bowed so low his forehead nearly touched the counter.
"Elder Shen Yao. This is an honor. Please. This way."
He led them through a side door into a luxurious room. Silk cushions. Jade decorations. The air smelled like incense and money.
The fat man scurried away.
Minutes later a woman entered. Beautiful. Purple robes that screamed wealth and status. Foundation Establishment at minimum. Maybe higher.
She bowed to Shen Yao. "How may we serve you today Elder?"
Shen Yao gestured at Marcus's unconscious form. "I have slaves to sell. Three total. This one is special."
She leaned close. Whispered in the woman's ear.
The purple robed woman's eyebrows shot up. "Truly?"
"See for yourself."
The woman approached Marcus. Placed two fingers on his wrist. Her eyes closed. Qi probed through his body.
Her eyes snapped open.
"Incredible." She looked at Shen Yao with new respect. "Elder was not exaggerating. This is a jackpot."
"Then we have a deal?"
"Absolutely. We'll take all three. The standard commission applies."
Shen Yao nodded. The purple robed woman snapped her fingers.
The fat assistant appeared. "Take the two conscious ones to processing. This one stays here for examination."
Liu looked back as they dragged him away. His eyes found Marcus. Worry and fear written across his face.
Then he was gone.
---
Marcus woke to agony.
His head felt like someone was hammering nails through his skull. He groaned. Tried to move.
Couldn't.
His eyes opened.
A cage. Metal bars. Bright lights. Beyond them shadows. Hundreds of people watching.
His neck was locked in a collar. Chains on his wrists. Stripped to the waist.
On display.
The collar was too tight. Each breath was work. His wrists bled where the chains cut in. How long had he been unconscious? Hours? Days?
An auctioneer's voice boomed. "Next we have our main event. Male with Yang physique. Bone age assessment confirms mid-twenties. Perfect breeding stock."
The words hit like fists.
Breeding stock.
Marcus pulled against the chains. The metal cut deeper. Blood ran down his palms. His enhanced strength meant nothing.
The cage was too small to stand. He crouched. Exposed. Humiliated.
"Starting bid one thousand medium grade spirit coins."
Voices erupted from the darkness.
"One thousand two hundred."
"Fifteen hundred."
"Two thousand."
Marcus couldn't see their faces. Couldn't identify who wanted to own him. Just voices deciding his worth.
The chains rattled with each movement. Someone in the audience laughed.
"Three thousand."
His fingers clenched. Useless. Every number stripped away another piece of humanity.
"Thirty five hundred."
The collar pressed against his throat. He couldn't swallow properly. Couldn't breathe deeply.
"Four thousand."
Two voices remained. Cabin ten. Cabin seventy three.
They fought over him like merchants over grain.
"Forty two hundred."
Marcus thought of Alex. Was his friend in a cage too? Being sold?
"Forty five hundred."
His wrists throbbed. The pain was constant. Real. A reminder this wasn't a nightmare.
"Forty six hundred." Female voice. Cabin ten. Cold. Final.
Silence.
"Going once. Going twice."
Ten seconds of quiet. Marcus's heart hammered against his ribs.
"Sold to cabin ten for forty six hundred medium grade spirit coins."
Applause. Polite. Bored.
Just another sale.
Chains rattled. Cultivators grabbed Marcus. Dragged him off stage.
His legs barely held him. The female auctioneer walked beside him.
"You're lucky." Her voice was quiet. Professional. "Cabin seventy three are demonic cultivators. They would have refined you into a Yang pill. Alive. Screaming. For days."
Marcus's blood went cold.
"My friends." His voice came out hoarse. "Two men with me. Where—"
"Don't ask about others." She cut him off. Pity in her eyes. "Serve your master. Survive. That's all you can do now."
The words hit like fists.
They stopped outside cabin ten. The door opened.
Two tall guards in cultivator robes. Behind them a woman in blue silk. Veiled face. Only golden amber eyes visible. Her figure was impossible. The kind that belonged in fantasies not reality.
But her eyes were empty. Looking at Marcus like he was furniture.
The auctioneer bowed. "Congratulations Lady Xue Lian."
She handed over a jade slip. The slave control seal.
Marcus felt qi invade his body. Drill into his bones. Settle there like a parasite.
The pain was sharp. Brief. Then it pulsed. Constant. A reminder with every heartbeat.
One command from her and it would kill him.
Xue Lian took the slip. Handed over a pouch. Spirit coins clinked.
Then she approached. Unlocked his chains. Pulled his backpack from a storage ring. Gave it back.
No words. No explanation.
"Come."
The system panel flashed.
Higher Cultivation Female Detected
Current Task: Increase Favorability
Name: Xue Lian
Age: 370
Cultivation: Golden Core Stage 1
Occupation: Leader of Black Seal Trade Association
Spirit Root: 2nd Grade
Talent: Merchant (High), Cultivation (Low)
Favorability: 0/100
Three hundred seventy years old. Looked thirty.
Golden Core. Realms above Foundation Establishment.
This woman could erase him with a thought.
---
They left the auction house. Xue Lian's guards lifted Marcus into the air. They flew.
Marcus watched the city pass beneath. Buildings stretched in every direction. After twenty minutes he still saw no end.
Tianluo City was massive beyond comprehension.
After thirty minutes they descended. A mansion spread before them. White stone walls twenty meters high. Gardens between inner and outer walls. Three story main building with curved roofs.
Wealth on display.
The guards bowed to Xue Lian. Left without a word.
"Follow me." She walked toward the entrance.
Marcus followed. His eyes tracked her movements. Then looked away.
She owned him. Getting distracted was suicide.
The entrance hall was massive. Calligraphy scrolls on walls. Paintings of impossible landscapes. Spirit stones in the ceiling glowed soft colors.
Twenty maids in matching uniforms stood in rows. An older woman at their head bowed. "Welcome home Lady Xue."
Their eyes found Marcus. Questions they wouldn't ask.
"Take him to the guest quarters." Xue Lian's tone was final. "Give him what he needs."
A young maid stepped forward. "Yes my lady."
Xue Lian walked away. Disappeared into the mansion.
Marcus followed the maid through hallways. The system wanted him to increase her favorability. But how? She was Golden Core. A merchant lord who bought people. He was property worth five thousand spirit coins.
"Sir?" The maid's voice pulled him back. "We've arrived."
He looked at her. Really looked. Young. Maybe twenty. Plain features but kind eyes.
"What's your name?"
"Rose sir."
"I'm Marcus."
She smiled. Small. Genuine. "If you need anything just call. I'll be nearby."
She left. The door closed.
Marcus collapsed onto the bed. Exhausted. Terrified. Alive.
The system panel appeared.
Task Complete: Survive
Reward: System Update Available
Marcus selected update.
A progress bar filled. His heart hammered. What would change? What new hell would the system demand?
The bar completed.
System Updated to Tier 1
New information flooded his consciousness.
The Heavenly Kama System was created from primordial energy when the God of Love and Kindness fell in the Divine Realm. This system operates on Kama Points.
Earning Methods:
1. Increase female cultivator favorability above 80% = 10 Kama Points per person
2. Spread love and kindness throughout the world = 0.1 Kama Points per person affected
Current Balance: 0 Kama Points
Marcus read it twice. His mind worked through the implications.
Option one was straightforward. Seduce female cultivators. Build relationships. Push favorability above eighty percent. Ten points each.
His enhanced physique would help. Yang energy apparently made him valuable. Desirable. The system had literally modified his body for this path.
But the thought made his stomach turn.
Not from prudishness. Marcus wasn't naive about sex or relationships. But using women as point farms felt wrong. Manipulative. Exactly the kind of thing the people who'd enslaved him would do.
His parents had raised him better than that. Honor. Integrity. Treat people as people not resources.
Even if those values had gotten him nowhere in this brutal world.
Option two was broader. Spread love and kindness. Point one Kama Points per person. A hundred times less efficient.
But scale changed everything.
Marcus had flown over Tianluo City for thirty minutes without seeing its end. The walls stretched forever. Buildings packed so densely they blurred together. Millions lived here. Had to be. Maybe tens of millions.
And this was just one city. The Azure Cloud Kingdom had seven great cities according to Shen Yao. How many smaller cities? Towns? Villages?
How many people lived in this world? Hundreds of millions? Billions?
If he could reach even a fraction of them the numbers would dwarf option one.
Ten points for seducing one woman. Or point one points for helping a thousand people. The math favored scale.
And it let him sleep at night.
Marcus wasn't stupid. He'd probably need option one eventually. The system wouldn't make it available if it wasn't necessary. But he'd start with option two. Build goodwill. Help people. Actually make this world less terrible.
If that didn't work he'd reconsider.
But first he needed to figure out what spreading love and kindness actually meant in practice.
Marcus opened the system mall. A notification appeared.
Insufficient Kama Points. Mall Locked.
Of course.
A knock at the door. Rose entered with fresh robes. Black silk. Expensive.
"Dinner is in one hour sir. Please bathe and change. Lady Xue Lian dislikes waiting."
Marcus took the robes. "Thank you Rose."
She left. Marcus went to the bath. Hot water. Scented oils. Luxury he didn't deserve.
He dressed. The black robes fit perfectly. Made him look like someone important. Someone with power.
A lie reflected in polished bronze.
Another knock. Rose again. "Dinner is ready sir."
Marcus followed her to the dining hall. A table set for two. Only one chair occupied.
Rose saw his confusion. "Lady Xue had urgent business. She apologizes. Please eat."
Marcus ate alone. The food was incredible. Flavors he'd never tasted. Each bite reminded him he was a prisoner in a gilded cage.
After he returned to his room. Lay on the bed. Stared at the ceiling.
Liu and Chen were out there somewhere. Sold separately. Probably suffering. Probably wishing Marcus had done more.
Alex was with the Primordial Dao Sect. Taken. Marcus didn't know why. Didn't know if they'd killed him or enslaved him or something worse.
He just knew his best friend was gone.
Seven dead. Captain Max. The guards who'd died fighting the cultivators. Their faces haunted him.
Forty more taken by the Primordial Dao Sect. For what purpose Marcus couldn't guess. Cultivation? Slavery? Experiments?
He had no answers. Just questions and rage.
Max's letter still in his backpack. A promise he couldn't keep.
And Marcus was here. Fed. Clothed. Safe.
Useless.
The system wanted him to spread kindness. To increase favorability.
Fine.
He would play the game. Learn the rules. Gain power through whatever twisted path the system offered . And when he was strong enough he would get his revenge .
Starting with the Primordial Dao Sect.
Then the Black Swan Sect.
Then anyone else who thought mortals were livestock.
Marcus closed his eyes.
Tomorrow he would start climbing.
Tonight he was just Marcus. Alone. Afraid. Alive.