Chapter 306

Not far from Fang Yu, Lotus Cloud Immortal looked stunned.

This time, she had fully witnessed the infighting among Yuhua Sect's true disciples, and the outcome had completely surprised her: a Golden Core Realm cultivator had been effortlessly defeated by one in the Heavenly Man Realm!

No matter how you looked at it, this seemed unreal.

After all, Fang Yu's opponent was also a peerless genius of Yuhua Sect, not some random nobody, yet Meng Shaobai had been defeated so easily!

"There's no need to spread fame overseas; I beg you to keep this secret. This is an internal matter of Yuhua Sect—I apologize for troubling you."

Fang Yu turned his gaze toward Lotus Cloud Immortal and spoke.

His earlier moves, though seemingly simple, had been his most powerful techniques: he shattered his opponent's mind with Great Cutting Art, preventing them from summoning magic power or gathering their spirit, then summoned the Five Emperors' Thunder with the Five Emperors' Canopy to obliterate all arts.

His killing techniques came one after another; against weaker foes, he killed them with his first strike, never needing a second.

Great Cutting Art, as the opening move, was incredibly effective.

"Understood, understood, friend, rest assured—I'll take this secret to my grave."

Seeing Fang Yu's serious expression, Lotus Cloud Immortal nodded, yet deep within her heart, curiosity stirred—what exactly were those divine abilities he used? Their power was overwhelming.

She considered herself a Heavenly Man Realm powerhouse, trained by many experts of Exalted Linglong, having cultivated numerous divine arts—but she realized clearly that if she had been his opponent, she would have perished in the first strike.

That strike was too fast, too ruthless, impossible to block.

After this incident, the two continued toward Exalted Linglong Tower.

Though the battle had seemed fierce, it had lasted only moments; even the city's experts had not yet reacted before it ended, and Fang Yu and Lotus Cloud Immortal quickly returned to Exalted Linglong Tower.

Fang Yu's gains this time were considerable: he acquired a Kunpeng egg, a Top-Grade artifact, and—free of charge—a great Dao: Great Slaughter Art.

In the following days, he began cultivating Great Slaughter Art.

The Wushengjian Sect's Great Slaughter Art was not difficult to cultivate, but the sect's philosophy was more demonic than any demon.

In heaven and earth, all things may be slain—kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill.

Slaughter knows no right or wrong, no boundaries; only by nurturing a heart of slaughter within can one perfect Great Slaughter Art.

Fang Yu held a different view on this, yet during cultivation, he realized that if one fully succumbed to Great Slaughter Art, even one's foster father or Master could be slain.

Meng Shaobai, who slew his own foster father, was not without reason.

"A fine young man, blessed with a miraculous encounter, yet he took the wrong path?"

A thought even rose in Fang Yu's heart.

But this thought was now useless—he and Meng Shaobai had already forged a mortal feud; only life-or-death combat remained. If fate grants him the chance in the future, he will kill him.

As he cultivated, days slipped by swiftly, and soon came the day of Exalted Linglong Tower's grand auction.

In these days, the entire city was in turmoil; Exalted Linglong Fief had already leaked the auction's climax item through its own channels, and many powerful figures now knew that Exalted Linglong Tower had acquired a Five-Element Sacred Beast: Zhu Que, and intended to auction it.

One stone stirred a thousand waves.

The Divine Beast Zhu Que was something the Xuan Huang Great World had not seen for a thousand, even ten thousand years; though many Five-Element Spirits had once been born in the Xuan Huang Great World, all had been claimed by ancient masters and could never appear on the open market.

Now, Exalted Linglong Fief had acquired a Zhu Que!

Visible to the eye, many high-cultivation cultivators arrived in this city under the Da Xuan Empire: those of the 7th Stage of Divine Abilities in the Golden Core Realm, the 8th Stage of Divine Abilities in the Wind-Fire Great Tribulation Realm, the 9th Stage of Divine Abilities in the Heaven-Earth Manifestation Realm, and the 10th Stage of Divine Abilities in the Defying Fate Realm—all came.

Rumors even claimed that ancient titans had descended upon this city.

"What's going on? Our Tai Bai City, though famed in the Da Xuan Empire, cannot compare to great cities like Wu Huangcheng or Xuan Huangcheng—why today are so many great figures appearing?"

A cultivator at the 3rd Stage of Divine Abilities in the Gang Qi Realm watched a 10th Stage Divine Abilities cultivator pass by, his spirit trembling.

The pressure from such cultivators was too immense; walking down the street, they carried the aura of annihilating ancient eons.

"I heard a whisper: Exalted Linglong Fief's Immortal captured a Zhu Que somewhere and is auctioning it here at Exalted Linglong Tower. That's why all these great figures have come. Look—another Golden Core Realm great one has arrived; I can clearly sense the oppressive aura of a Great Golden Core."

Said a cultivator at the 4th Stage of Divine Abilities in the Yin-Yang Realm, watching another great cultivator arrive.

"What? Zhu Que? That's a Fire Sacred Beast—nearly on par with a deity! And they're auctioning it?"

"Exactly! If this news hadn't come from an Immortal of Exalted Linglong Fief, I wouldn't believe it. Think—what is Zhu Que? How could it be auctioned? But Exalted Linglong Fief has Rourou Xianzun—a figure who could pluck stars from the sky and wear them as bracelets. So I believe this is true."

"We absolutely must go. I want to see what Zhu Que looks like."

"Of course we must go. We'll never bid for the Zhu Que Sacred Beast, but seeing it will broaden our horizons."

"Good!"

Countless whispers and spiritual senses spread everywhere, but Fang Yu went nowhere—he remained in Exalted Linglong Tower's VIP chamber, cultivating.

He cultivated while waiting for the auction to begin.

Soon, the auction commenced; treasures were sold one by one, yet no one cared much for the ordinary items—they all waited for Exalted Linglong Fief's main offering.

Finally, near the end, a woman of the 10th Stage of Divine Abilities from Exalted Linglong Fief herself took the stage, causing great commotion.

"That's my sister Mo Yue of Exalted Linglong Fief—she long ago reached the 10th Stage of Divine Abilities, Defying Fate Realm. Now, to auction Zhu Quexuanwu, she has come out of seclusion to preside over the event."

Lotus Cloud Immortal spoke, naming the woman.

Immortal Mo Yue had reached the 10th Stage of Divine Abilities, Defying Fate Realm, three hundred years ago, yet still had not broken through to the Longevity Secret Realm—she was only one step away.

But that step, she had waited three hundred years for.

"Ladies and gentlemen, what we are about to auction is the much-discussed Zhu Que—a Divine Beast born from the ultimate refinement of the Five Elements. If allowed to grow, it may even break through to the Longevity Secret Realm. Moreover, cultivating fire-based arts with this Zhu Que will allow even the most difficult supreme fire techniques to reach perfect mastery instantly. Furthermore, if a Zhu Que resides upon your mountain peak, it will alter the mountain's earth veins."

Immortal Mo Yue's gentle voice echoed throughout the grand auction hall.

With a gesture, the Sacred Beast Zhu Que was brought forth.

The Zhu Que remained sealed, yet its appearance instantly raised the auction hall's temperature manyfold; everyone felt drenched in sweat, as if a sun had been auctioned.

Some cultivators of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Stages of Divine Abilities, seated in the plaza below the VIP chambers, felt as if their entire bodies would melt and vanish utterly.

This sensation was terrifying.

Truly terrifying.

At the sight of Zhu Que, they knew their own weakness.

If this Zhu Que had not been sealed—if it had been released in this hall—it would have killed hundreds with a single breath.

Even among VIPs in the chambers, many Heavenly Man Realm and Return to Oneness Realm guests trembled; only ancient Golden Core minor titans remained unmoved, yet even their faces showed agitation.

"Zhu Que — it's actually a Zhu Que? Where in the world did Exalted Linglong's blessed land get a treasure like this?"

"What a fine treasure, truly a fine treasure. If this thing weren't being auctioned by Exalted Linglong's blessed land, I'd have just snatched it and gone."

A great demon of the demonic path let out a sinister voice, seeming to be itching to act, but with Exalted Linglong Xianzun presiding, he still didn't dare to make a move.

Once, a magnate of the Longevity Secret Realm had made a move against Exalted Linglong Xianzun's event, and later that magnate of the Longevity Secret Realm departed very peacefully.

"This holy beast has a starting price of four hundred million. Each call raises the bid by ten million elixirs. Ladies and gentlemen, let the bidding begin."

Just at that moment, Fairy Mo Yue's words rang out once more, stunning everyone present.

Fang Yu listened, feeling very pleased.

Higher the price, higher still — don't be stingy now.

With such a fine treasure here, you absolutely cannot miss it as you pass by.

An ancient holy beast — only this one.

"Four hundred and ten million!"

Just as Fang Yu was watching the show, someone in a VIP room had already called out a price, raising the bid by ten million directly.

This style of bidding left those minor divine-ability cultivators at the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Stages of Divine Abilities staring in stunned disbelief; even experts of the Heavenly Man Realm were inwardly shocked.

Raising the bid by ten million each time — they really don't treat money like money.

"Six hundred million."

"Six hundred and ten million."

"Seven hundred million."

"Eight hundred million!"

In the blink of an eye, the auction price of this Zhu Que skyrocketed, just as Fairy Lianyun had said — a fine treasure like the Zhu Que, one of the Five Elements holy beasts, was always hard currency, and never lacked wealthy buyers.

So in a very short time, the price kept soaring, climbing to the level of eight hundred million.

This was no longer a price that ordinary cultivators could call out. Those who spoke were all existences at the Golden Core Realm of the 7th Stage of Divine Abilities and above — there were cultivators who had weathered the Wind and Fire Tribulation, and there were also cultivators who had defied fate and rewritten their destiny.

"Nine hundred million!"

In a VIP room, someone called out a price.

Nine hundred million!

A single Zhu Que had actually been bid up to nine hundred million — this shocked not only the entire hall, but even Fairy Mo Yue, who was selling it, was momentarily stunned.

"One billion!"

"One billion one hundred million."

"One billion one hundred and ten million."

"One billion five hundred million."

Suddenly, from within a VIP room came an aged and majestic voice. "This old man is the Lord of Nie Di Star, and wishes to purchase this Zhu Que for one billion five hundred million. I hope all fellow daoists will accommodate me. I think that at a price of one billion five hundred million, even if Exalted Linglong Xianzun were here in person, she would have nothing to say to this old man."