With True Lord Chenyu being so eloquent, and Chen Yixin being so agreeable, those who had expected a sharp confrontation and a scene of open condemnation now felt somewhat disappointed.
Several rogue cultivators from the demonic path stepped forward one after another, paid their ransom, and Chen Yixin accepted it, granting them each a complimentary jar of Thousand-Year Dream.
Yet up to this point, not a single orthodox sect had stepped forward to make their stance known. Their attention had already shifted away from redeeming their disciples and instead focused on the fact that Chen Yixin held the “Divine Son” in his hands.
“The Sect Master of Boundless Sect requests an audience,” Ping Cheng reported to Wenren Li and Chen Yixin, his voice loud enough for all the cultivators present to hear.
Wenren Li nodded. Ping Cheng went out to receive the guest, while Chen Yixin’s eyes curved slightly—he seemed quite eager for these orthodox sect members to arrive.
Before Ping Cheng could lead them in, another demon guard came to report, “The Sect Master of Azure Mist Sect has arrived.”
It seemed they had all heard about the overly peaceful atmosphere inside the hall and could no longer hold themselves back.
“Invite them all in. Only after they’ve offered their ‘gifts of thanks’ can A-Li and I release them,” Chen Yixin said, feeding Wenren Li a spiritual fruit with practiced ease.
“The Demon Consort speaks rightly,” several rogue cultivators who had already paid their ransom chimed in. Though they felt somewhat bitter about being squeezed, watching Chen Yixin fleece the orthodox sects gave them a strange sense of satisfaction.
Of the ten great orthodox sects, aside from Jade Cauldron Sect and Hidden Moon Sect—whose sect master had been killed by Wenren Li—the remaining eight all arrived. Some hadn’t even had disciples detained, yet still entered under the pretense of paying a visit—their intentions were obvious.
The ransom was offered under the name of congratulatory gifts. Chen Yixin promised to release their people—but as for Thousand-Year Dream, they would not receive a single drop. Even if it were wasted watering plants, it would never be given to people he disliked.
Chen Yixin carefully counted all the ransom, then waved his hand for Wu Fei to bring the detainees forward. Those who had been held captive quickly found their respective sect masters and stood quietly at their sides.
Chen Yixin took a light sip of wine. Seeing that everyone was still staring at him and Wenren Li, he curved his lips slightly, set the cup back on the table, and lightly clapped his hands.
A black iron cage descended from above the main hall. Inside it was Jing Zhihua, who had fallen into a deep sleep from the fragrance of the wine and had remained so until now.
“Place your bids. Highest bidder wins.”
Chen Yixin showed not the slightest hint of subtlety—he was openly auctioning off the “Divine Son” of the Upper Realm. And this “highest bid” had to satisfy him, or he would not release the person.
“Demon Consort, isn’t this somewhat inappropriate? If the one in the cage truly is the Divine Son, then what we’re doing…” Black Feather spoke, though clearly tempted. He also wanted to study what exactly this “Divine Son” was—perhaps it could even lead them to a breakthrough into Soul Transformation.
Rather than letting him fall into the hands of the orthodox path, wouldn’t it be better to keep him within the demonic side?
“If Black Feather thinks it’s inappropriate for me to sell him, then how about I just kill him instead?” Everyone knew that Chen Yixin held grudges against Jade Cauldron Sect and Jing Zhihua. That he wasn’t killing him and was only selling him was already a show of restraint.
His words were a warning—to those present and those lurking in the shadows. Push him too far, and he would truly kill Jing Zhihua.
“No, no, no,” Black Feather quickly shook his head. The Divine Son concerned the future of both the Upper Realm and Taixuan. Even as a demonic cultivator, he couldn’t just stand by and watch Chen Yixin do that. In fact, after that counter-question, he even felt Chen Yixin was being rather merciful.
“If none of you wish to buy, that’s fine…”
Before Chen Yixin could finish, Han Zichuang of the Heaven’s Secret Sect spoke first, “One hundred thousand spirit stones.”
Chen Yixin turned his head and smiled faintly. “Sect Master Han has reminded me—I forgot to mention earlier. The starting price is one hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones, and each increase must be no less than ten thousand mid-grade spirit stones.”
Han Zichuang’s “one hundred thousand spirit stones” would normally be understood as low-grade spirit stones. But Chen Yixin had just raised the bar by a full hundredfold—one mid-grade spirit stone could be exchanged for one hundred low-grade ones, sometimes even more depending on quality.
Some of the rogue cultivators present sucked in a sharp breath. Though they were all Golden Core or Nascent Soul level experts, producing one hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones at once was still beyond their means—unless they sold off every valuable treasure they possessed.
Chen Yixin was clearly asking an outrageous price. Whoever bought Jing Zhihua from him would have to cough up more than half their entire fortune.
“Sect Master Han has made his bid. Is there anyone offering higher?”
Han Zichuang opened his mouth, momentarily at a loss for words. Even he was somewhat stunned by Jing Zhihua’s value. Yet he did not refute Chen Yixin—if Jing Zhihua truly was the Divine Son, then even this price would be worth it.
“No way… are all of you this poor?” Chen Yixin muttered softly, even beginning to regret setting the starting price too low.
Wenren Li turned his head slightly and reached out to stroke Chen Yixin’s hair. “If A-Rong is not satisfied, then we simply won’t sell.”
“Mm, A-Li is the best,” Chen Yixin nodded, glancing back at Wenren Li and flashing him a brilliant smile—so dazzling it made people’s eyes ache.
“One hundred ten thousand mid-grade spirit stones,” Black Feather gritted his teeth and called out the price. Even with the demonic path having accumulated resources for thousands upon thousands of years, they still couldn’t afford to spend so extravagantly.
But just moments ago, he had clearly felt pressure from Wenren Li, forcing him to grit his teeth and make this bid.
“One hundred twenty thousand,” the Sect Master of Boundless Sect, Wuyuan, raised the bid by another ten thousand mid-grade spirit stones. However, he immediately followed with a question, “Can the Demon Lord guarantee that he truly is the Divine Son?”
If they bought him only to discover he was fake, could they then come back to the demon palace to demand a refund?
Wenren Li met Wuyuan’s gaze without avoiding the question. “He is the Divine Son recognized by Jade Cauldron Sect and the envoy of the Heaven’s Secret Sect. If you have doubts, you may ask them. I can only tell you that he is indeed Jing Zhihua.”
The Sect Master of Boundless Sect turned to look at Han Zichuang. Han Zichuang paused slightly, then nodded. Although he had not personally been present when Jade Cauldron Sect verified Jing Zhihua’s identity, the people he had sent were absolutely trustworthy, and the described characteristics matched perfectly.
“Let me make this clear in advance—once you buy him, you’ve bought him. A-Li and I can accept returning the person, but we do not accept returning the spirit stones.” If Jing Zhihua ended up back in his hands, he would gladly take him again—but if they discovered he wasn’t the Divine Son and tried to reclaim their spirit stones, not even half a coin would be returned.
Chen Yixin spoke with such confidence that it left people speechless. Yet with Wenren Li—the uncrowned king among Soul Transformation cultivators—sitting beside him, even if they disagreed, no one dared to openly argue.
“Mm,” Wenren Li not only allowed Chen Yixin to say this—he even voiced his agreement. It was clear he intended to indulge Chen Yixin completely.
In Taixuan, as long as Chen Yixin didn’t kill the Divine Son or tear the heavens apart, Wenren Li would let him do as he pleased. Realizing this, many people felt as if they had been force-fed a massive dose of sweetness—so sweet it left a strange discomfort in their hearts.
Chen Yixin turned his head and smiled at Wenren Li. Picking up another spiritual fruit, he handed it to Wenren Li for a bite before eating the remaining half himself.
The sect leaders and powerful figures present were momentarily stunned—some couldn’t even bear to watch…
“One hundred thirty thousand mid-grade spirit stones… fourteen… fifteen…” The bidding continued to rise, with no set pause between increments, as Chen Yixin showed no sign of satisfaction.
“Two hundred thousand.”
After making the initial bid and then falling silent, Han Zichuang spoke again, directly raising the price by thirty thousand mid-grade spirit stones to two hundred thousand. In Taixuan, this was no small sum— even for well-established sects, it would amount to nearly half the value of their treasury.
Black Feather, who had been somewhat tempted, fell silent. The most he could accept was two hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones. Any higher, and he felt it wasn’t worth it.
After all, their Black Feather Demon Palace was not some righteous sect. Even if he paid Jing Zhihua’s ransom, there was no guarantee he would gain any gratitude. Given Jing Zhihua’s nature—repaying kindness with enmity—even not being resented would already be fortunate.
Spending two hundred thousand for such uncertain gratitude? Not worth it. Not worth it at all.
Chen Yixin straightened slightly in his seat. Looking at Han Zichuang, he found the price of two hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones barely acceptable. But seeing that Han Zichuang didn’t even furrow his brow made Chen Yixin reassess the depth of the Heaven’s Secret Sect’s resources—it seemed they were not much weaker than the Li Kui Demon Palace.
If he ever found Han Zichuang displeasing in the future, he’d have to fleece him even harder. Chen Yixin made this decision with mild satisfaction.
“Two hundred fifty thousand!” Suddenly, a man in black stepped out from among the rogue cultivators. He was even more ruthless than Han Zichuang, raising the bid by fifty thousand mid-grade spirit stones at once, looking utterly determined.
“Two hundred sixty thousand,” Han Zichuang remained seated, but his divine sense swept over. However, the black robe was clearly some kind of treasure; he could not sense the man’s aura at all, nor discern his cultivation or identity.
“Three hundred thousand!” The man in black raised the bid again. The figure of three hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones shocked everyone present. Their gazes turned back to Jing Zhihua, still sleeping inside the iron cage—this “Divine Son” was truly worth a fortune.
Silence fell again for a moment. Han Zichuang glanced over, pondered for a long time, and finally gave up bidding.
“Sold!” Chen Yixin looked toward the man in black, his expression turning slightly colder. He raised his hand, signaling: one hand delivers the spirit stones, the other releases the person.
The man in black clearly intended the same. With a wave of his hand, a storage pouch floated toward Chen Yixin.
Chen Yixin’s eyes curved slightly, pleasantly surprised at receiving three hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones. Yet he did not reach out to take it—instead, Wenren Li accepted it.
A stream of pale silver spiritual energy wrapped around the storage pouch. Wenren Li held it in his hand, and only after a full quarter of an hour did he pass it to Chen Yixin.
After receiving the pouch, Chen Yixin looked again at the man in black and gave a slight nod. A cluster of blue flames carried a key toward him.
The man’s expression was completely concealed within shadow. He extended his hand, but the moment he touched the blue flames, he recoiled in shock. Suddenly, the flames went out of control, surging forward and engulfing him entirely.
“Ahhh—!” The man in black screamed, clearly not expecting this turn of events. Chen Yixin hadn’t expected it either, but he made no attempt to restrain the blue flames. A flicker of blue light passed through his eyes as he fixed his gaze on the man.
“Demon—an aberrant demon!” Mingyue, beside Han Zichuang, suddenly cried out. Blood tears streamed from her eyes as she pointed at the man in black, her voice trembling. Her face was even paler than when she had previously calculated the heaven’s secrets.
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