The man even gave the fragmented scroll a close-up shot.
Winding routes were etched onto the goatskin scroll.
At the fragmented edge, there was a small red dot.
“An unknown Treasure Map.
Starting bid: two hundred top-grade Spirit Stones.”
This kind of Treasure Map was mostly a gamble.
No one knew if it was real or fake, let alone if it actually led to any treasure.
But for Wanbao Pavilion to dare sell it—and place it as the sixth item, no less—they must have performed some kind of assessment.
Opportunities like this were always a bit of a gamble.
So, as soon as the map was presented, many people began to call out their bids.
Yun Fuzhao joined in on the fun for a bit, but she regretfully backed out once the bidding reached six hundred top-grade Spirit Stones.
The map was incomplete, and who knew when—if ever—the remaining pieces could be found.
Yun Fuzhao had no grand ambitions.
She just wanted to bum around the Sect and wait for death.
‘Let someone else handle such a time-consuming, troublesome task.’
Yun Fuzhao picked up a red fruit and began to eat it slowly.
After a few more items were auctioned, it was finally time for the grand finale.
“Finally, we have our grand finale item for today,” the man’s eyes flashed with excitement.
With a SWISH, he ripped the red cloth away.
“A member of the Qingqiu Fox Clan!”
Yun Fuzhao heard a series of stifled gasps from the audience.
The Fox Clan was the most mysterious existence in the Demon Realm.
They were reclusive and their movements were unpredictable; they rarely appeared before the eyes of the world.
But rumors about them never ceased.
It was said that the members of the Fox Clan possessed unparalleled beauty and the art of bewitching hearts, making people fall at their feet with ease.
And among all the Fox Clans, the Qingqiu were the most powerful.
For centuries, only the Qingqiu Fox Clan had produced a Great Power who achieved Ascension.
The more mysterious they were, the more people wanted a glimpse.
The red cloth drifted down.
Inside a massive cage, a beautiful young man was curled into a ball.
His golden pupils had narrowed into vertical slits as he fiercely and warily surveyed his surroundings.
A string of golden bells was wrapped around his ankles, chiming crisply with his every move.
Yun Fuzhao’s gaze was uncontrollably drawn to his androgynous face.
He had beautifully shaped, fox-like eyes, with two crimson marks adorning the spot between his brows.
His nose was high and straight, his lips were a vibrant red, and his silver hair accentuated his snow-white skin.
‘No wonder the heart-stealing demons in novels are usually fox demons.
There’s no other reason for it.
They’re just too beautiful.’
But in this novel, the Qingqiu Fox Clan was inherently proud and disdained interacting with the other realms, let alone bewitching people.
Now, this Young Master of the Fox Clan was dressed in red and adorned with bells, treated as nothing more than a plaything for all to see.
Yun Fuzhao guessed Wanbao Pavilion was likely unaware of this Young Master’s true identity.
They probably only dared to put him up for auction so brazenly because they had identified him as being from Qingqiu based on the two crimson marks between his brows.
“For this member of the Qingqiu Fox Clan, the starting bid is one thousand top-grade Spirit Stones!”
The moment he finished speaking, an impatient voice rang out from the floor, “Fifteen hundred!”
“Two thousand!”
“Two thousand three hundred!”
Each voice was high-pitched and resonant, filled with excitement.
‘Great, just great.
My budget’s already blown.’
[This is killing me!
I barely brought any Spirit Stones with me when I underwent Ascension.]
[In the Upper Realm, Spirit Stones are no different from common rocks.
I already gave all of mine to Fu Zhao.]
[Ren Chen Sheng has gifted 5,000 top-grade Spirit Stones]
[Ren Chen Sheng: What audacity!
To dare auction a descendant of my Fox Clan!]
‘An unfamiliar name.
A new Great Power in my stream.’
[Judging by that tone, he’s genuinely angry.]
[That old fox Ren Chen Sheng, you never see a trace of him, but the moment one of his descendants is in trouble, he finally deigns to show up.]
Yun Fuzhao: “Three thousand top-grade Spirit Stones!”
The bidding had quieted down considerably.
After Yun Fuzhao’s call, only two other bidders remained.
“Thirty-two hundred!”
“Four thousand!”
Yun Fuzhao threw caution to the wind.
“Five thousand!”
One of the bidders went silent.
Only the deep, masculine voice remained.
“Ten thousand.”
[Ren Chen Sheng: My rooster just laid an egg.
Gotta go.]
Yun Fuzhao: “…”
‘So that’s the kind of Great Power you are.’
Yun Fuzhao didn’t continue bidding.
The Great Powers didn’t have many Spirit Stones, so it was pointless to keep calling out prices.
‘If I can’t do this openly, I’ll have to do it covertly.’
‘The only problem is, I don’t know who my opponent is or if I can even win a fight against them.’
‘I’m only at the Golden Core Middle Stage right now.
No matter how I look at it, this seems pretty dicey.’
System 001: [Host, would you like to try the lottery?
100 points per draw.]
[Draw!]
‘I’ve had a good feeling about this system since day one.’
She still had 200 points left.
Yun Fuzhao washed her hands with the water on the table.
“Come on, give me something good.”
[Let’s begin.]
[Congratulations, Host!
You have received: Anesthetic x1]
‘This feels kind of useless.’
[Again.]
System 001: [Congratulations, Host!
You have received: Mahayana Realm Experience Card x1.
Duration: 30 seconds.]
‘Yes, yes, yes!
This is good.’
“KNOCK KNOCK—”
A knock came from outside the door.
Yun Fuzhao stood up.
“Who is it?”
“Ma’am, we’ve brought the Sixth-Rank Beast Core that you won at the auction.”
Yun Fuzhao put on her mask and opened the door.
From his uniform, she could tell it was the same man who had escorted her earlier.
He respectfully handed her a wooden box engraved with intricate patterns.
“Thank you.”
Yun Fuzhao inspected the item.
The Sixth-Rank Beast Core was crystal clear and even more beautiful than it had appeared on the display.
‘Since my item has been delivered, the young man from the Fox Clan must have been handed over to that bidder by now.’
Yun Fuzhao: [001, can you track the location of the Fox Clan’s Young Master?]
[Location sent to Host.]
A red dot appeared in her vision, not far from her location.
“Ma’am, allow me to escort you out.”
Yun Fuzhao nodded.
‘I can’t make a move here,’ she knew.
The fact that they could run such a massive marketplace without anyone daring to cause trouble meant there had to be countless powerful experts hidden in the shadows.
Anyone who dared to act rashly would be beaten so badly their own mother wouldn’t recognize them.
But outside of Wanbao Pavilion, it was a different story.
‘A place like this never bothers with after-sales service.’
The moment she stepped out of Wanbao Pavilion, Yun Fuzhao headed in the direction of the red dot.
The man was also extremely clever; the moment he left the pavilion, he headed toward a crowded area.
Yun Fuzhao could sense that quite a few others shared her objective.
She maintained a suitable distance, following at an unhurried pace.
As she passed a vendor’s stall, a familiar, cold gaze washed over her.
Yun Fuzhao shuddered.
‘This sinister feeling…
Yu Ze?’
‘What is he doing here?’
Yun Fuzhao instinctively looked back but saw no suspicious figures.
‘I’m so thoroughly disguised.
There’s no way Yu Ze could recognize me, right?’
The red dot began to move faster.
Yun Fuzhao could no longer spare him a thought.
The moment she left the bustling city streets, she pulled out Wuji and rushed toward the location.
By then, a crowd had already gathered at the destination.
The black-robed man was surrounded, and behind him was the caged Young Master of the Fox Clan, who was baring his fangs and claws.
“If you know what’s good for you, hand that fox over to us!”
“How dare you!
Do you have any idea who I am?!” the black-robed man roared.
“I am Geng Xiu, the Direct Disciple of the Second Elder of the Xuantian Sect!”
Yun Fuzhao raised an eyebrow.
‘Geng Xiu.
One of the female lead’s harem boys.’