Auction of Enemies: You’re Not Allowed to Die Even If You Want To

Boom!

The Sky-Soaring Realm elder crashed into the ground, protective demonic light and all.

Wang Hao walked to the edge of the crater and looked down at him.

“Better to die than submit?”

“Fine.”

“Pay off your back taxes before you die.”

The old man coughed up blood.

“Wang Hao, you’re going too far!”

Wang Hao’s expression remained calm.

“Allow me to correct you.”

“Right now, I’m bullying the defeated.”

“When you were winning, hundreds of thousands of lives in Black Heaven City were at your mercy. I didn’t see you caring much about fairness then.”

The Martial Gods had already stormed into the formation.

Though their injuries were severe, the elders left behind by the Dark Immortal Sect were no match for them.

The Taiyin Frostlight sealed the nine dark suns.

The Yellow Springs River drowned the formation’s runes.

A Sword Ruins expert severed the formation’s core with a single sword intent.

The White Bone Old Monster charged into the mining zone. When he saw someone trying to detonate the bone mine, he was so furious that he tore the man’s bones out on the spot.

“What a wasteful fool!”

“This all belongs to me… No, it’s spoils of war!”

The Blood Prison expert was unable to move, so he simply had himself carried into the ancestral court.

He coughed blood the entire way while giving orders.

“Don’t destroy the blood pool on the left!”

“That pool can heal injuries!”

“Get this old man in there first!”

In less than half an incense stick’s time, the Ten Thousand Demons Burning World Formation was completely extinguished.

The powerful figures left behind by the Dark Immortal Sect were either dead or had surrendered.

Standing at the highest point of the ancestral court, Wang Hao unfurled the Great Xia Mountains and Rivers Register.

It was a golden ancient tome.

Once opened, the contours of the entire Dark Ancestral Court’s mountains and rivers appeared across its pages.

Wang Hao dipped his brush in ink.

“Dark Ancestral Court.”

“Occupied through warfare. It shall henceforth be registered as a special administrative region of Great Xia.”

“Spirit veins: state-owned.”

“Mineral deposits: state-owned.”

“Medicinal gardens: state-owned.”

“Treasure vaults: state-owned.”

“Floor tiles, doors, windows, beams, pillars, plaques…”

The Yellow Springs Ancestor could no longer listen.

“You’re taking the plaques too?”

Wang Hao shot back:

“A plaque forged from Dark Immortal Gold—why wouldn’t I take it?”

The White Bone Old Monster interrupted:

“What about the latrines?”

Wang Hao’s expression turned solemn.

“Public facilities.”

“They are state-owned assets as well.”

The Martial Gods: “…”

They suddenly understood what it truly meant to leave not even a blade of grass behind.

As Wang Hao made the final stroke, the Great Xia Mountains and Rivers Register radiated ten thousand zhang of golden light.

Within the ancestral court, one spirit vein after another tore itself from the earth, transforming into miniature dragon shadows that flew into the book.

Seven hidden treasure vaults appeared in succession.

The spirit stones, pills, cultivation techniques, sinister artifacts, divine weapons, heavenly treasures, and other riches accumulated over millions of years surged forth like a flood, pouring into the seal representing Great Xia’s national treasury.

Even the three Dark Sacred Mountains were branded with the golden characters “Great Xia.”

The Golden Watchtower Sacred Land Martial God watched with twitching eyelids.

“Wang Hao.”

“Surely we should receive a share of the spoils here?”

Wang Hao took out a fragment of the Heavenly Mandate Tax Ledger.

“Of course.”

The Golden Watchtower Martial God had just breathed a sigh of relief when Wang Hao continued:

“The spoils each of you obtained in this battle have already been calculated.”

“However, I need to deduct the cost of saving your lives twice, the Thunder Pagoda usage fee, the Immortal Sect demolition fee, the half-immortal containment fee, battlefield medical expenses, contract management fees, and asset-inventory fees.”

“In addition, the blood tax, postwar tax, and Martial God special income tax that you previously agreed to pay must also be deducted.”

The Golden Watchtower Martial God’s face stiffened.

“How much is left in the end?”

Wang Hao flipped through the tax ledger.

“You owe me 3.72 million top-grade spirit stones.”

The Golden Watchtower Martial God nearly toppled over.

“I fought to the death! How did I end up owing you money?”

Wang Hao pointed to the spot where the immortal-sect chains had dragged him away earlier.

“I’ll save you once.”

“A Martial God’s life comes at a steep price.”

“Surely you don’t think you’re worthless, do you?”

The Golden Watchtower Martial God opened and closed his mouth.

He wanted to say that he was worth a great deal.

But the moment he admitted that, he would also be admitting that the fee for saving his life was reasonable.

Yet saying he was worthless was even more unacceptable.

How could a Martial God of a sacred ground demean himself?

In the end, he could only clutch his chest.

He felt his injuries worsen by several degrees.

The Taiyin Old Matriarch looked at Wang Hao and suddenly asked,

“What of the compensation for those who fell?”

The smile on Wang Hao’s face slowly faded.

“Disburse it as a priority.”

“Those who died in Black Heaven City, the fallen martial artists of every sect, and the Martial Gods of the Myriad Souls Sect—all of them are to have memorial steles erected.”

“Their families and inheritors may first choose one suitable legacy.”

Everyone fell silent.

Wang Hao was greedy.

Shameless.

Hard-hearted.

But when it came to certain matters, he drew the lines very clearly.

What he was entitled to, he would not take a single spirit stone less of.

What he owed, he likewise would not shortchange.

In the distance.

The Demon Lord, suppressed by the chains of the contract, raised his head with difficulty.

He watched as one treasury after another vanished.

He watched as ten-thousand-year-old spirit veins were registered into the ledgers.

He watched as the plaque of the Dark Immortal Sect was taken down and carried into Great Xia’s national treasury.

His eyes grew increasingly bloodshot.

“Wang Hao…”

“How dare you seize the foundation I built over ten thousand years…”

Wang Hao walked over to him.

“Don’t rush.”

“We haven’t finished taking inventory yet.”

The Demon Lord gnashed his teeth.

“Leave this lord one ancestral hall.”

Wang Hao shook his head.

“Can’t.”

“It’s forged from Dark Immortal Gold.”

“Worth money.”

“Then leave this lord one ancestral tablet!”

“The tablet is made of ten-thousand-year-old shadowwood. It’s worth money too.”

The Demon Lord’s chest heaved violently.

“Then what have you left me?”

Wang Hao thought seriously for a moment.

Then he revealed a gentle smile.

“Debt.”

“And an agreement requiring you to repay it for the rest of your life, with no right to declare bankruptcy.”

At that moment,

the Demon Lord closed his eyes.

He suddenly felt that he would have been better off dying beneath the thunder dragon just now.

Above the Dark Ancestral Court,

the Great Xia Register of Mountains and Rivers finally closed.

A golden dragon of destiny crossed the void and arrived.

It opened its enormous maw and swallowed in one bite the sect-wide destiny the Dark Immortal Sect had accumulated over ten thousand years.

Black divine patterns rapidly spread across its golden scales.

Its dragon’s roar shook the Nine Provinces.

From that day onward,

all the spirit veins, mines, treasuries, herb gardens, palaces, and lands belonging to the Dark Immortal Sect were registered under Great Xia’s name.

The Dark Immortal Sect, a lineage that had been passed down for ten thousand years, had become so poor that all it had left was its people.

And debts to Great Xia that could never be repaid.

Three hours after the Dark Ancestral Court was completely sealed,

in the central plaza of the ancestral court,

tens of thousands of Dark Immortal Sect disciples had their cultivation sealed. According to their identities, crimes, and positions, they were divided into hundreds of separate areas.

Ordinary disciples were placed in the east.

Those who had participated in the blood sacrifice at Black Heaven City were placed in the west.

Those responsible for capturing the living, refining blood anchors, and slaughtering villages and towns were held separately on the northern side.

As for the elders, deacons, and leaders of affiliated forces of the Dark Immortal Sect, they were all made to kneel at the very front of the plaza, wearing Soul-Sealing Locks.

Wang Hao sat on a dragon throne of Dark Immortal Gold that had just been carried over.

The dragon throne had originally belonged to the Demon Lord.

Now, it belonged to Great Xia.

The words “Darkness Eternal” had originally been carved into the back of the throne.

Wang Hao felt that they brought bad luck.

He had someone temporarily cover them with a wooden board.

Written on the board were the words:

“Great Xia Temporary Office for Asset Liquidation.”

The Demon Lord was chained beside the dragon throne.

White Bone Nails were driven into his body, a Yin Stone pinned beneath his feet, and chains from the Yellow Springs wrapped around his waist.

The New Emperor Sword was squatting on his shoulder.

A thin tube hung from its mouth.

The other end was inserted into the most grievous wound in the Demon Lord’s chest.

Slurp.

The New Emperor Sword took a sip of half-immortal blood.

Its face lit up with bliss.

“Master.”

“His flavor’s a little bitter.”

The Demon Lord slowly opened his eyes.

His gaze was so icy and murderous that it could freeze the void itself.

The New Emperor Sword immediately sat up straight.

“What are you looking at?”

“You’re defeated property now.”

“What’s wrong with me having a couple of sips?”

The Demon Lord’s voice was hoarse.

“Once I break free, the first thing I’ll do is melt you down.”

The New Emperor Sword turned to Wang Hao.

“Master, he’s threatening a state-owned eldritch artifact of Great Xia.”

Wang Hao was looking through a ledger. He did not even raise his head.

“Put it down.”

“Threatening state property is punishable by three pounds of blood.”

The New Emperor Sword was overjoyed.

“Thank you, Master!”

It immediately replaced the thin tube with a thick one.

The Demon Lord closed his eyes.

He was afraid that if he kept looking, he would be angered to death.

But Wang Hao clearly had no intention of letting him die.

Around the square, Taiyin Old Matriarch, the Yellow Springs Ancestor, the powerhouses of the Sword Ruins, the White Bone Old Monster, and the other surviving Martial Gods were treating their injuries.

After that bloody battle, everyone was on the verge of complete exhaustion.

Even so, they still spared part of their attention for Wang Hao.

Because moments ago, Wang Hao had issued an extremely strange imperial decree.

All ordinary disciples of the Dark Immortal Sect were to be judged according to their crimes.

Those without guilt would have their forbidden arts stripped away, then be released or assigned to labor camps.

Those guilty of lesser offenses would be sent to repair the mountains and rivers of Dark Sky City.

Those with blood on their hands would be executed publicly.

All of that was perfectly normal.

The truly abnormal part was the final provision.

Anyone who had directly participated in schemes against Wang Hao was not to be killed, executed, or imprisoned.

They were to be auctioned publicly.

And the buyers were to be limited to evil sects.

Taiyin Old Matriarch opened her eyes.

“Wang Hao.”

“Don’t you think this has gone too far?”

Wang Hao looked up.

“How so?”

Taiyin Old Matriarch replied coldly:

“If they deserve to die, then kill them.”

“Selling them to evil sects so they can be tortured is not something a ruler of a nation should do.”

Wang Hao did not answer at once.

He threw the black register in his hand into the center of the square.

Bang!

The register struck the ground.

Three blood-red characters on its cover stood out starkly:

The Slay-Wang List.

It was a classified register discovered in the Dark Immortal Sect’s seventh hidden treasury.

Recorded within was a plan specifically drawn up against Wang Hao.

The Dark Immortal Sect had offered ten ninth-realm damaged artifacts, three supreme-grade spirit veins, and a fragment of a half-immortal Dao Fruit as a bounty for Wang Hao’s head, soul, bloodline, and everyone close to him.

The plotters were not limited to members of the Dark Immortal Sect.

There were traitors from the holy lands.

Hidden agents of the Demon Sects.

Aristocratic spies operating within Great Xia.

Even the royal families of two minor kingdoms allied with Great Xia.

Every individual on the Slay-Wang List had been assigned a specific role.

Some were responsible for killing Wang Hao.

Some planned to destroy Great Xia’s imperial ancestral temple.

Some intended to dig up Great Xia’s imperial tombs.

Others planned to capture the people of Great Xia and use the lives of countless civilians to defile Wang Hao’s power of faith.

If the Dark Immortal Sect had not suddenly fallen,

the plan would have officially begun within three months at most.

Wang Hao’s expression remained calm.

“Killing me doesn’t anger me.”

“As an emperor, sitting in this position, it’s only natural that people will want me dead.”

“But they intended to lay hands on the people of Great Xia.”

“That is an entirely different account.”

After reading the register, Taiyin Old Matriarch fell silent.

The powerhouse from the Sword Ruins sat cross-legged atop a broken stele.

He slowly spoke:

“Among these people, are any of them unwilling participants?”

“Yes.”

Wang Hao pointed toward the eastern side of the square.

“They’ve already been separated.”

“As long as their hands are free of blood debts, I’ll give them a chance to live.”

The Yellow Springs Ancestor asked ominously:

“And those who participated willingly?”

Wang Hao looked toward the very front of the square.

“Not a single one of them will be allowed to die easily.”

As soon as he finished speaking, two Great Xia martial artists dragged a black-robed old man forward.

The old man’s name was Wu Xuance.

He was the vice sect master of the Dark Immortal Sect, a fifth-level Martial God—

and the true organizer behind the Slay-Hao Ranking.

During the earlier bloody battle at the Immortal Sect, he had hidden himself deep within the ancestral court.

He had not gone out to aid the Demon Lord.

Instead, he had secretly activated the Myriad Demons Burning World Formation, intending to destroy all evidence after the Demon Lord’s defeat before fleeing with the sect’s private treasury.

Unfortunately—

his private treasury was hidden beneath the stone stele in the latrine.

The system’s intelligence report had exposed it down to the last coin.

Wu Xuance knelt on the ground, his face dark and sullen.

Most of his cultivation had been sealed by the Yellow Springs Chains, but his eyes still held the arrogance of a Martial God.

“Wang Hao.”

“Winner takes all. Losers take the fall.”

“Now that I’ve fallen into your hands, all I ask is for a quick death.”

Wang Hao waved a hand.

“Not so fast.”

“Let’s wait until the buyer arrives.”

Wu Xuance’s expression shifted slightly.

“You really intend to sell me to a heretical cult?”

Wang Hao corrected him solemnly:

“It isn’t selling.”

“It’s judicial labor contracting.”

“The heretical cult will be responsible for supervising your labor while you atone for your crimes for the rest of your life. Great Xia will collect a management fee.”

Wu Xuance sneered.

“Shameless.”

Wang Hao nodded.

“Thank you.”

“I’ve always considered that one of my strengths.”

Just then, a series of strange bell tolls rang out from the distant void.

Clang.

Clang.

Clang.

A white flying vessel assembled from human bones slowly entered the ancestral court.

Standing at the very front of the vessel was a fat monk with a face full of compassion.

He wore a patchwork cassock.

Embroidered onto every scrap of cloth was a suffering human face.