The Treasure Gathering Pavilion, a three-story building of white jade, shone like broad daylight amid the night of Tianshui City.
Outside the pavilion, three thousand spirit-armored guards stood clad in heavy black-iron armor, each holding a spell-breaking arcane crossbow.
There was a guard every three paces and a sentry every five, surrounding the area for several miles until not even a drop of water could get through.
The pressure formed from the interweaving of military killing intent and spiritual energy made the surrounding air feel thick and viscous.
The cultivators and commoners gathered to watch had been kept a hundred zhang away. They could only stand on tiptoe and crane their necks, trying to catch a glimpse through the imposing security.
Inside the Treasure Gathering Pavilion, however, it was an entirely different scene.
The first-floor hall was packed with several thousand rosewood chairs.
Most of those seated here were well-informed rogue cultivators or minor local clans from Tianshui City.
They might not have been qualified to participate in the bidding for the truly important items, but simply being able to witness this auction—one destined to go down in Tianshui City’s history—was already a story worth telling.
Besides, the admission fees and the bids placed by these people were themselves a source of revenue for the auction house.
That was why the hall had been built especially large from the very beginning.
The second floor held dozens of private rooms separated by sandalwood screens.
Anyone seated there was a powerful figure in their own right.
The Shu family’s seats by the eastern windows stood empty. Only Shadow Guard Commander Shadow One remained stationed there. His aura of “keep your distance” was so intense that even the breathing of those in the nearby private rooms had grown quieter.
In a private room on the western side, a huge wooden box stood upright in the corner. The sallow-faced, middle-aged man from the Puppet Heaven Sacred Land sat cross-legged beside it with his eyes closed, while the young girl at his side wore a look of curiosity as she wiped down a half-human-height mechanical puppet.
The private rooms directly facing the auction stage, with the best view of all, were empty.
Everyone knew they had been reserved for the true protagonists of tonight’s event—the Tong family.
As for the third floor…
The entire level contained only a single seat: one table and one chair.
Elder Fang Zheng of Black-and-White Hall on Emperor’s Court Mountain sat there, looking down upon all the people below.
“Dong—”
A melodious toll of the bell rang out from the pavilion’s top floor and spread throughout the hall.
The entrance period was about to end.
Just then, a commotion suddenly broke out among the crowd outside the pavilion.
A luxurious carriage pulled by eight extraordinary black-iron dragon beasts rolled down the main street under the escort of dozens of spirit-armored guards before stopping in front of the Treasure Gathering Pavilion.
The curtain was drawn aside, and Shu Wanjuan slowly stepped down, surrounded by a group of clan elders.
Today, he had changed into a black robe embroidered with dark-gold cloud patterns. His narrow eyes swept across the entire scene, and wherever his gaze fell, no one dared meet it.
“City Lord Shu!”
“Greetings, City Lord Shu!”
Waves of greetings rose from the crowd, most filled with either awe or flattery.
Shu Wanjuan gave a slight nod without changing expression and walked straight toward the pavilion’s entrance.
Yet just as he was about to step through the doors, another carriage silently approached from the other end of the street.
It was a completely black nanmu carriage without a single emblem. Even the horses pulling it were nothing more than ordinary chestnut-maned steeds.
Compared with the Shu family’s domineering and ostentatious carriage, this one looked so shabby, so… forlorn.
And yet, when it appeared, the previously noisy crowd fell even quieter than before.
Every gaze converged on the carriage’s tightly closed windows.
Shu Wanjuan also came to a stop. He turned around and looked at the plain carriage as it slowly pulled up beside his own. The corners of his mouth curved into an inscrutable smile.
A slender hand lifted the curtain.
Tong Qiannian emerged from the carriage with some difficulty.
He, too, had put on the most luxurious brocade robe available today, but his deathly pale face made the outfit seem strangely out of place.
He did not look at anyone. Instead, he turned around and extended a hand toward the carriage behind him.
Tong Xiaoxiao gathered up her skirt and slowly stepped down.
She had changed into a long dress and wore no makeup. Not a trace of color remained in her clear, lovely face.
The beautiful almond-shaped eyes that had once been so lively were now empty and gray.
Father and daughter stood side by side.
They looked as though they were attending a grand funeral.
What was being buried was the future of the Tong family—and the rest of the girl’s life.
“Brother Tong, take care of your health.”
City Lord Shu’s voice rang out, neither loud nor soft, yet clear enough for everyone present to hear.
Tong Qiannian’s body trembled. He slowly raised his head, and for the first time, unconcealed hatred burned in his murky eyes.
“How considerate of you, City Lord Shu. My family affairs need not trouble you.”
The two men stared at each other across several zhang, as though invisible sparks of lightning were colliding in the air between them.
In the end, both let out a cold laugh before entering the auction house side by side.
…
Not long after the two men entered the auction house—
“It’s almost time for the auction to start?”
Everyone turned toward the voice and froze.
A young man in an ordinary blue-green robe was pushing his way through the crowd, leading an exquisitely beautiful girl with an armful of snacks.
It was Su Ji and Su Jiu.
Su Ji still had a skewer of grilled meat between his teeth. As he chewed, he complained indistinctly, “If I’d known there’d be this many people, I would’ve just flown here.”
His carefree, roguish manner was completely at odds with the grim atmosphere surrounding the pavilion.
The spirit-armored guard responsible for the entrance frowned and stepped forward, crossing the long halberd in his hands to block their path.
“The Treasure Gathering Pavilion is an important location. No unauthorized—”
Before the guard could finish speaking, Su Ji casually pulled a storage bag from his robes and tossed it at the guard’s feet without even looking.
The mouth of the storage bag came loose, and a pile of glittering high-grade spirit stones spilled out, gleaming temptingly beneath the lantern light.
“Buy us standing-room tickets.”
The rest of the guard’s sentence instantly died in his throat.
An eerie silence descended over the entrance to the entire Treasure Gathering Pavilion.
Everyone’s attention shifted to the young man who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
Su Ji looked at the dumbfounded guard and tilted his head.
“Not enough?”
+ Slow Paced + Main Character Thrives Together with His Disciples】 Transmigrated into a cultivation world, Chu Xingchen awakens a discipleship system that reveals the tags of his disciples! Starting from scratch, he builds the strongest sect. Disciple One: Li Yingling 【Gold Tag: Genius Cultivator】【Purple Tag: Extremely Lucky】【Blue Tag: Bewitchingly Beautiful】 Disciple Two: Li Hangtian 【Gold Tag: Reincarnated】【Purple Tag: Ruthless and Decisive】【Blue Tag: Loyal and Noble】 Disciple Three: ??? 【Orange Tag: Alluring Demoness】【???】【???】 Thus, in the cultivation world, an unremarkable little sect appears out of nowhere, but little do others know that each member of this sect is a powerhouse in their own right. The book is also known as: Cultivation? It's Exactly Like This!
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
ine. During your journey, you save an abandoned baby girl and become her elder brother】 【You rely on each other, becoming each other's support】 【At the end of the simulation, you shield the now-grown girl with your life, sacrificing yourself to block numerous demonic cultivators. You die, and the light in the girl's eyes fades】 …… 【Second Simulation: You are transported to a world where steam and magic coexist】 【You immerse yourself in the study of magic, obsessed with its research. One day, while out, you encounter a half-blooded demon girl wandering the streets. You take her in as your student】 【You teach the demoness what it means to be human, show her the beauty of the world, and nurture her into a miracle that surpasses even the gods】 【At the end of the simulation, you die of old age in front of the nearly immortal demoness due to your mortal lifespan】 …… One simulation after another, one encounter after another. Xu Xi suddenly felt something was off: "Wait, you said you're coming to the real world to find me?"
