Do You Believe Me

Meanwhile.

In the deepest part of the Dark Web auction house, in an underground chamber.

There was none of the splendor found outside. Only a suffocating chill and deathly silence.

The walls were covered in twisted, eerie dark-red patterns that looked like the veins of some living creature, faintly writhing with every breath.

At the center of the chamber stood an altar built from piled white bones.

Ji Wuyue, dressed in a red gown, had none of the seductiveness or arrogance she had displayed in the auction house.

She was kneeling on one knee before the altar.

Her expression was feverishly zealous, even carrying a trace of pathological devotion.

Above the altar before her floated a roiling mass of black mist.

From within it came a hoarse voice filled with overwhelming authority.

“Have you confirmed it?”

Ji Wuyue lowered her head, her voice filled with the utmost respect.

“Confirmed!”

“He’s at the Martial Spirit realm and possesses a Demon Saint-grade core!”

“Moreover, just last night, Wang Potian, the Martial Venerable of the Wang family in Demon Capital, died alongside the head of the Wang family in an abandoned industrial zone. They died without a sound and didn’t even manage to send out a distress signal.”

Ji Wuyue analyzed the situation carefully.

“That old bastard Wang Potian spent two hundred billion at the auction house to buy his cultivation technique, then immediately went after him. Clearly, he was counter-killed.”

“All the clues line up.”

“He is Su Yuan—the one who slew a Demon Saint despite being below that realm!”

The black mist roiled violently.

“And,” Ji Wuyue continued, “he has already agreed to meet with me. Tomorrow at six in the afternoon, he will bring the Demon Saint-grade core to the Dark Web for a private auction!”

“Excellent!”

The voice within the black mist suddenly rose, filled with barely contained cruelty and excitement.

“Make the arrangements immediately!”

“Summon the three Crimson-Robed Grand Archbishops!”

“Activate the altar and prepare the ultimate formation—the Nine Nether Heaven-Locking Death Array!”

“Prepare to open the Abyssal Passage. With the power of Lord Demon Emperor, welcome the descent of three Demon Saints!”

Ji Wuyue’s entire body trembled.

Three Crimson-Robed Grand Archbishops!

Three Demon Saints!

And the power of Lord Demon Emperor on top of that!

Such a terrifying lineup was enough to tear the very ground of the capital apart!

“Not only that.”

The voice within the black mist was filled with absolute ruthlessness.

“I will immediately request Lord Demon Emperor to launch an all-out attack on the human borders!”

“Regardless of the cost, tie down the two Martial Emperors of the Great Xia Kingdom!”

“We’ll crush them from within!”

“This time, even if that Su Yuan truly possesses combat strength comparable to a Martial Emperor, he must still die here!”

“And that prodigy from Jingwu named Su Yu!”

“Erase him as well!”

“Destroy this entire generation of human prodigies and sever their fortune!”

Ji Wuyue bowed deeply until her forehead nearly touched the ground.

“As Your Excellency commands!”

The next day, nine in the morning.

At Tiangong Pavilion, located in the capital’s most prosperous commercial district.

It was the Great Xia Kingdom’s top military equipment retailer, backed by the government, and a money-burning paradise dreamed of by every martial artist.

Su Yu arrived right on time.

Lin Xiaoxiao was wearing a light-blue casual outfit, her long hair draped over her shoulders. Youthful and radiant, she stood at the bustling entrance to the shopping center like a beautiful sight, drawing frequent glances from passersby.

The moment she saw Su Yu, Lin Xiaoxiao excitedly hurried over.

“Su Yu! Over here!”

The two entered Tiangong Pavilion.

They went straight to the advanced battle armor section on the third floor.

Inside transparent bulletproof and blast-resistant display cases stood suit after suit of armor, each gleaming with a cold metallic sheen.

Lin Xiaoxiao’s eyes were glued to two of the display cases, completely unable to look away.

Inside the case on the left was a streamlined suit of silver armor.

“Beginner-grade Martial General armor—‘Windveil.’”

“It’s forged from Deep-Sea Lightmetal and inscribed with second-level wind-element formations. It can increase a martial artist’s speed by thirty percent.”

Inside the case on the right was a suit of heavy, dark-red armor.

“Beginner-grade Martial General armor—‘Raging Rhino.’”

“Its primary material is Scarletflame Heavy Iron. It possesses astonishing defensive power and comes with a strength-enhancement formation capable of unleashing a strike with one and a half times the wearer’s normal force.”

The saleswoman stood to one side with a professional smile as she explained in detail.

“Miss Lin, you have excellent taste.”

“These two suits of armor were both just transferred here from the military yesterday. They’re premium pieces.”

“As you know, Martial General-grade armor and above is generally restricted military equipment. Very little of it reaches the open market.”

“If you miss out on these, you won’t get another chance.”

Lin Xiaoxiao nodded repeatedly, her eyes sparkling.

She turned to Su Yu.

“Su Yu, which one do you think is better?”

“I like Windveil’s speed, but Raging Rhino’s strength boost is tempting too.”

“The national exchange tournament is coming up soon. If I could wear Martial General-grade armor, my combat power would definitely double!”

Lin Xiaoxiao bit her lip and glanced at the price tags.

Windveil: eleven billion.

Raging Rhino: twelve billion.

She had scraped together every bit of her savings and added the allowance her father had sponsored her. At most, she had fifteen billion.

That was more than enough to buy one suit.

But she wanted both, and her budget simply wasn’t enough.

Su Yu stood to one side.

His deep eyes casually swept over the two suits of armor the saleswoman had praised to the skies.

With his mastery of the Heavenly Art of Creation, the armor’s internal structure, material ratios, and formation inscriptions were instantly analyzed down to the smallest detail.

All he could say was—

They were riddled with flaws.

The Deep-Sea Lightmetal had been smelted at a temperature three degrees off, creating tiny bubbles within the material that could easily cause it to fracture during high-intensity combat.

The wind-element formation had been inscribed even more crudely, resulting in energy losses of as much as forty percent.

As for Raging Rhino, it was all appearance and no substance. It was as cumbersome as an iron tortoise, and the strength-enhancement formation even conflicted slightly with the properties of the Scarletflame Heavy Iron.

They dared to sell this scrap metal for more than ten billion?

It was practically robbery.

“Neither is any good.”

Su Yu withdrew his gaze and spoke in an indifferent tone.

The saleswoman’s smile stiffened slightly.

Lin Xiaoxiao also froze.

“Neither? But… these are already the best suits of armor available on the market.”

Su Yu turned to Lin Xiaoxiao.

“They’re not good enough.”

The smile on the saleswoman’s face vanished completely.

She looked Su Yu up and down. Although his clothes were clean, he wasn’t wearing a single recognizable brand. No matter how she looked at him, he didn’t resemble some wealthy young heir who could afford battle armor.

“Sir, you can’t just say whatever you want.”

The saleswoman’s tone turned cold.

“All the armor sold by Tiangong Pavilion is crafted by senior military blacksmiths.”

“To say it’s no good is rather arrogant, don’t you think?”

Su Yu ignored the saleswoman’s sarcasm.

He looked at Lin Xiaoxiao and suddenly spoke.

“How about I forge one for you?”

The moment he said it, the air fell silent.

The saleswoman’s eyes widened as though she had just heard the greatest joke in the world.

Lin Xiaoxiao was even more dumbfounded.

She stared blankly at Su Yu, her mind going completely blank.

Forge one?

Su Yu had said he would forge a suit of battle armor for her?!

How was that possible?

Blacksmithing required years of painstaking accumulation.

It required vast quantities of materials, day after day spent hammering metal before a blazing furnace, and an exceptionally profound understanding of formation inscriptions.

Even if Warlord-level armor was only considered entry-level, any smith capable of forging it independently—no matter how gifted—would be a middle-aged man in his thirties or forties who had devoted at least a decade, often three or four, to the craft.

How old was Su Yu?

An eighteen-year-old freshman!

His talent in martial arts was already monstrous enough. How could he possibly have had time to study forging as well?

What forging skills could he possibly have?

Lin Xiaoxiao was at a loss for words.

She wanted to say, “I believe you,” but no matter how hard she tried, the words caught in her throat and refused to come out.

Reason told her that this was absolutely reckless.

If fifteen billion yuan worth of materials went to waste, she would have nowhere even to cry.

Seeing the conflicted look on Lin Xiaoxiao’s face, Su Yu did not urge her.

He simply asked in a calm voice,

“Do you believe in me?”

The five words were spoken softly.

But when they fell upon Lin Xiaoxiao’s ears, they weighed as heavily as a thousand tons.

Do you believe in me?

Lin Xiaoxiao looked into Su Yu’s deep, crystal-clear eyes, which held not the slightest ripple.

Suddenly, an image flashed through her mind: Su Yu holding her hand in the underground training room as they thrust that spear forward.

He had been just as dazzling in that moment—so dazzling that her heart raced, and she found herself willing to submit to him.