Chapter 110 - Heaven’s Favourite Child
On the stage, Elder Feng stepped to the center, his expression growing exceptionally solemn. He raised both hands, calling for absolute silence. The murmurs in the hall died down instantly. The anticipation in the room had reached its absolute peak, and even the air felt thick with tension.
"Honored guests, we have reached the final lot of this grand auction," Elder Feng announced, his voice carrying a powerful, resonance-filled force that echoed into every private room. "For this final treasure, our auction house has deployed the highest grade of protective arrays. This is an item of legendary significance, recovered from the deepest ruins of the East."
Two senior attendants walked onto the stage, accompanied by four Golden Core guards. Between them, they carried a heavy jade casket wrapped in complex sealing arrays. As Elder Feng deactivated the seals, the lid slowly slid open, releasing a sudden wave of ancient, golden light.
Inside the casket lay a single fragment of a golden scroll. It was weathered, its edges torn, yet the faint traces of characters inscribed on its surface radiated an imperial aura.
"The Heaven Burial Diagram," Elder Feng proclaimed, his eyes shining with excitement. "Though it is a fragment, we suspect it points directly to the tomb of the Immortal Emperor of the Ancient Era. According to the oldest records, the Immortal Emperor was a master who stood alone against a gathering of immortals. With a single wave of his sword, Saint-rank powerhouses fell like autumn leaves. This fragment contains the key to unlocking his final resting place, which houses his complete inheritance, ancient sovereign weapons, and his path to immortality. The bidding starts at three hundred thousand spirit stones."
A collective intake of breath rippled through the main floor. Three hundred thousand was a fortune that could sustain a minor sect for years, yet for this legendary legacy, it was only the beginning.
"Three hundred and fifty thousand!" a voice from the floor shouted immediately.
"Four hundred thousand!" a representative from a grand merchant guild countered.
"Four hundred and fifty thousand!"
Inside Room Two, the Princess stood close to the screen, her heart racing as she stared at the golden fragment. Beside her, Lin Fan leaned against the wall, his eyes burning with intense fire. The ancient dragon’s treasure-seeking ability inside his body was churning, sending an urgent signal through his chest.
"Lin Fan," the Princess whispered, her fingers trembling over the array token. "Should we bid?"
"Bid," Lin Fan replied, his voice low and commanding. "We must secure this map. Do not hesitate."
The Princess nodded, quickly pressing the token to register their first bid. "Five hundred thousand!"
As the announcer registered the bid from Room Two, Lin Fan turned his gaze back to the golden scroll on the stage, his mind drifting backward into the memories of his grueling journey.
He had survived against all odds.
He remembered the defeat in the Withered Valley, where he was beaten, his dantian destroyed, and how he was later thrown into the Wang family’s dungeon, left half-dead in the dirt. After his escape, he reached a secluded place, and while taking a bit of rest there, he had looked up to see the white-robed elder of White Lotus Peak, Su Ming, flying majestically through the clouds like a distant god. In that moment of absolute despair, he had nothing; his body was broken, and his yang root was completely severed.
Even with his massive rise in power and high reputation in the Wu Kingdom, he had not forgotten that crushing defeat. He was certain that the villainous Su Ming had stolen his destined encounter, the maiden Lin Yao, who was supposed to be at his side. Lin Fan was certain that the fair maiden he had seen resting in Su Ming’s arms as he flew above was destined to be his as well.
This hateful elder had stolen his fated future and the woman meant for him.
That humiliating physical injury remained his deepest, most burning secret and a constant reminder of his failure. As a man, having his yang root severed was the worst possible shame, a silent, festering wound to his pride. Because his yang root was destroyed, he could not practice the dual-cultivation technique, the Heaven Stealing Cauldron Art.
Yet, the heavens had not abandoned him. Under the pressure of his injuries, his physique had mutated, awakening the powerful Death Dragon Physique. The Death Qi that now naturally pooled in his body granted him terrifying power, but it was a double edged sword.
The build-up of death Qi in his body only worsened his physical condition, making the possibility of curing his severed yang root even more difficult. Still, he was absolutely sure he would find a solution to restore his manhood eventually, and he was completely certain he would get his absolute revenge on Su Ming for everything he had taken.
Fortunately, his treasure-seeking ability did not vanish along with the Orb; it became an innate ability of his physique to sense hidden treasures and resources.
Following that mysterious treasure-sensing ability, his journey had been a sequence of miraculous encounters. Not long after, he had fallen into a forgotten secret realm. Within its collapsing chambers, he had uncovered abundant high-grade cultivation resources and an ancient, dusty sword manual. This manual perfectly complemented his fragmented Nine Desolate Sword Technique, merging with it to become the Death Desolate Sword Technique, a bona fide, complete sword technique of devastating lethality.
Later, in a small, obscure market, he had recognized a seemingly worthless scroll containing a Saint-rank cultivation method. The technique was perfectly suited to guide the death Qi his physique produced. Soon after, he had stumbled upon a drop of ancient dragon blood, refining it to strengthen his Death Dragon Physique to a new peak.
It was during these days of rapid growth that he had encountered the Ninth Princess of the Wu Kingdom. He needed powerful backing, a royal shield to hide his identity, and a steady supply of resources, and this innocent princess seemed like the perfect target to get that backing.
He had become close to her, eventually winning her absolute trust. With his advice and strength, he had actively guided her rise through the cutthroat royal court. Under his guidance, she had climbed from an isolated princess to a formidable force, holding power positioned directly below the First Prince, the heir to the throne. Although her clinginess annoyed him from time to time, he tolerated it for the sake of his ultimate goals.