Sanctuary

A single stone stirred up a thousand ripples! As soon as word spread that Tianduo intended to auction the corpse of an ancient Invincible inside Xinghong Ancient City, the entire Nine Stars Island was shaken to its core. Countless experts rushed toward Xinghong Ancient City. In the inner ring, outside the door of a massive ancient house, the white-masked figure spoke again. "Lord Tianduo, even if you are unwilling to sell to the Heaven Hunting Pavilion, our pavilion can still act as the intermediary for this auction. We can guarantee a far higher price!" Nearby, a gleaming golden powerhouse smiled. "Lord Tianduo, entrust the auction to the All-Heavens Myriad Treasures Tower. It won't take long—at most a month. We will gather powerhouses from all the myriad races under heaven for this sale." They needed time! The day after tomorrow was simply too rushed. Things were never done like this. Even if an Invincible were to rush here from their racial realm, it would take time, not to mention the need to negotiate passage through the Nine Realms. The window Tianduo had given was far too short. If the auction took place so soon, a great number of powerhouses wouldn't even have arrived, making it nearly impossible to fetch a truly high price! Even with proxies present, proxies weren't the principals. They rarely had the authority or audacity to bid sky-high amounts on their own. Inside the house, Su Yu opened the door. Looking at the powerhouses gathered around in every direction, he said indifferently, "No need. I want what I require as soon as possible. If things drag out... I fear I won't even be able to hold the auction at all!" Before some of them could decipher his meaning, an immensely powerful figure dropped from the sky, demonic qi rolling in torrential waves! "Tianduo!" This powerhouse came from the Demon Realm. His pupils were a cold, bewitching green. Fixing his gaze on Su Yu, he said in a deep voice, "Why auction it? Demon King Lade has already sent word commanding you to return to the Demon Realm!" Dawo! Su Yu recognized this fellow—the one who had fought the Dragon Race last time and had subsequently sent him voice transmissions. Right now, Dawo was furious. And exceedingly exasperated. Tianduo was actually planning to sell such a treasure without consulting the clan in the slightest. Su Yu's brow furrowed slightly. "What I am auctioning is what I obtained myself. Lord Dawo, this is my own fortune!" Dawo's irritation mounted. He glanced around; the doorway was open, and he wanted to step inside to talk with Su Yu, but Su Yu stood firmly in the doorway, ready to slam the door shut at any moment. Dawo was left speechless! Left with no choice, he sent a reprimanding voice transmission: "Do you even understand how precious an ancient breathing technique is? Do you realize how important this ancient remnant is? Whether you sell it to the Demon Realm or present it to Demon King Lade, you will not be treated unfairly! Tianduo, do you truly want to make the entire Demon Race despise you?" Su Yu's gaze turned frosty, his long hair fluttering as he transmitted back, "Lord Dawo, what does 'not treated unfairly' even mean? If I want to catch up to Modona, will all of you provide me with enough resources and opportunities? So what if the Demon Race despises me?" Su Yu sneered, "As long as my strength rises and I become the next Modona, neither my ancestor nor the Demon Race will care about this resentment; they will welcome me back with open arms. Lord Dawo, am I wrong?" Dawo was at a loss for words. *You still want to catch up to Modona?* He knew every youth of the Demon Race harbored that ambition, but... was there really any hope? Dawo transmitted again, "This thing is vital to the Demon Race. Tianduo, name a price. As long as it is reasonable, the Demon Race will buy it. That is infinitely better than selling it to other races!" Su Yu remained silent for a moment before replying rapidly via voice transmission: "One thousand strands of Heaven and Earth Profound Light, five hundred drops of Sun Moon Xuanhuang Liquid, and nine supreme foundation-laying treasures of origin qi..." Dawo's expression shifted drastically. "Are you out of your mind?! Are you planning to recast your physical body from scratch and re-evolve your origin qi?" The items Su Yu demanded were crucial for body casting and the nine transformations of origin qi, but they offered little help for advancing to the Shanhai Realm—though the Sun Moon Xuanhuang Liquid was indeed immensely beneficial for strengthening acupoints in the Sun Moon Realm. It was simply too much! A truly extortionate demand! Su Yu transmitted back, "This is already a friendly price offered out of consideration for us being demons. If you can't even satisfy this, Lord Dawo, then I have no choice but to sell it to other races who can afford the price!" Dawo cursed inwardly and quickly transmitted, "The Lade clan will soon send people here. Tianduo, I know I cannot sway you, but when your own clan arrives, if you still persist in your stubbornness, you can face the consequences yourself!" *When your own family arrives, will you still insist on selling?* Ignoring him, Su Yu raised his voice and announced clearly to the crowd, "The transaction will primarily accept Heaven and Earth Profound Light, Sun Moon Xuanhuang Liquid, and foundation treasures for the nine transformations! Furthermore, when the Demon Race participates in the bidding, they will receive a ten percent discount compared to other races. This is the concession I make for my clan. If the Demon Race cannot produce the items I need, then all races may bid!" Dawo hesitated, let out a deep sigh, and fell silent! Tianduo had already offered a ten percent discount to the Demon Race; what more could he say? For geniuses like this, betraying their clan in pursuit of personal strength was hardly unprecedented. If pushed too far, Tianduo could simply refuse to sell to the demons altogether, and what could they do about it? He could understand Tianduo's mindset: overshadowed by Modona from above, he desperately wished to surpass him. Geniuses like Modona each had their own serendipitous opportunities. Modona's body casting might exceed thirty-six casts, his opened acupoints might surpass a hundred, and every one of his nine transformations might have been the ultimate variation... Even within the same race, even cultivating the same technique, Modona remained undeniably superior to everyone else. Such was the disparity between different geniuses! As for Tianduo, his body casting might not have reached thirty-six casts, and his nine transformations might not have all achieved the ultimate form. That was only normal; Dawo didn't know every detail of these youths' cultivations. Perhaps Tianduo wished to obtain enough premium treasures to completely reconstruct his physical body. No one could say for certain. Not stopping there, Su Yu added coldly, "To prevent any chaos, and to stop idle chatter and frivolous bids from disrupting the auction, anyone who wishes to participate must pay an entrance fee!" From somewhere in the city, an eerie voice asked, "A fee? How much?" Su Yu replied chillingly, "No money. Anyone who wishes to participate must deliver a bound Shanhai Realm powerhouse! If anyone dares to rob or seize anything by force, I will execute the bound Shanhai and drag everyone down with me! Of course, if everyone abides by the rules, none of that will happen." "Tianduo..." Before anyone could object, Su Yu cut in coldly, "Shut your mouths! If you don't want to participate, get lost! I need guarantees, not your so-called rules and racial integrity! On the All-Heavens Battlefield, even members of the same race butcher one another, let alone foreigners! When the time comes, the auction will be conducted across two separate houses. The bound Shanhai captives will be placed in the house with me, while everyone else bids from the other house. Once a deal is struck, a smooth exchange is best. But if anyone tries to screw me over... then don't blame me for dragging everyone to hell together!" "..." Silence descended. Several powerhouses felt helpless. *What ruthless cruelty!* This fellow had a vicious streak. His meaning was plain: the moment something went wrong, he would slaughter all those Shanhai captives. That would summon a horde of Shanhai and even Sun Moon dead spirits. If it played out like Tianmie Ancient City, and Sun Moon dead spirits emerged to lock down the city, it would turn into another bloodbath! A Shanhai captive as an entrance ticket! That was a terrifying price. Soon, an ethereal voice echoed, "Must the Shanhai captive be of our own race, or will any Shanhai suffice?" Su Yu said casually, "Any will do. When I kill them, I won't care which race they belong to! Barring any accidents, I'm not foolish enough to start slaughtering unprovoked and trigger upheaval in the ancient city!" Right at that moment, an overbearing voice resonated smoothly. "Tianduo, auctioning inside the city means you collect entrance fees, while I collect a venue fee! Thirty percent of all auction proceeds will belong to me!" In the next instant, a figure materialized silently atop a roof, clad in black robes and radiating absolute dominance. Demanding thirty percent right off the bat! The Dark Fiend Dragon, the city lord of this place. Shortly after, a troop of city guards flooded the surrounding streets, their bodies thick with death qi. Several onlookers cursed inwardly—this fellow was sticking his hand into the pot again. Su Yu furrowed his brow slightly. "City Lord, isn't thirty percent a bit excessive?" "Excessive?" The Dark Fiend Dragon replied coldly, "If you think it excessive, then do not auction inside Xinghong Ancient City. Out of respect for you being a descendant of Demon King Lade, I am merely asking for this. Otherwise... you wouldn't be walking out of this city!" Su Yu cursed inwardly, careful not to let his emotions flare too intensely lest they be sensed. After a long pause, he gritted his teeth. "Fine. But City Lord, you must provide me with a substantial amount of Heaven Yuan Qi. I need to stay in the city for an extended period, and I have run out of Heaven Yuan Qi. Once I obtain my goods, I won't leave the city; I'll find an ancient house and enter seclusion to cultivate... I fear I won't be able to leave Xinghong Ancient City alive. If the City Lord agrees to this and guarantees my safety afterward, thirty percent it is!" The city lord of the Dark Fiend Dragon race smiled. "Then it is a deal!" With those words, a storage ring flew toward him. Su Yu didn't dare catch it with his bare hands. He used his willpower to halt the ring from a good distance away. *Come off it—did you think I wouldn't notice? The thing harbors ill intent; my 'Calamity' divine character is already pulsing.* Su Yu swiftly probed inside. The ring did contain some sealed Heaven Yuan Qi, though it was quite volatile—unlike the gentle energy of a Heaven Yuan Fruit, this was naturally formed Heaven Yuan Qi, the type most cultivators used. The qi from a Heaven Yuan Fruit was vastly milder and much easier to absorb. Su Yu checked the amount. *Stingy—barely twenty portions.* His own Heaven Yuan Qi was practically depleted. No matter; he still had essence blood and could extract more later. The priority was to placate the city lord for now! As for the Dark Fiend Dragon, he probably wasn't worried about Su Yu defaulting on the debt. Where could Su Yu run inside the city? After the auction, Su Yu had already stated he wouldn't dare leave and would stay here long-term, which made complete sense. If he walked out, wouldn't he be robbed blind? Since he had to rely on the ancient city, he naturally had to pay the price. As for snatching the corpse himself, the Dark Fiend Dragon had no interest. Mainly, it would be impossible to keep. Every major race was watching like a hawk. He wasn't an Invincible; even if he could harness dead spirits inside the city to hold off an Invincible, relying on dead spirits made him nothing more than a puppet. There was no need to antagonize all the myriad races for something he couldn't even use. ... Inside the city, Su Yu continued laying out his conditions to the various factions. The news rapidly spread in all directions. What Su Yu wanted, how the auction would be conducted, what the admission tickets were... everything circulated swiftly. On the road from Nine Stars City to Xinghong Ancient City, Zhu Guangshen cursed under his breath before saying, "Anying, go capture a Shanhai. That fellow has so many damn demands just to sell something..." Anying asked hurriedly, "Your Highness, are we actually going to participate in the auction?" Could they even afford it? Did they have Heaven and Earth Profound Light? Did they have Sun Moon Xuanhuang Liquid? Even if they did, did they have that much? What a joke! The Human Race was poor! Their foundation had been accumulated over too short a span! As for ruins, they had excavated plenty, but the spoils from those excavations had already been consumed; otherwise, the Human Race wouldn't possess as many powerhouses as they did today. Although the Great Ming Prefecture was wealthy, their wealth lay in ordinary supplies. When it came to strategic treasures like these, the Great Ming Prefecture had very few. Zhu Guangshen sighed helplessly. "We have to at least go look. If we really can't buy it... we'll stir up trouble and make sure no other race gets their hands on it! An ancient breathing technique, the corpse of an ancient Invincible... I've actually heard of ancient breathing techniques a few times. They disregard race and innate talent. Their primary function is to enhance talent, strengthening physical constitution and even willpower affinity... If you originally had the potential for only nine body casts, cultivating a breathing technique might allow you to reach eighteen. In ancient times, these were supreme arts for unlocking one's latent potential..." Body casting couldn't be done casually. Just like opening acupoints, one couldn't simply open as many as one pleased. Most people had a ceiling, a hard limit. Su Yu, of course, had never experienced such limitations, which was why he was a genius. Most geniuses were considered geniuses precisely because they surpassed ordinary people in certain aspects. Otherwise, among the descendants of the Invincibles, how many truly lacked resources? Cultivation still depended on innate talent. Zhu Guangshen had indeed heard people mention these ancient breathing techniques before. He quickly added, "I wonder which technique this is. Breathing techniques differ: some strengthen internal organs, some strengthen flesh and blood, and some strengthen willpower... Those that strengthen willpower are the most precious..." Anying didn't know much about this and asked curiously, "Your Highness, where did you learn all this?" Zhu Guangshen chuckled. "I heard it from my grandfather. My grandfather once met a powerhouse who knew a breathing technique. Not a human, mind you, but an expert from an ancient race, possessing terrifying strength." "The ancient races possess such heritages?" "Yes!" Zhu Guangshen nodded. "They are rare, but some ancient races have them! They keep them strictly confidential, however. Those ancient races are all formidable." "Don't the Primordial Demon Race and the Primordial God Race have them?" Those two were considered ancient races as well. Did they not possess them? "They probably do, but not everyone can learn or possess them. The lineages of the Demon Half-Emperor or God Half-Emperor might have them, but ordinary Demon Kings most likely do not!" These belonged to ancient inheritances; the Demon Kings that arose later likely didn't have access to them. Anying understood now. It truly was worth many experts stepping in to contest for it. It was meant to expand one's potential! Take Huang Teng, for example. Being at thirty-six body casts didn't necessarily mean he had truly completed all thirty-six casts. If someone genuinely completed thirty-six casts at the ninth level of the Tengkong Realm, their acupoint power would typically exceed eleven thousand acupoints. At the ninth level of Tengkong, they might even rival weaker Shanhai experts. Yet such feats almost never occurred. Neither Huang Teng nor Qin Fang possessed records of slaying a Shanhai while in the Tengkong Realm. Perhaps they never had the opportunity, or perhaps they simply weren't that powerful back then, only gaining the strength to slay Shanhai after stepping into the Lingyun Realm and undergoing origin qi mutations. For these geniuses, their exact status was also kept strictly secret. No one knew how many body casts they had truly completed. Some geniuses reached thirty-three casts and found themselves unable to progress any further. With a physical breathing technique, their foundation could be fortified, allowing them to complete additional casts. Modona, on the other hand, had most likely completed all thirty-six casts, perhaps even more. No one knew for sure, but that was the general consensus; otherwise, he couldn't possibly be so overwhelmingly powerful. ... While Zhu Guangshen and his companions rushed toward the ancient city, powerhouses from other races did the same. The experts from the nine great realms on Nine Stars Island also converged on the location, including the Brightlight Bird race from Tianxia Island, as well as numerous wandering powerhouses across the nearby sea regions. Even if they couldn't participate, watching the spectacle was worthwhile. The corpse of an Invincible—let alone an ancient one, hardly anyone had ever seen even a modern Invincible's corpse. ... The news spread swiftly beyond the Sea of Stars! Humans, gods, demons, immortals... all the major races received the intelligence in short order. Tianduo of the Demon Race was holding an auction in Xinghong Ancient City. The price was astronomical! Yet the item was equally astonishing. According to Tianduo, it contained both an ancient breathing technique and an ancient divine character. ... At that moment, in Tianmie Ancient City, which had quieted down only a few days prior, people continued to arrive to seek refuge, and discussions regarding this matter were already underway. Behind the City Lord's Manor. The stone sculpture remained as tranquil as ever, petrified with eyes closed. Of course, everything remained under his control; nothing in this city could escape his notice. Upon hearing the news, the stone sculpture suddenly recalled something. A certain someone... seemed to have learned a rudimentary sliver of an ancient breathing technique from him. The moment he heard "ancient city," "breathing technique," and "corpse of an ancient Invincible," he instinctively thought of that fellow—that troublemaking menace of unmatched proportions. *Breathing technique... corpse of an ancient Invincible...* Where the hell would a corpse of an ancient Invincible come from?! The stone sculpture was speechless. Ancient Invincibles left behind no corpses; don't flatter yourselves. As for ancient breathing techniques... while not ubiquitous, they weren't unheard of either. Not everyone knew them, nor did just any ancient expert master them. In ancient times, most who mastered them had achieved Invincibility. Like himself, for instance... *I damn well know a breathing technique!* The stone sculpture sank into contemplation. Hearing these familiar terms gave him an ominous, bizarre feeling! *It couldn't be, could it?* Tianduo... he knew of him too, that demon who had nearly perished in the ancient city last time. Could he have scavenged an ancient corpse? *Xinghong Holy City...* He knew Xinghong well. Of course, that had been many years ago, so distant it was almost forgotten. Could it be that trouble was about to brew over there? As the thought crossed his mind, the stone sculpture felt a sudden prick of schadenfreude. *Let chaos break out, then! My side was thrown into turmoil once; it's even better if your side descends into chaos too. That way, it won't look like my city was the only one in shambles, or that I was incompetent—it's just that someone is far too good at stirring up trouble.* ... No one was privy to the stone sculpture's thoughts. The stone sculptures of these ancient cities almost never interacted with mortals. Even some of the puppet city lords were unaware that these stone sculptures were alive. A few Invincibles knew, but ancient cities did not welcome Invincibles. Consequently, very few beings could converse with these sculptures. ... More and more powerhouses flocked to the ancient city, accompanied by large numbers of geniuses. Meanwhile, Su Yu remained hidden inside the ancient house, keeping the door firmly shut. No matter how loudly those outside shouted, he ignored them completely. He was contemplating his retreat route. His previous plan might not have been comprehensive enough. In the meantime, he would extract more Heaven Yuan Qi to ensure he wouldn't run out. He might have to linger in the ancient city for a while before finding a way to escape. *If I really sell it, with so many treasures on the line, people will definitely be tempted, including the Demon Race itself!* *People from the Lade clan are coming...* Su Yu weighed the factors carefully. If many participants arrived and truly handed over a bunch of bound Shanhai captives... he would kill them all to sow chaos. The crucial problem was that he lacked a Spatial Shift Talisman this time—how would he get out? Could he disguise himself as a dead spirit indefinitely? Su Yu felt helpless. If he had a Spatial Shift Talisman, everything would be easy; he could escape at any moment with effortless grace. Unfortunately, the City Lord of Xinghong Ancient City seemed difficult to deal with. He likely wouldn't permit Su Yu to enter the rear hall. Even if he did, he would place Su Yu under heavy surveillance. Su Yu had to be careful not to get slain by the dragon! Although killing him might summon dead spirits, that fiend dragon might not even care. *If I slay the Shanhai captives to draw out dead spirits, will Sun Moon dead spirits appear? If they do, the city will be locked down. But if only a few Sun Moon dead spirits emerge, they won't pose an existential threat to those top powerhouses.* One or two early-stage Sun Moon dead spirits wouldn't be able to do much against them, even if the city was sealed for three days. Of course, Su Yu's goal this time wasn't slaughter; it was creating a window for escape. How could he pull off a smooth get-away, then? What a headache! He had considered disguising himself as a dead spirit for a prolonged period, waiting it out until everyone else left. But dead spirits rarely appeared during daylight; after a certain period, they vanished automatically. If all the dead spirits dissipated while he remained alone, it would be a colossal joke. The sole dead spirit left in the entire city... even a fool would realize something was wrong. Unless he hid inside a house by day and emerged as a dead spirit by night. What if someone guarded the city gates? *The moat...* Su Yu fell into deep contemplation. That had been his earlier idea. The greatest difference between Xinghong Ancient City and other ancient cities was the presence of a moat—or rather, a river of death qi. Su Yu's previous thought had been to dive into the river! With death qi that dense, there had to be connected channels leading into the city. Su Yu had scouted around earlier and found several openings that led directly into the death qi river. However... that river seemed exceedingly hazardous! Su Yu had attempted to slip in the previous night, but before he could fully submerge, the death qi corroded him so violently he could barely endure it. Even though he could transform into a dead spirit, he wasn't a genuine one after all. Still, it remained a potential exit. He wasn't entirely out of options! Su Yu considered that if escape proved truly impossible, he could convert himself into an ancient city resident and remain hidden in the city. The most defining trait of an ancient city resident was that the death qi corroded and reshaped their body. Su Yu was intensely curious: if he became an ancient city resident, would his origin aperture reversal technique still work? Could he smoothly resolve the death qi problem? No one would ever expect him to convert into a resident of the death city. What if he simply did? *Perhaps... I can test it tonight!* Su Yu's mind stirred. The conversion process took three days: tonight, tomorrow night, and the auction the day after tomorrow! If the auction concluded and he couldn't escape, what if he converted into an ancient city resident? Once the conversion succeeded, he could hide anywhere! Dead spirits wouldn't attack him, and with so many residents in the ancient city, even if people suspected he was still inside, they wouldn't go searching through every resident's house. Searching was pointless; there were countless residents, and bothering them achieved nothing. Besides, it was easy to provoke dead spirits. Furthermore, in everyone's eyes, no genius would ever willingly become an ancient city resident even if faced with death. That state was neither truly living nor dead, reducing one to a mere puppet of the ancient city. One's entire existence became bound to the city. Even in death, they would become a dead spirit of the city. *I can test it. Even after two days of conversion, the process won't be fully complete, and I can abandon it at any time...* Su Yu's thoughts raced as he waited for darkness to fall. There was nothing to fear! Even if he truly became an ancient city resident, so what? Weren't all those city lords ancient city residents as well? Even ninth-stage Sun Moon experts sometimes had no choice but to compromise; why should Su Yu care so much? The greatest trouble for a resident was that upon leaving the city, the death qi remained within them, burning continuously until it took their life. Su Yu had no fear of that. He had plenty of tricks up his sleeve! For one, even without the origin aperture reversal technique, he could extract massive amounts of Heaven Yuan Qi at any moment to stave off the death qi—a feat impossible for anyone else. When late night arrived, Su Yu opened the door. No one was around. Whether they were hiding or had genuinely dispersed, he didn't know. Su Yu swiftly moved through the city, constantly monitoring the shifts in his perception jade. *No one is tailing me?* *How could that be!* Su Yu felt a jolt of suspicion. *Are these fellows not surveilling me, or are they stationed more than a thousand meters away?* *Or... are they simply waiting by the city gates?* Inside the ancient city, Su Yu couldn't escape anyway. Waiting at the gates also prevented the death qi from eroding them. With a thought, Su Yu quickly made his way toward the city gates. Concealed and stealthy. Soon, he reached the vicinity of the gates. The moment he arrived, Su Yu clicked his tongue in awe! *Holy shit!* *Ruthless!* Eight Sun Moon light points appeared on his perception jade, all outside the city gates. This meant eight Sun Moon powerhouses were keeping watch outside. No wonder they hadn't bothered monitoring him within the city. On one hand, it lowered Su Yu's guard; on the other, it avoided disturbing the dead spirits. With so many Sun Moons stationed outside, getting out would be an uphill battle! Su Yu quickly slipped away to other areas, heading toward the several openings that led directly into the death qi river. He inspected them; no one was watching. However, the density of the death qi was terrifying. Even a Sun Moon expert coming here might be corroded to death. "This... even I feel threatened!" Su Yu shook his head. After some thought, he settled into a small nearby house and tossed out a jade talisman carrying his blood. Moments later, a dead spirit materialized. Holding the talisman, the dead spirit began carving into the wooden plaque outside the door, just as it always did. Su Yu stared at the dead spirit. Paying him no mind, the dead spirit continued carving. After a short while, half of Su Yu's likeness emerged—not Tianduo, but Su Yu himself, his true appearance! Su Yu's eyes narrowed. *How did this dead spirit see through my disguise?* *How do they discern one's true identity?* A truly wondrous phenomenon! Su Yu said nothing. Once the dead spirit vanished, he swiftly transformed into a dead spirit himself and used death qi to alter the carving on the wooden plaque outside, changing it into the face of an ordinary person rather than his own. That way, even if powerhouses searched the entire city, they would never suspect he could alter the likeness on the wooden plaque. In the next instant, Su Yu's body shuddered! A torrent of death qi surged from inside the house, impossible to repel. It swiftly invaded his physical body, corroding his flesh. In the blink of an eye, his physical form grew laden with death qi, yet within that death qi lay a spark of vitality. It corroded him while simultaneously keeping him from perishing. Su Yu's gaze flickered strangely as he looked around the ancient house. *Where did this sudden burst of death qi come from?* *It's remodeling my physical body!* It seemed to be adapting his physical form to match the standard of a dead spirit. With a thought, Su Yu swiftly reversed into a dead spirit. The newly infused death qi seemed slightly bewildered, but soon merged harmoniously with the death qi Su Yu had reversed on his own. Su Yu then reversed back into a human, completely dispersing the death qi. He swallowed some Heaven Yuan Qi to purge the remnants. A moment later, Su Yu's eyes widened! Another surge of death qi shot out from the ancient house, continuing the remodeling process! Evidently, sensing that he hadn't been fully transformed, it moved to remodel him once more! Su Yu's eyes glinted, and a smile broke across his face. Fascinating! This meant that as long as he left the ancient city, he wouldn't suffer excessive adverse effects. Of course, if he remained inside the city and inside this house, the death qi would persistently attempt to reshape him. With that in mind, he tested it once more. Sure enough, the moment he dissolved the death qi, another stream shot out from the ancient house shortly after, tenaciously striving to transform him! Su Yu grinned broadly! This time, he was genuinely delighted. Death qi could indeed be reversed; the origin aperture reversal technique was still effective! Whenever he consumed a stream of death qi, the house would fire another, stubbornly continuing the remodeling process! The reason the process took three days was likely because it required three full days to convert someone into a half-dead spirit body. Indeed, Su Yu now understood the general concept: ancient city residents were essentially half-dead spirits! Upon death, these people would all transform into dead spirits! *I might actually be able to reverse all of this!* Everything would hinge on the third day. If he could escape, he would flee; if not, he would convert into a resident and remain here. "No... I might not even need to convert into a resident..." Su Yu murmured softly. *Damn it, I forgot one thing: I can forge the resident plaques myself! In that case, why bother converting?* Of course, if he lacked sufficient essence blood to extract Heaven Yuan Qi, he could consider the conversion. Under normal circumstances, he could simply carve the likeness of an ordinary resident on the plaque outside his house! That way, wouldn't he avoid suspicion entirely? Scheming endlessly in his mind, he thought of a cunning hare digging three burrows. Perhaps he could forge dozens of plaques throughout the city. When the time came, he could pick any house at random to hide in. If anyone detected an anomaly, he could instantly execute the conversion on the spot! ... Having finalized his plans, Su Yu quickly finished up and returned to the house from the daytime. No one bothered him. They let him do as he pleased, so long as he didn't attempt to leave the city. On the second day, a flood of powerhouses entered the city, Sun Moon experts among them in numbers. Experts from various races arrived in droves, constantly speaking to Su Yu from outside his door, attempting to strike a private deal beforehand. The Heaven Hunting Pavilion even delivered a sub-ranking roll, hoping to communicate with Su Yu covertly. Su Yu wasn't shy; he accepted it directly. He was staying put anyway, so tracking was useless; he could simply discard it when making his escape. Throughout the day, Sun Moon auras resonated continuously. Su Yu even received an invitation from Zhu Guangshen, proposing a negotiation. The Great Ming Prefecture was wealthy, and Zhu Guangshen implied they would offer a handsome price... which left Su Yu utterly speechless. *Give me a break!* *You lot better pack up and get lost—I'd sell it to anyone before I sell it to you!* The Demon Race, God Race, Immortal Race... all sent emissaries to make contact. Su Yu ignored them all, declaring that the highest bidder would take the prize, though he casually inquired about each faction's offer to get a general idea of the market. That night passed peacefully once again. During the night, Su Yu tested throwing out a jade talisman to convert himself once more. Boldness was born of supreme skill; while others feared to even test the waters, Su Yu was eager to see whether, once fully converted into a resident, he could completely reverse the state. If he could... he might be able to leverage that ability to strike deals with certain ancient city lords. Of course, until pushed to absolute desperation, Su Yu had no intention of exposing his origin aperture reversal technique. In Su Yu's eyes, the ancient city had already become his finest sanctuary. In the blink of an eye, the appointed time for the auction arrived! The third day had come.