Three years later, on the main island of the Jinchuan Archipelago—Jinchang Island.
With the Twin Moon Festival, held once every ten years, fast approaching, Jinchang Island was unusually lively. Many merchants had opened various auction houses to build anticipation.
On this particular evening, at an auction hosted by the Seven Treasures Pavilion, one of Jinchang Island's largest merchant guilds.
A beautiful woman in the Core Formation Stage, radiating stunning allure, scanned the entire venue with her captivating eyes. She spoke in a sweet, charming voice:
"Alright, this Daoist friend bids four hundred and thirty thousand Spirit Stones. Are there any other Daoist friends who wish to bid higher?
This top-grade Purple Jade Coral is absolutely a rarity, seen perhaps once a century. It's an excellent choice for refining Jade-grade Magic Treasures. If you miss this opportunity, you never know when the next one will come!"
Before her, a piece of coral emitting a purple, precious glow floated serenely.
Many cultivators in the auction hall looked at the purple coral with covetous eyes, but ultimately, no one else bid.
"Very well, this Purple Jade Coral will go to this Daoist friend. Please look at the next auction item.
An unassigned First-grade High-tier Magic Treasure—the Light Wheel Spear, crafted by Master Qi of Xiao Han Island. The starting bid is four hundred thousand Spirit Stones!
Each bid must be no less than five thousand Spirit Stones!"
The venue immediately entered a new wave of excitement.
In a private room on the third floor of the auction hall sat a cultivator in yellow robes, with a sallow complexion and an unremarkable face.
A faint smile played on his lips as he watched the auction below.
This person was Ning Fa in disguise.
After leaving the Huan Yu Islands, he had immediately rushed to the Jinchuan Archipelago.
This area was now under the jurisdiction of the Sikong Family, so Ning Fa had altered his appearance, posing as a Mid Core Formation cultivator, and had been staying on Jinchang Island for three years.
Now that the once-a-decade Twin Moon Festival had finally arrived again, it naturally made him anticipate it.
After all, he would soon be able to see Fairy Yuanxing.
At this moment, Ning Fa slightly tilted his head upwards, a strange look in his eyes. He murmured, "I didn't expect this person to have successfully formed a Nascent Soul as well."
In a nearby private room on the fourth floor, a handsome man dressed in python robes was seated.
Although he appeared to be no more than thirty years old, his powerful Spiritual Pressure clearly indicated his status as a Nascent Soul cultivator.
He was currently embracing two beautiful women, one on each side, playing with them while nonchalantly watching the auction below.
This person was Shang Yang, the son of True Lord Yujing, the former City Lord of Jinchang Island. It was precisely because of his betrayal, when he leaked information about the Zi Xu Palace to the Ascension Alliance, that True Lord Yujing's efforts were thwarted.
After many years, Shang Yang had actually advanced to the Nascent Soul stage.
Just then, Shang Yang suddenly sat up straight, his lazy expression vanishing. A look of startled uncertainty flickered in his eyes.
Moments ago, he had suddenly felt a strange sense of foreboding.
Although the feeling was fleeting, it was enough to make him, who was always cautious and suspicious, take it seriously.
While still watching the auction below, his mind raced, recalling his recent actions and wondering if he had provoked any enemies.
However, after thinking through everything, he still had no leads.
At this moment, the beautiful Core Formation cultivator hosting the auction suddenly announced loudly:
"Esteemed Daoist friends, we have now reached the grand finale of this auction.
A Fourth-grade Mid-tier Breakthrough Pill—the Dark Bright Pill!
This pill can increase the chances for early Nascent Soul cultivators by about ten percent when they break through the mid-stage bottleneck.
The starting bid is one million Spirit Stones, with each bid increment no less than ten thousand!"
"One point five million Spirit Stones! I must have this pill!" an old man's robust voice boomed from another private room on the fourth floor.
"One point eight million Spirit Stones!" a clear, cold female voice sounded from yet another room.
Shang Yang's eyes lit up, as this pill was precisely his target for this auction.
Suppressing his inner unease, he began to bid against the other Nascent Soul cultivators at the auction.
After a long while, the charming, sweet Core Formation beauty announced loudly, "If there are no further bids, this Dark Bright Pill will be acquired by this senior for the price of three point eight million Spirit Stones!"
"Senior Shang is indeed wealthy," a beautiful maid wearing a veil said sweetly to Shang Yang, while another beautiful maid, in the Foundation Establishment stage, echoed the compliment softly.
Shang Yang laughed heartily, tossed the two women a few Mid-grade Spirit Stones, gave them a pat, and then left his private room to complete the transaction.
Soon after, the auction officially concluded, and the cultivators dispersed from the venue.
Amidst the crowd, an elder in the Mid Core Formation stage, wearing a grey cloak and with a slightly ashen complexion, walked unhurriedly.
This person was Shang Yang in disguise.
Being naturally suspicious, he had not ignored that strange sense of foreboding.
Therefore, he had used a sophisticated disguise technique and changed his plans. Instead of meeting a mistress, he immediately returned to his Cave Mansion.
In another corner of the crowd, the sallow-faced middle-aged man Ning Fa had transformed into, a mocking smile played on his lips.
He still had some grievances with Shang Yang.
Back then, Shang Yang had aided and abetted evil, helping Li Shuhan of the Ascension Alliance deal with him.
This wasn't the primary reason Ning Fa wanted to deal with him, however.
Over the years, Ning Fa had discovered something rather peculiar.
He hadn't encountered the controller of this region, the Sikong Family, nor any of the Nascent Soul cultivators from the Ascension Alliance.
This made him feel that something was unusual. Now that he'd met Shang Yang, it was the perfect time to settle accounts and find out the reason from him.
Not long after, over six hundred miles southwest of Jinchang Island.
Shang Yang was speeding through the night sky, piloting a magic treasure that resembled a golden alms bowl.
His disguised expression grew increasingly solemn, as that feeling of unease returned, and even stronger this time.
With a sharp glint in his eyes, he suddenly flicked his right hand forward without any warning.
A flash of cold light appeared, and a ripple in the air nearby revealed a figure. The figure pinched a dart-like hidden weapon shaped like a plum blossom between two fingers.
Ning Fa looked at the hidden weapon in his hand, which exuded wisps of dark energy, and a look of surprise flashed across his face. "You're quite vigilant to have detected my presence."
As he spoke, his right hand glowed with silver light, and the hidden weapon melted in the lightning.
Shang Yang stared at Ning Fa, who had revealed his true appearance, and exclaimed in shock, "It's you!"
He had clearly recognized Ning Fa and never expected that Ning Fa had also advanced to the Nascent Soul stage, just like him.
He finally understood the source of his growing sense of dread.
It turned out he had been targeted by this person.
Although both were at the early Nascent Soul stage, Shang Yang had witnessed Ning Fa's power at Purple Light Mountain.
At that time, Ning Fa had killed several Core Formation stage experts in a short period, including Sikong Tai of the Sikong Family.
He knew that if he hadn't wisely fled then, he might have perished at that very moment.
Therefore, he was well aware of Ning Fa's terrifying capabilities.
However, he wasn't overly panicked. After all, they were both at the early Nascent Soul stage now, and he was confident in his own abilities. Even if he couldn't defeat Ning Fa, he believed he could escape safely.
He sneered, "Ning Fa, how dare you come to the Jinchuan Archipelago!
This is already Sikong Family territory, and the Ascension Alliance's bounty on you has never been rescinded. If you leave now, I can pretend I didn't see you."
Ning Fa, however, clasped his hands behind his back and said leisurely, "I think you'd better start thinking about your last words."
Upon hearing this, Shang Yang's face immediately darkened.
He then let out a cold shout and slapped the air in front of him. With a flash of blood-red light, a blood-colored stone tablet several feet long appeared before him.
As Shang Yang poured his pháp lực into it, the runes on the blood-colored stone tablet lit up.
With a brilliant burst of blood-red light, thick blood mist erupted from the stone tablet, spreading for several miles in an instant.
The air was filled with a stench of blood, and as the blood mist churned, grotesque blood-colored demonic beasts emerged from it.
Shang Yang felt a little relieved. This blood-colored stone tablet was a treasured item he possessed, named the Blood Fiend Stele. It was the Natal Magic Treasure of a Demonic Path Nascent Soul cultivator from over a thousand years ago.
Although it wasn't an Ancient Treasure, and he could only unleash about sixty to seventy percent of its power, its might was still considerable. It had achieved remarkable feats in his previous battles against cultivators of the same level.
This wasn't all. He tossed a simple, ancient jade talisman into the air with his right hand.
As Shang Yang channeled his pháp lực, the talisman's surface shimmered with light, and a terrifying phantom image of a three-headed giant python slowly materialized around it. With fierce hisses, a formidable spiritual pressure emanated from it.
Facing a formidable enemy like Ning Fa, Shang Yang dared not be careless and unleashed another of his treasured items.
On the other side, Ning Fa's lips curled into a smile. A flash of lightning flickered around him, and he plunged headfirst into the dense blood mist.
Dazzling golden lightning arcs flickered around him. The charging blood mist and the blood-colored demonic beasts turned into wisps of ash under these golden lightning arcs, unable to impede his progress in the slightest.
"Evil-Repelling Divine Thunder!" Shang Yang exclaimed in shock.
He couldn't afford to worry about anything else and immediately spat out a mouthful of vital blood to sacrifice to the jade talisman.
The colossal, black, three-headed giant python, tens of feet in size, finally took full form. Its three pairs of eyes emitted fierce glints as it swayed its head and tail, lunging towards Ning Fa.
Simultaneously, its three heads raised, spewing out three pillars of spiritual energy light—red, blue, and black—each emitting a distinct spiritual energy aura. Wherever they passed, the blood mist was annihilated.
Ning Fa's eyebrows twitched, and a look of interest appeared in his eyes. "This three-headed giant python summoned by the ancient talisman is quite interesting."
He flipped his right hand, and a long banner with a silver base and black border appeared in his hand, adorned with a mysterious crescent moon pattern.
It was the Taiyin Slaughter God Banner.
Ning Fa channeled his pháp lực fiercely, and a silver-black spiritual light was released from the banner, meeting the three pillars of spiritual energy light.
The next moment, something that made Shang Yang's jaw drop occurred.
The three surging pillars of spiritual energy light froze abruptly under this seemingly unremarkable silver-black spiritual light. In the blink of an eye, they shattered into streams of light and vanished into thin air.
Then, another silver-black spiritual light split into three streams, flying towards the three serpent heads respectively.
The three serpent heads opened their massive mouths and swallowed the silver-black spiritual light.
But the next moment, a silver-black crystalline light appeared on the surface of the serpent heads, rapidly spreading throughout the entire serpent's body.
With a "bang," this powerful summoned three-headed giant python exploded into pieces and turned to dust.