The settlement chambers of the Ancient Sacred City's auction house occupied a separate dimensional space, accessible only through controlled spatial portals monitored by the Merchant Alliance's security formations. Su Chen and his team passed through the shimmering gateway into a vast complex of private transaction rooms, each one sealed with privacy formations that would make even divine sense perception struggle to penetrate.
An attendant in the Merchant Alliance's formal robes—a middle-aged woman whose cultivation base radiated the steady presence of Formation Arrangement Realm—approached with practiced deference. Her eyes flickered briefly as she assessed Su Chen's group, and he could see the exact moment when her professional composure nearly cracked upon recognizing them as the auction's dominant participants.
"Honored representatives of the Stellar Void Pavilion," she said, her voice carefully neutral despite the circumstances, "I am Manager Feng. I have been assigned to facilitate your transaction settlements. Please, follow me to a premium settlement chamber where we can handle matters... discreetly."
The emphasis on the final word carried obvious meaning. Su Chen's bids had drawn enormous attention, and the Merchant Alliance clearly wanted to minimize potential complications by conducting the settlement away from prying eyes. He nodded his acceptance, and Manager Feng led them through a labyrinth of corridors that seemed to shift and reconfigure themselves, ensuring that no one could track their path or memorize the route to their settlement location.
The premium chamber they entered was opulent without being ostentatious—furnished with comfortable seating, tables carved from spirit wood that naturally purified and concentrated ambient energy, and walls inscribed with formation arrays that provided absolute privacy and security. Three additional Merchant Alliance officials waited inside, each one clearly a senior member given their Spirit Transformation Realm cultivation bases.
The eldest of them, a man with silver hair and eyes that held centuries of experience, stepped forward. "I am Elder Merchant Qiu, senior settlement officer for transactions exceeding one billion Origin Stones. Stellar Void Pavilion, your combined acquisitions today totaled five items with a final settlement value of..." he consulted a jade slip, "two billion one hundred thirty million Origin Stones equivalent."
He set the jade slip on the table between them. "The Merchant Alliance requires verification of your ability to fulfill this payment obligation within the specified twenty-four hour period. Additionally, given the scale involved, we must conduct enhanced authentication of all offered payment forms—both currency and supplementary materials."
Su Chen had anticipated this. Organizations like the Merchant Alliance didn't survive by accepting payment promises at face value, especially from mysterious entities making unprecedented bids. He activated his spatial storage, and the chamber's atmosphere immediately changed as vast quantities of resources began manifesting.
First came the pure currency—stacks of Origin Stone certificates representing claim rights to verified reserves held in dimensional vaults throughout the realm. Each certificate was inscribed with authentication formations that confirmed its legitimacy and prevented forgery. Su Chen produced enough certificates to cover one billion Origin Stones, the paper representations of wealth filling multiple storage containers.
Elder Qiu's expression remained professionally neutral, but Su Chen detected subtle tells—a slight widening of the eyes, an almost imperceptible straightening of posture—that revealed genuine surprise at the sheer scale of liquid wealth being displayed.
"The currency portion is verified provisionally," Elder Qiu stated after deploying analysis formations over the certificates. "We will need six hours to confirm each certificate with its corresponding vault, but preliminary authentication suggests legitimacy. Now, the supplementary materials—the Void Leviathan corpse, the Sovereign-Grade Psychic Pills, and the Million-Year Divine Gold Ring."
Su Chen produced each item in sequence. The Void Leviathan section expanded once freed from spatial compression, its preserved hide radiating void-attributed energy that caused the chamber's formations to flicker as they adapted to containing something that existed partially outside normal space. The three pills appeared in their jade bottle, each one pulsing with psychic pressure that made even the Spirit Transformation Realm officials wince. Finally, the Divine Gold Ring materialized, its presence so overwhelming that it seemed to dim everything else in the chamber by comparison.
Elder Qiu approached the items with the careful precision of someone handling materials that could kill through careless contact. He deployed increasingly sophisticated analysis techniques, eventually recruiting the other officials to help verify various aspects simultaneously. The process stretched for nearly thirty minutes as they confirmed authenticity, assessed condition, and calculated equivalent Origin Stone values using obscure appraisal methodologies.
"The Void Leviathan corpse is authentic Spirit Transformation Realm quality, materials intact, preservation excellent. Assessed value: one hundred twenty million Origin Stones," Elder Qiu finally announced. "The Sovereign-Grade Psychic Pills are... unprecedented. We have no direct comparisons in our records, but based on energy density and probable effects, we assess conservative value at thirty million Origin Stones each, ninety million total. The Million-Year Divine Gold Ring..."
He paused, struggling to maintain professional composure. "This item transcends normal valuation frameworks. Based on historical records of similar artifacts—though none achieved this age threshold—we assess minimum value at one billion Origin Stones. However, actual value could be substantially higher depending on buyer. For settlement purposes, we will use the conservative assessment."
He gestured to Manager Feng, who rapidly calculated totals. "Combined currency and materials: two billion two hundred ten million Origin Stones. This exceeds your obligation by eighty million. The Merchant Alliance will provide that difference in currency or alternative considerations as you prefer."
Bibi Dong spoke before Su Chen could respond. "We'll take the surplus in high-grade formation materials—spatial expansion arrays, defensive barriers, and energy collection systems. Provide a selection catalog, and we'll designate specific items."
Elder Qiu nodded approvingly at the practical choice. "A wise selection. Formation materials of that grade maintain value better than currency during market fluctuations. Manager Feng will prepare the catalog immediately."
As the manager departed to arrange materials selection, Elder Qiu's expression shifted subtly, becoming less formal. "Stellar Void Pavilion, I must offer unsolicited advice. Your performance today was... exceptional. But it has also made you the realm's most attractive target. Our intelligence networks have already detected at least thirty-seven distinct groups planning ambush attempts. Some are mere bandits seeing opportunity. Others are sponsored by powers who resent your acquisitions."
Su Chen appreciated the warning, recognizing it as part of the Merchant Alliance's value proposition—they didn't just facilitate transactions, they provided information that helped clients survive long enough to become repeat customers. "We anticipated hostile attention. What's the threat composition?"
Elder Qiu activated a formation that projected a holographic map of the Ancient Sacred City and surrounding territories. Red markers appeared in clusters, each one representing identified hostile groups. "The largest concern is here—" he highlighted a dense cluster northeast of the city, "—where the Void Scripture Temple has mobilized approximately two hundred cultivators. They're positioning to intercept anyone departing through the northeastern gate, which is the most direct route to the wilderness regions where mysterious powers typically maintain hidden bases."
Another cluster appeared to the west. "The Iron Blood Mercenary Company has also deployed. They specialize in artifact seizure and have successfully robbed cultivators up to Spirit Transformation Realm. Three hundred mercenaries, well-equipped, led by Commander Shen who possesses a complete set of Formation Breaker talismans."
More markers appeared in various locations. "Numerous smaller groups—bandit coalitions, rogue cultivator alliances, opportunistic young masters looking to build reputations. Individually manageable, but collectively they create a saturation problem. You cannot avoid all ambush attempts through any single route."
Saeko studied the map with professional interest. "They're attempting to create a no-win scenario. Every route has sufficient forces to pose credible threats, forcing us to either fight continuously as we break through or remain trapped in the city until they starve us out."
"Precisely," Elder Qiu confirmed. "The Merchant Alliance maintains neutrality and cannot offer direct military assistance. However, we can provide secured storage for your acquisitions. You could leave the items in our vaults under contract, then retrieve them later once hostile attention diminishes."
It was a reasonable suggestion, and many cultivators in similar circumstances would accept it gratefully. But Su Chen had no intention of separating himself from his acquisitions, especially not the Divine Source Crystal. He needed to analyze its properties immediately, begin the copying process before the crystal's energy signature had time to degrade or transform.
"We appreciate the offer," Su Chen replied diplomatically, "but the Stellar Void Pavilion prefers to maintain direct custody of our assets. We'll handle the ambush attempts."
Elder Qiu's expression suggested he had expected this response. "Then I offer alternative assistance—routing options. The Ancient Sacred City has seventeen gates, but also maintains twelve classified emergency exits used by the Merchant Alliance for evacuating high-value goods during siege situations. For appropriate compensation, we could grant temporary access to one such exit, allowing you to depart through an unexpected vector."
Esdeath's eyes gleamed with interest. "What compensation would be appropriate?"
"The emergency exits are priceless strategic assets," Elder Qiu explained. "We charge based on perceived risk to our security if the exit's location becomes compromised. For an entity as mysterious as yours—unknown backing, uncertain loyalties, possible connections to rival powers—the risk assessment would be... substantial. Twenty million Origin Stones."
Su Chen considered the offer. Twenty million was significant but manageable given their surplus from the settlement. More importantly, it would provide tactical surprise—if hostile forces were positioned at known gates, emerging from an unexpected location would grant initiative.
But there was another option. One that would not only solve the ambush problem but also send a message about the Stellar Void Pavilion's true capabilities.
"We decline the emergency exit access," Su Chen stated. "Instead, we'll depart through the main northern gate at noon tomorrow. Please ensure this information reaches your intelligence network—I want every hostile group in the region to know exactly when and where we'll be leaving."
The chamber fell silent as the Merchant Alliance officials processed this declaration. Elder Qiu's professional mask cracked entirely, revealing genuine confusion. "You... want us to advertise your departure route? To ensure maximum enemy concentration?"
"Precisely," Su Chen confirmed. "Additionally, I'll pay you ten million Origin Stones to broadcast a message through your information network. The message should state that the Stellar Void Pavilion will be transporting all acquired items personally, with no decoy caravans or diversionary tactics. Everything we purchased will be in one location, traveling together."
Bibi Dong turned to stare at him, her expression carefully neutral but her tone carrying an edge of concern. "Lord Su Chen, this strategy seems... inadvisable. You're essentially painting a target on our backs and then announcing our exact position."
"I'm consolidating our enemies," Su Chen replied calmly. "Right now, they're scattered across multiple ambush points, requiring us to fight repeated engagements as we break through their lines. By concentrating them in one location, we transform multiple battles into a single decisive engagement. And when we crush that consolidated force, we'll eliminate threats while simultaneously harvesting their resources."
Understanding dawned in Esdeath's eyes, followed immediately by a predatory smile. "You're not trying to avoid the ambush. You're deliberately creating the largest possible battle so we can loot the maximum number of enemies simultaneously. This isn't an escape plan—it's a harvesting operation."
"Exactly," Su Chen confirmed. "We spent two billion acquiring treasures. We'll recover a significant portion of that expenditure by stripping our would-be ambushers of everything they possess. Their weapons, their storage rings, their cultivation resources—all will be forfeit. By tomorrow evening, the Stellar Void Pavilion will be wealthier than we were before the auction, and the Lower Realm will understand that attacking us is not merely dangerous—it's economically ruinous."
Elder Qiu exchanged glances with his fellow officials, silently communicating through subtle expressions. Finally, he spoke with a mixture of professional admiration and personal concern. "The Merchant Alliance will honor your request. Ten million Origin Stones to broadcast your departure plans through our information network, ensuring maximum enemy awareness. However, I must formally state for the record—this strategy carries extreme risk. If you have miscalculated your combat capabilities or underestimated enemy coordination, you may not survive tomorrow's engagement."
"Noted and accepted," Su Chen replied. "Now, shall we complete the material selection so we can prepare for tomorrow's activities?"
Manager Feng returned at that moment, carrying a jade slip containing the formation materials catalog. The next hour passed in detailed negotiation as Bibi Dong and Saya—contacted through communication formations—worked together to optimize their material selections. They chose spatial expansion arrays that could enhance the Black Dragon Fortress's internal dimensions, defensive barriers incorporating techniques from multiple cultivation systems, and energy collection formations that could harvest power from environmental sources.
The materials were packaged carefully, sealed in preservation containers, and transferred to Su Chen's custody. With the settlement officially complete, the Merchant Alliance provided documentation confirming legal ownership of all acquired items and certifying that the Stellar Void Pavilion had fulfilled all payment obligations.
"Your transactions are concluded," Elder Qiu announced formally. "The Merchant Alliance thanks you for your patronage and hopes to conduct business with the Stellar Void Pavilion again in future. Your requested information broadcast will commence immediately, with your departure details reaching all major intelligence networks within two hours."
Su Chen stood, gesturing for his team to follow. "Our thanks to the Merchant Alliance for their professional service. We'll remember this cooperation when future opportunities arise."
They departed the settlement chamber through a spatial portal that returned them to the auction house's main floor. The building had largely emptied, with most participants having completed their own transactions and departed. Only a few stragglers remained, and several of them noticeably tensed upon recognizing Su Chen's group.
"We're being tracked," Saeko murmured, her enhanced perception detecting multiple observation techniques focused on their position. "At least six distinct spiritual sense probes, plus three concealed formations recording our movements. They're trying to identify our lodging location."
"Let them track," Su Chen replied. "We're not hiding. Xiao Yi Xian, once we're outside, deploy your sensory poisons. I want to know the exact positions of everyone who follows us, plus their cultivation levels and group affiliations."
The silver-haired woman nodded, her transformed nature allowing her to produce detection poisons that operated on principles no conventional cultivator could counter. Her toxins didn't merely spread through physical contact—they propagated as conceptual contamination, marking anyone who held hostile intent toward their group regardless of physical proximity.
They exited the auction house into the Ancient Sacred City's afternoon sunlight. The streets remained crowded with cultivators, merchants, and various residents going about daily business. But Su Chen's dual pupils detected abnormal patterns—too many people positioned at strategic observation points, too many spiritual sense sweeps crossing their path, too much coordinated movement disguised as random pedestrian flow.
"We're completely surrounded," Esdeath observed with satisfaction rather than concern. "Rough count suggests at least one hundred watchers within immediate vicinity, with more positioned throughout the city. They're establishing comprehensive surveillance to ensure we can't slip away unnoticed."
Bibi Dong activated a subtle spiritual technique that allowed her to eavesdrop on nearby conversations. After a moment, she reported her findings. "The Merchant Alliance's information broadcast is working. I'm hearing multiple discussions about 'the Stellar Void Pavilion departing at noon tomorrow through the northern gate.' Some are debating whether it's a trap or genuine stupidity. The consensus seems to be that we're either incredibly arrogant or have hidden trump cards."
"Both assessments are correct," Su Chen replied. "We are arrogant, and we do have hidden trump cards. The question is whether they'll realize the truth before it's too late."
Xiao Yi Xian's eyes had taken on a distant quality as her sensory poisons fed information directly into her consciousness. "I've marked two hundred seventeen distinct hostile signatures so far, and the number keeps climbing. The largest concentrations are affiliated with the Void Scripture Temple and the Iron Blood Mercenaries, but there are also numerous independent operators and small groups hoping to scavenge whatever larger forces leave behind."
Su Chen led his team through the crowded streets toward an upscale inn that catered to wealthy cultivators requiring secured lodging. The establishment—the Celestial Phoenix Inn—maintained its own defensive formations and strict neutrality policies, making it ideal for their purposes. They secured the entire top floor, paying premium rates for privacy and security that the inn's management promised to maintain regardless of external pressures.
Once inside their secured suite, Su Chen activated privacy formations powerful enough to defeat even divine sense, then addressed his team. "We have approximately twenty hours until the scheduled departure. Here's how we'll utilize that time. Saeko and Esdeath, I want detailed tactical analysis of tomorrow's engagement. Study the terrain north of the city, identify optimal battleground locations, and develop contingency plans for various enemy compositions."
Both women nodded, immediately moving to a work table where they began spreading maps and intelligence reports acquired through the Merchant Alliance's information services.
"Bibi Dong," Su Chen continued, "coordinate with Saya aboard the fortress. I want the Black Dragon Fortress positioned in low orbit directly above the northern gate by dawn tomorrow. Configure all weapon systems for maximum anti-personnel effectiveness. We're likely facing hundreds or possibly thousands of cultivators—I want overwhelming firepower available if the ground battle becomes complicated."
The Spider Empress activated communication formations, her hybrid nature allowing her to process multiple conversation threads simultaneously as she coordinated logistics with the ship-bound team members.
"Xiao Yi Xian, prepare your most lethal area-effect toxins. Not the experimental conceptual poisons—those are too unpredictable for use in large-scale engagements. I want reliable weapons that can incapacitate or kill hundreds of targets efficiently while discriminating between enemies and allies."
The Poison Body nodded, already mentally cataloging which compounds would serve best. "I can prepare paralytic clouds that will drop anyone below Spirit Transformation Realm within seconds of exposure. For stronger targets, I have necrotic venoms that corrode spiritual energy systems. And for truly problematic enemies, I've recently synthesized a truth-death poison that forces the target's body to forget how to maintain life functions."
Su Chen allowed himself a slight smile at that final option. Xiao Yi Xian's transformation into a being of pure toxicity had made her terrifyingly creative in developing new methods of killing. "Excellent. Prepare all three varieties in quantity. I want you capable of blanketing the entire battlefield if necessary."
He moved to the suite's central chamber, where he had arranged for a secured cultivation room to be prepared. "As for myself, I'll be analyzing the Divine Source Crystal. The energy within exceeds anything naturally available in the Lower Realm, and I need to understand its fundamental properties before tomorrow's engagement. If I can successfully copy it with the Origin Mirror, we'll have access to divine-tier power that will make tomorrow's battle trivially easy."
Bibi Dong looked up from her communications. "And if you can't copy it successfully?"
"Then we fight conventionally and win through superior tactics and overwhelming force," Su Chen replied simply. "But I prefer to have the divine energy option available. Now, all of you proceed with your assignments. We reconvene at dawn for final coordination."
The team dispersed to their respective tasks, and Su Chen entered the cultivation chamber. He activated every security and privacy formation available, then carefully withdrew the Divine Source Crystal from his spatial storage.
The moment it materialized in normal space, the chamber's ambient energy transformed. Divine power radiated from the crystal in waves that made even Su Chen's transformed physiology recognize its own insignificance. This was energy from a higher plane of existence, power that operated on principles fundamentally different from the Lower Realm's cultivation systems.
Su Chen's dual pupils analyzed the crystal's structure with microscopic precision. The golden eye revealed energy flows that didn't follow normal spiritual pathways—instead, they seemed to flow through dimensions that shouldn't exist, connecting the crystal to distant sources of power through incomprehensible geometry. The silver eye showed spatial distortions around the crystal where reality itself bent in response to the concentrated divinity.
He reached out carefully with the Origin Mirror, attempting to establish the copying connection. The artifact responded immediately, its nature as a reality glitch allowing it to interface with virtually anything. But as the connection formed, Su Chen felt resistance—not from the crystal, but from the divine energy itself. It was not merely power, but conscious in some fundamental way, aware of being analyzed and unwilling to be simply replicated.
"Interesting," Su Chen murmured. "Divine energy possesses will. It's not just force—it's intent made manifest."
He adjusted his approach, using the Primordial Metamorphosis Sutra to shift his own existence into a state more compatible with the divine energy's nature. His body flickered through transformation states, becoming less mortal and more conceptual, until he achieved a form that resonated harmoniously with the crystal's frequency.
From that altered state, he attempted the copying process again. This time, the resistance lessened. The divine energy recognized him as something other than a mere mortal attempting theft—he was a peer, another entity that existed outside normal categories, worthy of being acknowledged if not fully trusted.
The Origin Mirror activated fully, and information flooded Su Chen's consciousness. The divine energy originated not from the Upper Realm as he had assumed, but from somewhere even higher—a plane of existence where consciousness itself was the fundamental building block of reality. The crystal was compressed divine thought, the solidified will of entities who shaped universes through intention alone.
And the Origin Mirror was copying it. Not perfectly—the process was slow and inefficient, requiring hours of sustained focus. But it was working. By dawn, Su Chen would possess his own supply of divine energy, limited but renewable, capable of being deployed in tomorrow's engagement if necessary.
He settled into deep meditation, maintaining the copying process while simultaneously using the crystal's presence to refine his own cultivation. Divine energy was the perfect catalyst for pushing beyond normal limits—it could force breakthroughs that would otherwise require decades of effort.
Outside the cultivation chamber, night fell over the Ancient Sacred City. Throughout the surrounding territories, hostile forces mobilized, converging toward the northern gate region in preparation for tomorrow's ambush. Mercenaries sharpened weapons, bandits drew lots for formation positions, and young masters from various powers boasted about the glory they would claim by defeating the mysterious Stellar Void Pavilion.
None of them understood the true situation. They thought they were predators gathering to bring down wealthy prey. In reality, they were resources being collected for convenient harvesting, walking treasuries that had voluntarily assembled themselves for Su Chen's benefit.
By noon tomorrow, the Lower Realm's power structure would shift. Some would die. Others would be humiliated. All would learn that the Stellar Void Pavilion was not merely another mysterious power to be cautiously respected—they were an overwhelming force that crushed opposition so thoroughly that attempting resistance became economically irrational.
The education was about to begin, and tuition would be paid in blood, resources, and the shattered pride of those foolish enough to mistake wealth for weakness.