Chapter Sixty-Seven: The Nine-Tailed Demon Fox

“Fellow cultivators, have you ever heard that if a nine-tailed fox demon successfully attains all nine tails, she can rival a Demon Emperor? If this item is properly nurtured, even if she never reaches all nine tails, she will still be an exceptional battle pet,” Mengmeng continued her introduction.

“That may be true,” someone in the audience retorted, “but the path to nine tails is unimaginably difficult. The resources required are astronomical, and even after hundreds of thousands of years, there’s no guarantee of success. Besides, this girl is only a descendant—the purity of her bloodline is still in question.”

“I speak only of possibilities,” Mengmeng replied. “Even if you do not raise her as a battle pet, she is still a superior cauldron. Fellow cultivators, the road of cultivation is long and lonely—would it not be a wonderful thing to have such a stunning beauty by your side?”

Indeed, her words stirred the hearts of the crowd. This was far more enticing than anything about her battle prowess.

Is this the fate of the demonkin, then? The beautiful reduced to playthings, the weak stripped of their demon cores, their pelts and flesh used as mere materials—humankind truly wastes nothing. Zhou Qi had no particular opinion, yet when a living, breathing girl was discussed as if she were an object, he could not help but feel a faint sense of discomfort.

“Qiqi, did you see the sorrow in her eyes? I think she needs my guidance,” Huangfu Xiu whispered, so moved that he nearly began to drool.

“With such an elaborate setup, this will surely be sky-high. Do you have the spirit stones for it?” Zhou Qi asked. Since this was the finale, the price would surely be astronomical.

“That’s what you’re here for! Can you really bear to watch such a pitiful girl fall into the abyss?” Huangfu Xiu continued to cajole.

“I can’t, but I’d be even more heartbroken to see my spirit stones emptied,” Zhou Qi answered, unmoved.

“One who is not of our race is sure to harbor ulterior motives. How can you guarantee she won’t turn against you? What if she kills you while you’re in seclusion? You’ll have nowhere left to cry,” a female cultivator remarked.

The crowd glanced at the female cultivator’s partner, whose eyes had already glazed over with desire, and immediately understood her motive. But her words were not without merit—beauty is alluring, but not worth one’s life.

“We’ve already considered that,” Mengmeng replied. “Should you win the bid for this girl, the Westwind Pavilion will provide, free of charge, a control technique called the Soul Capture Art. A wisp of the girl’s soul will be bound to her master—should the master die, so will she. This technique also ensures her absolute obedience, so she can never harbor the slightest ill intent.”

The moment these words were spoken, all doubts vanished, and the bidders prepared to fight with everything they had.

Such a technique—Zhou Qi was tempted, not for the girl herself, but for the technique. With it, he could have more tireless workers and an endless flow of spirit stones. It was worth considering. Yet, counting what he’d already spent, he only had thirty million lower-grade spirit stones left. He still needed them for cultivation. He did possess some upper-grade and supreme-grade stones, but to use them openly would be courting death, as they were exceedingly rare—the market mainly circulated lower- and mid-grade stones.

After all this preamble, Mengmeng finally announced the starting bid: two million lower-grade spirit stones, with each increment no less than five hundred thousand.

No sooner had she finished than someone called out, “Two and a half million!”

“Three million!” another shouted.

“Five million!”

“Eight million!”

“Fifteen million,” Zhou Qi bid, testing his luck.

His bid left the room in stunned silence; his previous bids were still memorable, his overwhelming offers making the others wary.

“Qiqi, weren’t you uninterested in her? Could it be you’re bidding for my sake? You truly are my dear brother!” Huangfu Xiu exclaimed in delight.

“You flatter yourself. I simply feel it’s my duty to rescue such a beautiful and moving girl. You’re not up to it anymore, so what need have you for women?” Zhou Qi teased.

Damn, he did it again! Huangfu Xiu scowled, but with no such wealth at his disposal, could only mutter, “So much for brotherhood.”

“Sixteen million,” someone else bid, locking eyes with Zhou Qi, determined to win the girl.

“Twenty million,” Zhou Qi countered.

“Twenty-one million.” Someone refused to give up. Where did this nouveau riche come from? Wasn’t anyone else allowed to play?

“Thirty million,” Zhou Qi offered, his final bid. If anyone went higher, he would give up—the Soul Capture Art was valuable, but not worth such an exorbitant price.

Seeing Zhou Qi’s calm and unhurried demeanor, the others conceded. They wanted to compete, but their spirit stones simply wouldn’t allow it. Still, seeing how low his cultivation was, they considered other ways to get what they wanted.

“Thirty million, once. Thirty million, twice. Thirty million, thrice. Congratulations, fellow cultivator! You are today’s big winner. From this day forth, you are a golden guest of Westwind Pavilion’s auction house,” Mengmeng announced happily. “Once the auction ends, all winning bidders, please proceed to the back hall to settle payment and collect your items.”

“Xiu’er, let’s go together. If the girl is willing to leave with you, I won’t stand in the way—though placing her in your hands is just another abyss,” Zhou Qi said to Huangfu Xiu.

“Truly?” Huangfu Xiu’s eyes sparkled, but he quickly added, “No, you paid such a high price for her. I can’t take what you value so dearly, and I don’t have the spirit stones to pay you back.”

“Look at me—do I seem fit to care for a young girl? If you can truly be kind to her and not mistreat her, perhaps following you would be her best chance,” Zhou Qi replied. What he wanted most now was seclusion; he was ill-suited for bringing someone along. As for using the Soul Capture Art to control someone who’d done him no wrong, he found himself unable to do so.

“Let’s go,” Huangfu Xiu said without another word, dragging Zhou Qi toward the back hall.

“Honored golden guest, here are your Thousand Illusion Glass, Earthbreaker Talismans, demon cores and devil cores, the Soul Capture Art—and the nine-tailed fox. Wait, what are you doing?” Mengmeng asked, moving to stop Huangfu Xiu from striking poses before the girl. The girl seemed terrified of him, refusing even to glance his way, leaving Huangfu Xiu crestfallen.

“No matter,” Zhou Qi said, handing over thirty-three million three hundred twenty thousand spirit stones.

Mengmeng accepted only thirty-two million, explaining that golden guests received a discount of one million three hundred twenty thousand.

Zhou Qi then asked if Westwind Pavilion accepted tier-three pills and, receiving an affirmative, was overjoyed; it seemed he would need to urge his three laborers to work harder. Overnight, he had gone from a multimillionaire to a pauper with just over a million left—he’d have to recruit more workers.

After a while, Huangfu Xiu returned, dejected. “You’d better keep the girl. My charm is useless to her. If a woman cannot see me in her eyes, what’s the point of having her? I have no wish to force anyone.”

Zhou Qi summoned the girl and asked, “Why are you unwilling to leave with him? He’s the young master of the Huangfu family—your safety would be assured.”

“My master won the bid for me, so I should follow him,” the girl replied timidly, her voice soft and melodious like an oriole singing from the valley.

“I didn’t bid for you out of desire, just for other reasons. Winning the bid doesn’t mean you must follow me,” Zhou Qi explained.

“I understand. When master looks at me, there is no lust in your eyes. I am willing to follow you. He is too frightening—he reeks of cosmetics, and his aura is unpleasant. Please, master, do not give me to another,” the girl pleaded.

Seeing how adamantly the girl refused to follow Huangfu Xiu, Zhou Qi could only give up on the idea. He would simply have to find a safe place and set her free.