Chapter 193: A Worthwhile Investment

"Lord Shen, think carefully!"

Ji Qu could no longer stand by silently.

In his eyes, Shen Changqing was acting purely on impulse.

Even if the man truly possessed the means to control evil entities, two such beings comparable to Innate martial artists were hardly worth the exorbitant price of six hundred thousand taels.

"Although the evil entities within the black banner are akin to two Innate Realm henchmen, their upkeep requires constant nurturing, a significant drain on resources. Lord Shen, there’s no need to spend six hundred thousand taels on such creatures!"

Ji Qu was now absolutely certain that Shen Changqing possessed some method of manipulating evil entities.

Whether the other man admitted it or not was irrelevant.

Spending six hundred thousand taels on the black banner spoke volumes.

Shen Changqing shook his head, a faint smile playing on his lips.

"Rest assured, Brother Ji, I know what I’m doing!"

While the price of six hundred thousand taels was indeed high, was it truly excessive for two Grievance Rank monsters?

After all, if luck were on his side, the two Grievance Rank monsters could contribute fifty slaughter points to his accumulation.

To put it another way, fifty slaughter points could elevate the Great Sun Scripture by three levels.

Even without a breakthrough in his physical body cultivation, reaching the eighteenth level of the Great Sun Scripture would significantly augment his power.

Six hundred thousand taels.

To advance the Great Sun Scripture by three levels.

Such a transaction was undeniably worthwhile.

Money was, after all, merely an external object, while true power lay within oneself.

The very reason he had auctioned off three Grandmaster martial arts manuals was to acquire merit points, thereby enhancing his own strength.

Now, he could directly enhance his power by spending silver taels. What could be better?

Therefore, while Ji Qu considered six hundred thousand taels madness, Shen Changqing found it entirely justifiable.

"That one certainly wasn’t going to give up easily!"

After Shen Changqing placed his bid, Miao Hong finally exhaled the pent-up breath he had been holding.

He had completely resigned himself to the situation.

If he couldn’t contend, then he simply couldn’t.

Someone willing to bid six hundred thousand taels might very well offer seven or eight hundred thousand. Even if the Hundred Ghosts Sect emptied its coffers, they wouldn’t have that much silver.

Abandoning the pursuit was the most sensible course of action.

"Now we can just sit back and enjoy the show. Six hundred thousand taels… I wonder if that old thing from the Sky Yin Sect will back down. I’d love to see him fly into a rage!"

Miao Hong picked up his teacup, a faint smile gracing his face.

"The Sky Yin Sect’s foundation is a bit stronger than ours. He might not give up," Miao Feng countered, shaking his head.

Few notable factions existed within the side door sects. Their own Hundred Ghosts Sect was one, but the Sky Yin Sect had deeper roots.

When it came to foundation, the Sky Yin Sect surpassed the Hundred Ghosts Sect by a considerable margin.

Miao Hong chuckled, "All the better, then! Let the Sky Yin old man clash with that person until their heads are cracked and bleeding. If he empties the Sky Yin Sect’s treasury to snatch the black banner, that would be even better!"

He was now in a state of schadenfreude, taking delight in others’ misfortunes.

In Miao Hong’s view, the more the Sky Yin Sect spent, the greater the benefit to the Hundred Ghosts Sect.

"Six hundred thousand taels! Dammit!"

As Miao Hong had predicted, the Sky Yin Sect Master was currently seething with anger.

Six hundred thousand taels!

Even for the Sky Yin Sect, that was a colossal sum.

Although he could scrape together that much silver, it would undoubtedly cripple them afterward.

After much deliberation, the Sky Yin Sect Master decided to make one last attempt.

"Six hundred and twenty—"

"Seven hundred thousand taels!"

Before he could finish, a light, airy voice cut off his words.

The Sky Yin Old Man’s expression turned ashen.

Seven hundred thousand taels had exceeded his limit.

If the black banner contained two Grievance Rank Peak evil entities, the Sky Yin Sect would have to obtain it, even if they had to sell off everything they owned.

But according to the information they had gathered, the evil entities within the banner, at best, were barely comparable to Outer Gang martial artists, and might not even reach that level.

For such entities, seven hundred thousand taels was already a significant overpayment.

Other sects might use seven hundred thousand taels to cultivate several Innate Realm martial artists.

"Seven hundred thousand taels for the first time!"

"Seven hundred thousand taels for the second time!"

"Seven hundred thousand taels for the third and final time, sold!"

Warden No. 2 shouted excitedly.

Seven hundred thousand taels!

The black banner had reached an outrageous price.

Others might not know the identity of the black banner’s buyer, but he knew very well that it was Shen Changqing.

Although Warden No. 2 wondered what Shen Changqing intended to do with the black banner after spending seven hundred thousand taels, it wasn’t his concern.

As a member of the auction house, his only duty was to preside over the auction and secure the highest possible price.

Everything else was trivial.

"Seven hundred thousand taels!"

Among the crowd seated below, a figure cloaked in black robes couldn’t help but clench his fist, his heart pounding with excitement.

He never imagined that the black banner he had released would fetch such a high price.

He had initially hoped to sell it for a few tens of thousands of taels, which would have been a pleasant surprise. But now, it had sold for seven hundred thousand taels, far exceeding his wildest expectations.

Meanwhile, a knock sounded on the door of Shen Changqing’s room.

Ji Qu rose and opened the door, revealing a maid carrying a wooden box.

"Honored guests, this is the item you have purchased. Please examine it!"

As she spoke, she placed the wooden box on the table.

Shen Changqing opened the box, revealing the black banner within.

Now that he was closer, the Yin and evil aura emanating from the banner was even more pronounced.

"Deduct seven hundred thousand taels from my subsequent auction proceeds. Is that acceptable?"

He closed the wooden box and turned his gaze to the maid.

Hearing this, the maid’s face blossomed into a smile, "The warden has already given instructions regarding this matter. Everything will proceed as you wish, honored guest!"

"Thank you."

"If there is nothing else, this humble servant shall take her leave."

The maid bowed respectfully before exiting the room, closing the door behind her.

Once she was gone, Shen Changqing reopened the wooden box and retrieved the black banner.

"With Brother Ji’s discerning eye, perhaps you can identify the material used to create this banner. It’s capable of sealing evil entities!"

Black mist swirled around the banner, refusing to dissipate.

If one listened carefully, one could even hear the wails of vengeful spirits.

Ji Qu stared intently at the black banner, his expression growing serious.

"The world is filled with countless materials. This old one doesn’t recognize what the black banner is made of. As for sealing evil entities, I suspect it’s not due to the banner’s material but rather to some special means."

As he spoke, he pointed to the lines on the black banner.

"The Demon Suppression Division and the Demon Sealing Pavilion have been studying evil entities for years, and some individuals within Jianghu are also researching these things. Sealing evil entities isn’t particularly unusual, but it’s hardly worth spending seven hundred thousand taels on…"

Ji Qu’s words were cut short as if something had choked him.

For Shen Changqing, who was holding the black banner, suddenly exerted force and crushed the banner directly.

As the black banner shattered, the evil entities sealed within were instantly released.

Black mist billowed forth.

Evil entities wailed.

Immediately after.

Shen Changqing unleashed a punch, the immense Qi and blood, combined with the eruption of Great Sun True Qi, like winter snow meeting the spring sun. The black mist melted away at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Before the two evil entities could fully reveal their forms, they were completely annihilated by this power.

The events unfolded rapidly and vanished just as quickly.

Everyone present clearly heard the mournful wails of the vengeful spirits and sensed the terrifying aura, like the sun, before their shock was replaced by the dissipation of all commotion.

Such a disturbance drew the attention of the auction house’s powerhouses.

However, upon realizing that the aura emanated from Shen Changqing’s room, the Yuanyang Auction House refrained from taking any drastic actions.

Knock, knock!

A knock echoed on the door.

Shen Changqing retracted his fist and said calmly, "The door isn’t locked. Come in!"

The door opened.

Warden No. 1 entered from outside.

He eyed the tattered black banner on the ground, along with the almost completely dissipated Yin and evil aura, his eyes filled with a mix of surprise and doubt.

"May I ask, Lord Shen, what has happened?"

"Nothing much. It’s just that, as a member of the Demon Suppression Division, I couldn’t tolerate the presence of evil entities, so I simply slew two of them."

Shen Changqing spoke in a calm and collected manner.

Slew two evil entities, just like that?

Warden No. 1 glanced at the fragments of the black banner on the ground and immediately understood.

His gaze toward Shen Changqing instantly shifted to one of admiration as he respectfully cupped his fist.

"I never imagined that Lord Shen would be so devoted to the people, willing to spend seven hundred thousand taels to purchase the black banner simply to slay the evil entities within. If the black banner were not an item of my Yuanyang Auction House, I would certainly return the seven hundred thousand taels in full!"

"Warden, you jest. How could I allow others to foot the bill for my own affairs?"

Shen Changqing smiled faintly, showing no regret for spending seven hundred thousand taels on the black banner.

This attitude further impressed Warden No. 1.

Subsequently, he offered a serious reminder, "Lord Shen’s actions are truly admirable, but we are currently in the midst of an auction. I hope Lord Shen can restrain himself somewhat. After all, your strength is too great. If it were to leak out, I fear others would find it difficult to resist.

If it were to cause casualties, that would be unfortunate."

"Rest assured, I acted on impulse, but I won’t cause any further trouble."

"That would be best. I shall take my leave now. I hope you both enjoy the auction!"

With a cupped-fist salute, Warden No. 1 turned and departed.

The door closed.

Shen Changqing gazed at the slaughter points on his status panel, which had once again climbed to over fifty, a happy smile gracing his face.

It was just as he had predicted.

The two evil entities had contributed a total of forty-nine slaughter points.

Adding that to his original seven slaughter points, the total on his status panel now stood at a hefty fifty-six points.

"Fifty-six slaughter points. Enough to raise the Great Sun Scripture to the eighteenth level. Seven hundred thousand taels for three levels of martial arts improvement. This is a worthwhile investment!"

Shen Changqing was satisfied.

If he were to cultivate diligently on his own, it might take him years to elevate the Great Sun Scripture from the fifteenth level to the eighteenth level.

Several hundred thousand taels could enhance his power.

Truth be told, this was no loss at all!

End of Chapter