The steps to any good auction robbery were simple—wait until someone buys an item, then go and murder the person. After that, you can steal both the item and their storage ring and become ultra-rich. Whether you need to run away after that depends on your strength and status.
‘Why do I think that Chen Hao might not agree with the plan? It’s because he’s never had any fun in his life and doesn’t know how to properly enjoy cliches.”
Their adventure began when the inn shut its doors and He Ming had no more tables to serve. He led the pair into the chilly and silent streets. Even though it was a beautiful night under the stars, no one was drunk or gambling. Those who had shutters, a surprisingly rare minority, had long since closed them and were focused on cultivating.
After some time, they reached a nondescript stone house, and He Ming confidently pushed the door open. The room before them was empty. The floor was surprisingly clean for the lack of any formations.
Jun curiously sniffed around. Various scents intermixed within this little room, and as he began to process it all, he noticed that a strange smell clipped through the floor, heading down into the ground.
“Careful here,” He Ming said, cautiously stepping in the middle of the room. His legs were devoured by the stone, followed by his torso, and then his head.
‘Rest in peace. Getting swallowed by stone is the worst way to go.’
While Chen Hao hesitated, Jun confidently stepped to the spot where He Ming had disappeared. A shudder passed through his body as instead of meeting a solid floor, his paws landed on a stone staircase, slanted at an angle. The momentum of fall carried him forward, and he stumbled down and down, rolling like a snowball.
He didn’t know for how long he had been falling, but as darkness overtook him and vertigo caused him to throw up, Jun finally stopped.
“Am I fucking stupid? Why did I do that? He said to be careful.”
He shook himself clean of any dust and stretched his body. Fortunately, his skin was tough enough that not even a blade would be able to pierce through it. Less could be said about his brain, which had shook around like a pickle in a jar. Excitement had taken control of his body and his logic suffered as a result.
Before he could complain more, a dizzying amount of smells hit his nose. Sweat, alcohol, drugs. The latter in particular kicked his nose into overdrive as he smelled the air around him, trying to discern excitement from the intermingling of bodies. It all got so confusing sometimes.
His eyes were a better indicator of what was going on.
‘The Las Vegas of the sect. Baby, we’re home.’
He started from the basics. The floor beneath him was green and smooth to the touch, carved into tiny squares that made up huge swirling patterns. Above him was a stone ceiling, illuminated every ten feet by a rune. The colours alternated from one place to another, but it was this array of runes that helped completely light up the undersect.
Then there were the buildings. As if to compensate for the uniformity above, they came in weird shapes and sizes. A crystal tower ten storeys high was completely transparent, revealing that each floor was full of cultivators relaxing, dining, and mingling with each other. To its right, an obsidian hand rose from the floor, and above each finger was a magical image of one game or another. There were cards, dice, weird-looking roulettes, cups, and red sticks. “Take your chances!” was written across the fingers, inviting those who stopped to marvel. Even the cultivator’s houses were uniquely decorated to reflect their personality and element.
If the cultivators that walked above ground were meek and restrained, then the people here were lavish and unstrained in their desires.
‘Three fur cloaks? Sir, half your body is naked, what’s the point of it all?’
While some still wore robes and classic outfits, others wore expensive silks or suits made from magical beast fur and leather. Better yet, some dressed in such skimpy outfits it was a miracle to even call them outfits.
‘Definitely not a place for children. Actually, considering that children here steal and murder, it’s probably fine.’
Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
Jun wanted to rush out and explore the place, but before he could, He Ming emerged from the shadowy stone staircase. A stern look from him fixed Jun in place long enough for Chen Hao to arrive and protectively pick the dog up.
“Some stairs aren’t going to hurt a magical beast.” He Ming said, shooting a look at Chen Hao with an “I said so” expression.
“Maybe he got agitated by the smells? Why did you run off?” Chen Hao said, touching Jun’s nose before ruffling his fur.
“Chen Hao. Listen. It is extremely important that we visit the casino. Our life depends on it!”
“Well, he’s certainly excited. This place does have a weird smell to it,” He Ming commented.
“Imagine how much better our lives could be if you put it all on black. Do you know how many pills and weapons you could buy with that? Come oooooon.”
Jun tried to struggle out of the boy’s hands, but he held on tight. Chen Hao’s eyes were dazzling as he looked at the scene before him, mesmerised by sights he had never even imagined in his wildest dreams.
“That’s the Tower of Prosperity. Fools go there and spend spirit stones on alcohol, food, and courtesans. Closer is the Five Finger Casino. It’s one of the rare casinos here that allows cheating. Of course, their dealers are also specially trained to cheat, so they still win most of the time. It's good practice for your sleight-of-hand skills.”
“Further down is the Grand Luck Casino, which doesn’t allow any techniques. They’re known to kill people for even trying. Be careful of the Jin family here—they’re quick to anger and even quicker to draw blades,” He Ming said, pointing to a multi-coloured building in the distance. The colours changed depending on the angle you looked at them. If you were further away, they were annoyingly bright.
Regardless, Chen Hao wasn’t the type to gamble, so Jun had to convince him.
“Ignore what he’s saying. Imagine all the fun we could have in the casino. Listen, you work yourself up from five spirit stones and keep on winning. Maybe they’ll even have fun bonuses for first-time customers.”
Jun did not have a problem. Absolutely not. He was just mildly excited by the possibilities.
“Stop staring and start moving. Let’s visit the market. You’re too poor to buy anything from these high-end buildings.” He Ming said, moving down the street.
They passed such interesting places too. “Black Steel Auction House,” “Treasure Manor of Wonders,” and even “The Best Knowledge Pavillion.” Jun laughed at the name until he saw how much the manuals displayed outside the massive bowl-like building cost. The “Kun-Peng Transformation Manual” was three thousand spirit stones!
Jun’s slight pause made He Ming turn and stare at the manual. Then he turned back to Chen Hao.
“You’ve got a water spirit root, right? What else do you have?”
“Wind.”
He Ming whistled, looking a tad jealous at the fact.
“A wind movement art and a water attack art. I’m not sure if you’ll have enough spirit stones for a defence art. Best to find something that could unite the two.”
“If three hundred spirit stones can get all of that, then why is that one so expensive?” Chen Hao said, pointing at the Kun-Peng manual.
“A manual typically includes multiple magical techniques bound by a system. Also, not all techniques are built equally. A once-in-a-hundred-year genius creating a magical technique isn’t the same as you being inspired by water and creating the “Strong Ripple Slash” move.”
“And how can you tell the difference?”
“Good techniques are typically divided into levels based on your understanding.”
They passed by numerous buildings Jun was just begging to explore, but they had a job to do first. Soon enough, they arrived at a massive open square. In the middle of it was a jade statue of a young man with long hair and three masks on his face. One was happy, another was sad, and the third was angry. He was currently wearing the happy mask.
“Don’t piss off the Stranger. Always ends badly.”
The place here resembled an open market back on Earth, but instead of fruits and vegetables, ancient manuals, colourful pills, and rare weapons were displayed on stalls like cheap fish. They walked past an old man with a straw hat nodding off on a chair. Baskets full of labelled pills were within arm’s reach. Stealing candy from a baby would be easier, but He Ming didn’t glance twice at the easy target.
While the two went off to buy some manuals, Jun wandered off, looking for some garbage. Old, broken swords, nameless jade slips, cracked rings, and other junk. Why was he doing this? Well, in most novels, the main character would find a broken artifact here that has been lying dormant for ages. With the power of magic and fantasy and make-believe, it would turn out to be a god’s fallen tear and would bring him immeasurable power. Thus, Jun was trying to manifest it into reality.
He sniffed around, trying to find anything special. After some very productive minutes, he singled out a few artifacts that looked promising, and by that, he meant they looked cool and mysterious. Here, he ran into a massive problem. He was broke as shit.
“Argh. Just you wait, mythical artifacts. Once I establish my own pet treat business with express cultivator shipping, I’ll come back and reclaim you.” Jun licked his lips, eagerly awaiting the day.
For now, he made his way back to the pair of kids. In their hands were two bamboo slips, which had to be magical techniques.