Chapter 256: Cloud Empire (76)

This time, the entire hall was in shock. A formation. Sixth level. It was something extremely rare.

Shan Mu then said calmly.

“The starting bid begins at twenty thousand medium-grade spiritual stones.”

But before anyone else could even react, Kyrian spoke. His voice was calm. But firm.

“Fifty thousand spiritual stones.”

Silence.

Everyone in the hall immediately turned their heads. Thirty thousand added in a single bid. Now everyone understood.

When they looked at Kyrian… they immediately recognized him. The young man who had caused a sensation in the Cloud Coliseum. And more importantly… the robes that he and his companions were wearing.

Blood Court. Now everything made sense.

But then… A cold voice echoed from one of the private rooms.

“Sixty thousand spiritual stones.”

Kyrian immediately recognized the voice. His eyes narrowed slightly.

Qing Lanyue.

One of the three great beauties of the Cloud Capital. And a representative of the Jade Palace. The greatest formation force in the entire Cloud Empire.

But Kyrian did not hesitate.

“Seventy thousand spiritual stones.” He said.

“Eighty thousand spiritual stones.” Qing Lanyue’s cold voice sounded again, echoing softly through the hall.

The increase was firm, without any hesitation.

Immediately, countless gazes shifted between Kyrian and the private room from where the voice had emerged.

The tension increased. A sixth-rank formation was not something that appeared frequently in auctions, much less a formation connected to the path of blood.

Even forces that did not cultivate this path could study its structure, adapt it or use it as a base to create other formations.

But Kyrian showed no hesitation.

He calmly raised the jade plaque.

“Ninety thousand spiritual stones.” His voice was firm. Without emotion. Without hurry.

It was simply a declaration. He would not lose that item. After all, that was the main reason for his presence at that auction.

The scroll contained something that Dong Zhen had ordered him to bring back. And Kyrian had no intention of failing.

A heavy silence took over the hall. Some people exchanged discreet glances.

Others simply watched the dispute with growing interest.

After all… it was not common to see someone compete directly with the Jade Palace.

Meanwhile, in the third-floor private room belonging to the Jade Palace, the atmosphere was calm.

The room was spacious, decorated with pale jade furniture and silk screens delicately painted with diagrams of spiritual formations.

At the center of the room, Qing Lanyue was sitting elegantly. Her face was serene, her posture graceful.

Beside her was an elderly woman with white hair, whose presence exuded a deep and stable aura.

She was Qing Lanyue’s master. The elderly woman calmly observed the crimson scroll through the spiritual window of the private room.

Her eyes, although aged, were full of discernment.

Qing Lanyue broke the silence first.

“Master… I believe the boy will not give up.” Her voice was low and respectful.

“He is from the Blood Court. He probably came here specifically for this scroll.”

The elderly woman remained silent.

Qing Lanyue continued.

“Besides…” She thought for a moment before adding.

“I watched some of his fights in the Cloud Coliseum.”

“Oh?” The elderly woman’s eyes moved slightly.

Qing Lanyue nodded.

“He is extremely talented.”

“And… extremely dangerous.”

She interlaced her fingers over her lap.

“Kyrian defeated several cultivators of the same level and above without difficulty.”

“And he won a great fortune in the coliseum bets.”

She then looked again at the scroll on the stage.

“If he truly wants this formation… he probably has enough resources to continue increasing the bid.”

A small silence followed. Then Qing Lanyue added calmly:

“Perhaps it is better to leave this to him.”

The elderly woman continued observing the scroll for a few seconds. The bloody aura emanating from it was strong.

But for someone from the Jade Palace, that was not exactly essential. They were masters of formations.

But they rarely cultivated evil formations. The value of the scroll for them was more in its study.

Finally, the elderly woman nodded slightly.

“You are right.”

Her voice was hoarse, but firm.

“If the boy truly has the talent you described…”

She paused briefly.

“…there is no need to create friction with the Blood Court because of a single scroll.”

Qing Lanyue nodded respectfully.

On the stage, Shan Mu was carefully observing the hall.

His experienced eyes swept through the audience. But no new bid appeared.

He waited a few seconds before raising his hand.

“Ninety thousand spiritual stones.”

His voice echoed clearly.

“Anyone else?”

The hall remained silent. Some people looked at Kyrian with curiosity.

Others simply did not want to get involved in a dispute that included the Blood Court.

Especially now that Kyrian had become famous in the capital.

Shan Mu continued.

“Going once.”

No movement.

“Going twice.”

Still silence.

Many cultivators already knew that no one would interfere.

“Going three times.”

Shan Mu’s hand descended smoothly.

“Sold.”

At the same instant, the formation beneath the platform shone. Spiritual runes wrapped around the crimson scroll, sealing its bloody aura.

Then the item began to slowly descend beneath the stage.

The dispute had ended.

Mei Li let out a small sigh of relief. Beside her, Bai Zhu also relaxed his shoulders. Kai smiled slightly.

“Finally.”

Li Fen nodded.

“The mission is complete.”

Yan Ling also seemed relieved.

The task that Dong Zhen had entrusted to them had been completed. They had come to the capital with a clear objective.

To recover that scroll. Now, it was theirs.

And not only that.

Kyrian and Bai Zhu had quickly risen in the rankings of the Cloud Coliseum, defeating several talented cultivators.

Those victories had spread the name of the Blood Court throughout the capital. Something that, for Dong Zhen, was extremely important.

Reputation was power. Influence was power.

But Kyrian…

Kyrian did not seem particularly excited.

He simply watched the stage calmly.

For him, all of that was just part of a temporary path.

He was currently tied to the Blood Court. And while he was with them… he would fulfill his responsibilities.

Dong Zhen had entrusted a mission to him. So he would complete it.

It was as simple as that.

But deep down, Kyrian knew that his destiny would not remain bound to a single force.

If the day came when he needed to leave…

He would leave without looking back.

Without regrets.

Without hesitation.

Unlike Bai Zhu and the others.

They had grown up within the Blood Court.

For them, that force was more than an organization.

It was a home.

They would probably live… and die… as members of the Court.

But Kyrian was different.

His path was solitary.

His objectives went far beyond the Blood Court.

The formation on the stage shone again.

Shan Mu’s voice echoed once more.

“Ladies and gentlemen…”

He opened another professional smile.

“The auction is still far from over.”

Some cultivators immediately focused again.

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