446 - 451

Chapter 446: Shadow

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

After Nan Gong Hen, the other people started cutting away at their Crimson Stones with the Enchanted light rings. Occasionally, that unusual light would appear, and each time it happened, it would attract the crowd's attention.

However, every single time they cut the stones open, every single person would bring out a storage bag and place it on the Enchanted light ring. Only then would they be able to let this Enchanted Vessel operate properly.

Once Su Ming observed several people opening the stones, he averted his gaze to Nan Gong Hen, who came back dejected.

"Brother Mo, my luck is a little too rotten this time in the World of Nine Yin, isn't it..? When I went to rent my Spirit of Nine Yin, I was conned by that old man, and the Crimson Stone I fancied did indeed have something in it, but I broke it…"

Nan Gong Hen laughed bitterly as he watched the Shamans cutting through the Crimson Stones in the sky and listened to the commotion and discussions from the people around them, then sighed.

Su Ming originally wanted to comfort him, but when he was about to open his mouth, he found himself not knowing how to console him. In fact, he even had a feeling that Nan Gong Hen… did indeed have rotten luck.

"Uncle Nan Gong, it's alright. It's just a broken stone. You can buy more afterwards, you'll definitely be able to get a treasure." Lan Lan blinked, then started consoling him.

"It's 500,000! 500,000!" Nan Gong Hen lifted his head and looked at the floating Crimson Stones in the sky. A refusal to admit defeat rose in his eyes.

"Ahem, I think if we aren't too confident, then it's better not to continue with this sort of gamble. Just now, I truly experienced what the people said by being overcome by extreme ecstasy for an instant and falling into despair in an instant."

Su Ming cast Nan Gong Hen a glance, and when he saw that refusal in his eyes, he knew that all forms of persuasion and words of comfort were useless. He sighed and no longer spoke.

He still could not understand just why these people could be so passionate about this treasure gambling, especially when they were clearly relying on their luck.

As he was immersed in his thoughts, an intense uproar suddenly broke out among the people around them.

"A dual-colored light! It's… It's a dual-colored light!"

"There's no wrong about that. A dual-colored light actually appeared? Damn it, I remember that Crimson Stone no. 87. I… I knew that stone was promising since the start!"

"He sure got himself a good deal. That person spent less than 200,000, and now that the unusual light appeared, the stone's price will instantly increase by several fold. Now that the rare dual-colored light appeared, the value of the stone will reach 1,000,000!"

As cries of surprise rose in the large area, Su Ming lifted his head and looked over. With just one glance, he saw one Crimson Stone among the many Enchanted light rings shining red and blue. These two rays of light criss-crossed and illuminated an entire area of one hundred something feet.

There was an old man standing beside the Enchanted light ring. That old man was now filled with excitement and ecstasy and started laughing heartily on the spot. His eyes shone brilliantly, and with his right hand, he pointed at the Enchanted Vessel through the air. Immediately, the spinning Enchanted light ring started slowing down, and when it finally stopped, the dual-colored light shone incredibly distinctly before the crowd.

"Continue cutting! By the looks of it, you just need to pierce a hole in there and perhaps a shadow will appear. The moment the shadow appears, the price of the stone will become even higher!"

"I don't think so. The dual-colored light is already rare enough. The chances of a shadow appearing are not high…"

As the old man stopped cutting the stone, the people around started discussing among themselves once again, and some of them even tried cajoling him at the top of their voices. Jealousy, envy, and all sorts of complicated emotions were shown clearly in their words.

"Owner of Crimson Stone No.87, you don't need to continue cutting. We of Deity Ensnaring Tribe will buy that stone for 1,000,000 Shaman Crystals!" a calm voice said from one of the eight halls in the sky.

"You want to buy a dual-colored light stone with just 1,000,000? That stone has two colors, which means that there is definitely something in there. Owner of Crimson Stone No.87, I am Tie Mu from Eastern Goosefoot Tribe, I'll give you 1,300,000 Shaman Crystals, sell it to me!" A voice Su Ming was familiar with spoke from another hall. That voice naturally belonged to the Latter Shaman, Tie Mu.

A hesitant look appeared on the face of the Crimson Stone's owner. He looked at the Crimson Stone, then looked at the two halls the voices had come from. Clearly, the lesson Nan Gong Hen had just received was now clearly making him unable to make up his mind.

"Cut it! Continue cutting into it! Damn it, why are you tempted with just these words? I tossed in 500,000 for mine, and I still finished cutting through the entire stone!" Nan Gong Hen gritted his teeth and glared at the sky while standing beside Su Ming. More blood capillaries showed up in his eyes.

"Brother Nan Gong, what is the deal with this dual light?" Su Ming might have considerable knowledge about the treasure gambling event, but compared to the people who came to this event every single time, there were still certain things he did not know of. When he saw those red and blue lights, he asked Nan Gong Hen.

Nan Gong Hen sighed and started explaining to Su Ming.

"Brother Mo, you might not know about this, but before we cut into these Crimson Stones, there is no way for us of knowing what is inside no matter what sort of method we use, but when we cut them open, there are patterns for it.

"That unusual light is one of the patterns. If there is a ray of light, then it means that the stone is not empty. Perhaps there is a treasure inside, but it could also be a fossilized item, which makes it useless.

"However, if two rays of light appear, then it means that even if it is a fossilized item, it can still be used somewhat… We based this on past experiences. In the history of the treasure gambling event, the highest amount of lights that shone in one go was seven in total, and a rare treasure was found!

"As for the shadow they mentioned, it is also one of the patterns we found. However, the chances of a shadow appearing are less than of those unusual lights. The principle is that the item contained within the Crimson Stone was originally sealed off from the world, and the instant it comes in contact with the world outside, a strange shadow appears for an instant!

"If those unusual lights appear, then it means that there are items contained in the stone, if a shadow appears, then it proves that the item inside is definitely not an ordinary object! However, not all cases are like this, or else I wouldn't have needed to hesitate when I found an unusual light when I was cracking open my stone.

"In the past, there have been stones that looked promising during the treasure gambling event. They shone with those unusual lights, and some of them even had shadows, but when they were eventually cracked open, they were all empty…

"That is why these so called patterns in the treasure gambling event are all what has been figured out by the goers after groping about for some sort of pattern while observing these stones. They can be said to be true, but they can also be considered false as well…"

As the both of them spoke to each other, the old man who bought Crimson Stone No.87 seemed to have made his decision. Just as he lifted his right hand with the intention to do something, suddenly, a woman's voice came from one of the eight halls.

"If you cut it down, then perhaps a shadow will appear, but that is if you cut open the entire stone, or else you will still only find a dual-colored light. The stone's price will not increase. In fact, there is a possibility that its price will drop. There is even the possibility of you spoiling whatever is inside.

"If I were you, I would sell it now. No matter what, you would still earn a profit. We of Autumn Sea Tribe are willing to buy that stone for 1,500,000."

The instant that voice spoke, a barely noticeable glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes, though his expression remained unchanged. He could tell that the voice belonged to the Sacred Lady of Autumn Sea Tribe - Wan Qiu.

An expression of struggle appeared on the owner of Crimson Stone No.87 as he stood in the sky. After a long while, he sighed and wrapped his fist in his palm to bow towards the hall from had come the voice of Autumn Sea Tribe's Sacred Lady.

"If the Great Tribe of Autumn Sea likes this stone, then I am willing to sell it."

Once the old man said those words, a long arc immediately flew out from the great hall. There was an old man in the long arc. His hair was grey and he wore a blue robe. When he walked out, the ripples showing his power appeared faintly. He was a powerful Latter Shaman.

He walked towards the old man slowly and threw a storage bag by his feet. Without sparing the old man even a glance, he stared at the Crimson Stone in the light ring, and after a long while, he frowned.

"Why aren't you leaving?"

The old man quickly retreated, and as he moved back reluctantly, he kept on turning his head to look at the Crimson Stone.

However, before he even returned to the ground, the Enchanted light ring was immediately activated. Buzzing sounds reverberated in the air, and the Crimson Stone instantly shrank. The Latter Shaman from Autumn Sea Tribe controlled that light ring several times to continue cutting away. He then took a step forward, and with a growl, lifted his right hand and slammed his hand on the stone.

With that one slap, the Crimson Stone that had shrank down immensely and had large amounts of small holes instantly cracked, and the crack connected all the small holes that had pierced through the stone together. With a bang, the stone fell into pieces, and a transparent mountain rock about the size of a head floated into the old man's palm.

The mountain rock was crystal clear, and within it was an iron piece. That iron piece was covered in rust and looked incredibly normal, but there was a faint murderous aura that was spreading out from inside it.

"It's an Enchanted treasure! It's definitely an Enchanted treasure!"

"It's an Enchanted treasure from the World of Nine Yin, one that has came from ages ago!"

"Autumn Sea Tribe really got themselves a good haul this time. They managed to buy an Enchanted treasure with 1,500,000 Shaman Crystals and without a single risk taken. Heh heh, it's hard to determine the value of that item."

Su Ming stared at the transparent mountain rock in the old Latter Shaman's hand and a glint appeared in his eyes. By his side, Nan Gong Hen looked incredibly dejected, and it was clear that he was plagued by what had happened to him.

The old man who sold the stone for 1,500,000 Shaman Crystals was momentarily stunned, then a variety of emotions flitted through his face. The complicated feeling in his heart would not lose to Nan Gong Hen's. He had sold that stone away because he could not bear the thought of 1,500,000 Shaman Crystals disappearing from his hands within an instant.

The old Latter Shaman from Autumn Sea Tribe smiled as he stood in the sky, then with a flip of his right hand, the mountain rock immediately disappeared. He turned around and walked towards Autumn Sea Tribe's hall. The Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple who was sitting and meditating at the roof of another temple remained expressionless, but if anyone took a closer look, they would find that his pupils had shrank the moment he saw the mountain rock being excavated.

"We will now continue with the auction of Crimson Stones No.101 to No.200!"

When the first one hundred Crimson Stones were all cracked open, the atmosphere in the area had reached its peak, and the crowd became even more enthusiastic in buying the second batch of stones.

"200,000!"

"300,000!"

"350,000!"

"500,000!"

"600,000!"

As the Crimson Stones were auctioned off, the bids continued without stop. Before long, all the stones were bought by the people in a manner as if they were fighting against each other for them.

Nan Gong Hen had wanted to place a bid several times but forced down his urge. As for Su Ming, he simply continued watching and did not join in the bid. He was waiting, waiting for Crimson Stones No.697, 901, and 949.

Su Ming was absolutely certain about these three stones, and as for the others, he would not gamble for them.

Time trickled away, and the second batch of Crimson Stones was cut down. Two of them had shone with that unusual light, but in the end, when they were both cut open, one of them was empty inside, and several hundreds of thousands of Shaman Crystals were gone down the drain just like that.

While there was an item in the other stone, when it was cracked open, the item contained within was already completely fossilized. It crumbled into dust from the slightest touch, disappearing into the air.

Chapter 447: 697!

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Su Ming waited patiently and continued watching as the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth batches of Crimson Stones were sold off, then subsequently cracked open by their buyers right before all the Shamans.

The whole time, besides waiting, Su Ming also observed how the people control those light rings, as well as the strangeness of that Enchanted light ring, especially the act of placing a storage bag on it before it could be activated. These observations allowed Su Ming to figure out that the amount of Shaman Crystals those people had bought the stones for should be contained within those storage bags.

Su Ming was also observing the almost crazed Shamans who had their emotions completely ignited around him. 　　

Su Ming had made some brief calculations. Among the opened five hundred Crimson Stones, there were twelve that had shone with that unusual light, but only five of them had contained anything inside, and the rest of them were empty.

Yet even so, only two of the five stones that contained physical items made the crowd burst into commotion. One of them was the piece bought by Autumn Sea Tribe and the other was the rock containing a lock of black hair inside!

The lock of hair inside that palm-sized transparent mountain rock looked alive, as if it still contained ample amounts of life force. It seemed that if anyone crushed that mountain rock, they would be able to extract it in its complete form.

Even the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple was visibly taken by this item, and he bought it at an exorbitant price! 　

Time continued passing by. It was not midnight. However, under the illumination of the numerous lights from the Crimson Stones in the sky, the entire land looked no different than it was during the day.

During the time, Nan Gong Hen gritted and bought another Crimson Stone, but…

"Brother Mo, I'm not going to continue anymore, I'll just watch… Ah… I'm just not fated with these one thousand Crimson Stones… Brother Mo, aren't you going to buy some?" Nan Gong Hen looked as if he had submitted to his fate and sighed beside Su Ming. 　　

The three youths beside them were already stunned by what they'd seen. Their faces were filled with shock. The intense atmosphere could easily affect the emotions of all the people in the area, and their self-control would be whittled down to the extreme.

Su Ming nodded. At the moment, the voice of the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple spread through the land languidly.

"The treasure gambling event will not stop until we have sold off all the one thousand Crimson Stones. If there are any of you who are unwilling to continue, you may leave at any time you please. Now, we will begin the auction for Crimson Stones No.601 to 700!" The old man swept his gaze across the land with a calm expression as he spoke.

Su Ming sucked in a deep breath. He had been waiting for an entire day for this moment!

"230,000!"

"370,000!"

"420,000!"

It might already be midnight, but the liveliness in the place did not diminish. Instead, it only became even more intense. The bids these people placed had only become higher!

Su Ming kept his silence. He was still waiting, and when Crimson Stone no. 696 was bought by someone else for 420,000, the auction for Crimson Stone no. 697 started!

The Crimson Stone that was slightly taller than a person looked no different from the other stones and it did not have a flashy appearance. However, only Su Ming knew that there was a three-petaled flower contained inside. Although two of these petals had already withered away, the last remaining petal was alive!　

"150,000!"

The instant the auction for this Crimson Stone started, someone immediately shouted his bid. This was not because the person who placed the bid had discovered the uniqueness of this stone, but because this was simply what happened once all the Crimson Stones were placed on bid.

"180,000!"

"200,000!"

"230,000!"

The people continued placing their bids nonstop. Su Ming's expression remained calm, and once someone called out a bid of 230,000, a glint appeared in his eyes, and he placed his first bid ever since he came to the treasure gambling event!

"300,000!"

When Nan Gong Hen heard Su Ming's loud voice, he immediately looked towards him.

The three youths also became incredibly excited.

"350,000!" another person from the crowd placed a bid.

There were too many people in the area, and it was impossible for Su Ming to know who had placed that bid if he did not spread his divine sense. However, since the God of Shamans Temple hosted this event, it was rare for anyone to place a fake bid. If they did such a thing, then they would need to understand the consequences of their actions.

"400,000!" Su Ming called out without any hesitation.

400,000 was the average price for the Crimson Stones brought out during the latter half of the auction. If they offered a higher price, then if they failed, they would have to suffer the huge pain of such a great loss. Unless they were really confident, the people would usually stop placing bids at this moment. After all, there were still many Crimson Stones after this, and there was no need for them to concentrate on that one piece.

"420,000!" At the moment most people would stop placing bids, someone placed another bid. 　

"450,000!" Su Ming stated calmly with a calm expression on his face.

Several breaths passed by, and when no one else continued placing bids, the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple started the auction for Crimson Stone No.698.

After a moment, once the Crimson Stones for this batch were all sold off, the people who bought the Crimson Stones flew up with excitement, calmness, or eagerness, straight up towards the one hundred Enchanted light rings. 　

"Brother Mo, good luck!" Nan Gong Hen wrapped his fist in his palm towards Su Ming, who gave him a nod, sucked in a deep breath, and with one single move, charged towards the sky.

This was the first time he appeared before the eyes of the Shamans to buy his own Crimson Stone in the treasure gambling event. This was also the first time he would cut open his Crimson Stone before the crowd!

This, too, would be the start of Su Ming's parade!

The one hundred long arcs rushed to their respective Enchanted light rings. Su Ming had bought Crimson Stone No.697, and his designated Enchanted light ring was the 97th ring. While he stood there, he looked at the flashing Enchanted Vessel calmly. He watched as the light ring slowly turned about in its place while a sizzling sounded when the lights criss-crossed with each other.

After a moment, the Crimson Stones numbered 601 to 700 charged towards their buyers. When they appeared before the crowd, Su Ming looked at the Crimson Stone. It was indeed the one he had seen previously. In fact, he could even smell that faint and indistinct medicinal fragrance once again. 　

Most of the people around him brought out bags containing their Shaman Crystals with different expressions on their faces, but the expectant look was on all them. They placed their bags on their respective Enchanted light rings, and strong light shone from the Enchanted Vessels, as if they had just been ignited.

The crowd also started breathing quicker, standing underneath. Their gazes were fixed on the people in the sky. They wanted to know whether there would be any light coming from the Crimson Stones and whether any treasure would be found!

When ninety-nine of the Enchanted light rings in the sky had been lit up and these people could start cutting their stones, only Su Ming's Enchanted Vessel was not lit, and that created an incredibly obvious spectacle in the sky.

This sort of thing had never appeared today. The people's gazes underneath were instantly gathered on Su Ming, and at the same time they became attracted to the mask on his face, they also recognized him!

"It's him!"

"He reached a tie against Tie Mu, Eastern Goosefoot Tribe's Latter Shaman! His name is Mo Su!"

"Unless he hid his true level of cultivation, then this person is definitely the strongest among all Medial Shamans!"

"I saw him fighting against senior Tie Mu that day. The might of that battle is something no Medial Shaman could fight against!"

At the same time, the instant Su Ming became the center of attention, the expressions of the people in four of the eight halls in the sky changed as they became affected by different emotions.

Tie Mu sat inside his hall, and there were other members of his tribe sitting around him. The woman was among them, and as she stared at Su Ming, hatred shone briefly in her eyes.

'It's him…'

Tie Mu stared Su Ming. While he had come into some conflict with Su Ming, but due to the other's politeness, he had become slightly fond of him. When he saw Su Ming, he remained expressionless, and the killing intent he had harbored some time ago was no longer there.

Autumn Sea Tribe's Sacred Lady Wan Qiu stood on the stairs in the other hall as she looked at Su Ming standing in the dark sky and under the illumination of the flashing crimson light in the dark. She frowned.

'Their bodies are similar, but… the presence this person gives off seems to be… slightly different from his.' As Wan Qiu became immersed in her thoughts, the red mark of the dragon on her right arm shone faintly.

While Sky Mist's ancestor remained seated calmly in the third hall, Tian Lan Meng and Tian Lan You, who were sitting before him, looked at the world outside. Tian Lan Meng's gaze was focused on Su Ming's body, and there was uncertainty in her eyes.

In the fourth hall was a long-haired woman in white. She stared at Su Ming blankly, and there was confusion along with a mix of complicated emotions in her eyes. If she was not the Celestial Maiden and could still sense the presence coming from that body, which albeit faint, still existed, she would not have been able to recognize that the person she was looking at right now… was him.

"Why did you appear here..? Do you know just what sort of danger you just brought on yourself by appearing here..?" The long-haired woman mumbled in a voice only she could hear, and the confusion in her eyes disappeared to be replaced by a hint of anxiety.

At the same time, there was a person in black robes standing among the crowd on the ground. He lifted his head slightly and a cold sneer appeared on his lips as he stared at Su Ming with a freezing glint in his eyes.

"Owner of Crimson Stone No.697, bring out the sufficient amount of Shaman Crystals and light up your Enchanted Vessel!" When the people's gazes were focused on Su Ming, the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple looked at him and spoke in a low voice.

"I don't have enough Shaman Crystals." Su Ming's expression remained as calm as usual when he looked towards the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple.

The Grand Elder was already halfway through to becoming an End Shaman, and he no longer showed his emotions on his face. At that moment, he looked at Su Ming with his usual calm look on his face and stated unhurriedly, "I will give you the span of three breaths. After three breaths, if you still can't bring out something of equal value to the required Shaman Crystals, then I will kill you on the spot."

Naturally, Su Ming was prepared for this since a long time ago. Without another word, he brought out a storage bag he had prepared and threw it towards the Grand Elder.

The storage bag came to a stop before the old man. He cast Su Ming a cold glance, then lifted his hand to take it. After sweeping a look through the contents, while remaining expressionless, he lifted his right hand and pointed at the Enchanted light ring before Su Ming. The Enchanted Vessel was immediately lit up, and it was ready to be used at any time!

While the old man might looked as calm as ever, his heart was in shock, because he saw five Scattering Dusts in the storage bag! He had seen Scattering Dusts before and had even consumed one of them. When he saw them, the unique feeling of the Scattering Dusts allowed him to be able to recognize the authenticity of these items with just one glance.

The quality of the Scattering Dusts in the storage bag was also much higher than the quality of the one he had taken!

Chapter 448: Ghost Spirit Flower!

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Only Su Ming and the old man knew about what Su Ming gave to him. Although the people had seen the transaction, it was impossible for them to know the details. That was also why the old man from the God of Shamans Temple had remained silent but lit up Su Ming's Enchanted Vessel after he saw the five Scattering Dusts.

Since no one knew what Su Ming had given him, he just needed to bring out an item to replace the contents after this, and these five Scattering Dusts that were clearly of much higher quality would become his own personal belongings.

This sort of trade that seemed obvious to all but was actually very secretive was something the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple had no reason to decline. In fact, he was very happy with the results, and there was a slight difference in the manner he looked at Su Ming. Besides, he believed that even if he wanted to learn about the origins of these Scattering Dusts, he could do so with ease.

'This person has a lot of experience under his belt and is also a wise one…' Once the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple put away the storage bag and cast Su Ming a glance, he no longer bothered himself with him.

Due to this matter, the number of gazes fixed on Su Ming was much greater compared to the other people. However, as the sizzling sounds spread out and the others began to nervously cut into their Crimson Stones, the gazes gathered on his person gradually spread out.

Su Ming did not look at the others. He simply stared at the Enchanted light ring before him and lifted his right hand to place it on the ring. When he closed his eyes, he immediately had a feeling as if he had become one with the Enchanted Vessel, and he felt that he could control the ring to do all sorts of things when cutting the stone.

He had only watched other people doing so previously. Now that it was his turn to control it, he experienced the feeling for a moment before he lifted his left hand and pointed at the Crimson Stone. Instantly, the stone charged towards the light ring. Once it was swiftly enveloped by the light ring, the Enchanted Vessel started spinning slowly, and each time it spun, a large amount of chips would fall off.

As the light ring spun, Su Ming kept his eyes closed and spread his divine sense in his storage bag to gather on the small black humanoid. After a moment, when Su Ming detected that faint medicinal fragrance once again, he saw the small black humanoid shuddering. The center of its brows flashed, and the strange black flower with the three petals floated above its head once again.

Compared to Su Ming's slow speed, there were already quite a few people who had cut open their Crimson Stones in disappointment, causing the Shaman Crystals they spent to instantly go down the drain.

As time passed by, more of these people who were cutting into their Crimson Stones left with long sighs and disappointed looks on their faces, returning to the crowd with nothing to gain when their Crimson Stones were shattered completely by those light rings.

At that moment, there were only a dozen something people left in the sky who were still cutting into their Crimson Stones. After some time, rumbling sounds echoed, and seven more people's Crimson Stones shattered completely to reveal absolutely nothing within. These people left with bitter smiles on their faces.

Right then, there were only four people left in the air who were still cutting into their Crimson Stones, including Su Ming.

Su Ming still had his eyes closed and did not bother about these people. He continued spinning that light ring slowly, causing the Crimson Stone to gradually shrink. He occasionally adjusted the Enchanted Vessel's angle while keeping his divine sense focused on the small black humanoid to observe the picture flashing at the center of its brows.

Several breaths went by once again, and once another Crimson Stone shattered, only three people were left in the sky cutting into their stones. However, right at that moment, the Crimson Stone belonging to the Shaman who looked like a young teenage boy among the three people left suddenly shone with a strong red light!

The instant that red light spread out, an ecstatic look appeared on the boy's face.

"It's a light! Haha! I just got myself a light"

The people underneath also looked over, and the instant they saw the ray of unusual light, their spirits were lifted.

However, as the boy's laughter echoed in the sky and he was filled with excitement, another Crimson Stone shone with that same piercing red light as well!

It shone with that unusual light as well! The owner of that Crimson Stone was a middle-aged man. He was built tall and large, which was a clear indicator that he was a Battle Shaman. He licked his lips and laughed. He was right next to Su Ming. Su Ming was number 97, and he was number 96.

Two of the three remaining Crimson Stones shone with that unusual light. This immediately caught an immense amount of attention from the crowd underneath. Uproars and sounds of discussion rose all around the area.

"Two rays of light appeared at the same time, their luck is really…"

"Damn it, I remember that number. So he's the one who offered 50,000 more than me just now? This… This is…"

As discussions rang in the area, Nan Gong Hen cast a glance at Su Ming and shook his head. For some unknown reason, he felt a little better.

As the two people who found those rays of unusual light continued scraping off their Crimson Stones excitedly and even controlled those sharp needles to pierce through the stones, Su Ming continued changing the Crimson Stone's position with his eyes closed and made the light ring spin as he scraped off the external layers of the stone.

Moments later, under the crowd's expectant gazes, the boy who had found that ray of unusual light gritted his teeth in his excitement and had a sharp needle from the light ring pierce through. After repeating the action several times and as the light ring continued with its operations rapidly, the Crimson Stone split into two with a bang.

It was empty…

The boy was momentarily stunned, and just like Nan Gong Hen, he continued cutting at it, refusing to accept the truth. When the Crimson Stone had completely shattered, a transparent mountain rock the size of a fingernail appeared in his hand, but there was still nothing contained within it.

The boy turned pale. The sudden drop to disappointment from his ecstasy came too fast and was too great. It was rather difficult for him to handle it.

When the crowd underneath saw this, they sighed, and as their sighs echoed in the air, someone suddenly let out a cry of surprise.

"Dual color… That's… That's a dual-colored light! The dual-colored light has appeared again!"

"It's really dual-colored! Two dual-colored lights actually appeared among these one thousand stones today!"

As the cries of surprise rang in the air, all the people's gazes were lured towards the middle-aged man beside Su Ming. At that moment, the middle-aged man was filled with uncontrollable excitement. The Crimson Stone before him was shining in blue and red light!

Amid the buzzing commotion, someone immediately yelled a price to buy that stone. At that moment, Su Ming was immersed in the picture at the center of the small black humanoid's brows in his storage room. He could tell that the picture was not immobile. Instead, as he continued scraping his Crimson Stone, it would change.

In fact, when he adjusted the position of the stone, the flower would also start turning. Su Ming was very careful with his actions. Right then, he opened his eyes swiftly, and with a sparkle in his eyes, he pointed at the Enchanted Vessel with his right hand. Immediately, a sharp needle appeared on the spinning light ring.

Without any hesitation, Su Ming controlled that sharp needle to pierce through one of the sides of the Crimson Stone. Once he repeated the action several times and as the light ring increased its speed as it spun, a bang rang from within the stone, and a small part of Su Ming's Crimson Stone was split off.

As the light ring slowly stopped, Su Ming stood there and sank into his thoughts for a moment. At that time, the man beside him began laughing. He did not bother with the prices being thrown at him. He first cast a smug look at Su Ming, then turned his head around and controlled the light ring to slice down at the stone. At the same time he slashed down, a resolute look appeared in Su Ming's eyes and he pointed at the Enchanted Vessel.

The Enchanted Vessel spun and cut down another small portion of the Crimson Stone before him. He had completed his action almost at the same time as the man, and once the two completed the cuts, the dual colored light coming from the Crimson Stone before the man started shining furiously, and it looked as if it was even stronger than before. That was enough to make all the people around the area to be visibly taken by it. Even the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple focused his gaze on that stone.

At the same time, as the dual-colored light shone furiously, the sky near Su Ming, behind the man's Crimson Stone suddenly distorted, and as those distorted ripples appeared, a gigantic picture showed up!

Within that picture was a black flower! The flower contained three petals, and each of the petals contained the face of a skeletal ghost. They looked incredibly hideous, causing the black flower to appear terrifying. However, the picture was incredibly blurry, and the onlookers could only see the overall shape of the flower.

The instant the illusionary shadow of the flower appeared, the strongest and most intense cries of surprise as well as uproars rose in this treasure gambling event. There was even an unknown amount of people who had stood up. In fact, some of them had almost flown into the sky instinctively.

"A shadow! That's a shadow!"

"A… A shadow actually appeared? What flower is that?"

"A Ghost Spirit Flower! That's… That's a Ghost Spirit Flower! It's a three-petaled Ghost Spirit Flower!"

"Dual colors and a shadow. Damn it, that Battle Shaman really made a killing this time. We just need to see how far his flower has fossilized. If the fossilization is only of a seven portions of the whole thing and it still contains a three tenths of its medicinal properties, then he will definitely get a price higher than the hair that was sold just now!!"

For the first time, the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple could not hide s brief instance of shock that shook him. He stood up and stared at the illusionary picture of the three-petaled Ghost Spirit Flower with desire shining in his eyes.

He was not the only one. At that moment, almost every single person within the eight halls in the area were staring fixedly at the picture!

"Ghost Spirit Flower… This flower cannot be made into medicine, but it can give birth to a Ghost Spirit, which is its biggest use. This Ghost Spirit can go anywhere it likes, and it is practically impossible for all seals in the world to try and stop it. Once it hides itself away, it will be incredibly difficult to find that Ghost Spirit… Legend has it that if someone obtained the five-petalled Ghost Spirit Flower, then the Five Ghost Spell might appear…

"The Five Ghost Spell can be fused into the caster's body, and once it is done, the caster will turn into a spirit that cannot be seen even if heaven decided to open its eyes! That Battle Shaman really has insane luck. He… He actually managed to find the Ghost Spirit Flower! Wait, something's not right…" Nan Gong Hen was stunned in his place, and as he mumbled to himself, he suddenly widened his eyes.

The Battle Shaman was laughing maniacally in the sky at the moment. He looked so worked up that it seemed like his blood vessels were about to burst. He shivered, and the only thing lacking in his whole bout of excitement was him lifting his head and roaring at the sky. However, gradually, his expression changed to one of disbelief, and he whipped his head around to look at Su Ming.

At the same time, more people had also begun to tell that something was off…

"What a scam!! The man didn't get that shadow, it's the person beside him who got it!"

"The man still has that dual-colored light, but that Mo Su beside him was the one who got that shadow of the Ghost Spirit Flower just now…"

The noise from the uproars became more intense, and the numerous pairs of eyes straight up ignored the middle-aged man to focus on Su Ming. Their discussions shook the sky and earth.

Su Ming's expression remained calm, but he was also beginning to feel a little nervous. He did not expect that a shadow would appear for him.

"My boy Mo Su, sell that Crimson Stone to me. Heh heh, we can negotiate the price!" Tie Mu's voice immediately traveled forth from within the eight halls. At the same time, Tie Mu even walked out of his hall and wrapped his fist in his palm towards Su Ming as he chuckled.

Chapter 449: I Wonder, How Much Will You Offer Now?

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

"Sir, if you sell that stone to the Great Tribe of Sky World, then we are willing to pay 3,000,000 Shaman Crystals for it!" Another person walked out rapidly from another hall and wrapped his fist in his palm with a smile towards Su Ming. It was a middle-aged scholar who was dressed very elegantly. However, there was also a unique temperament within him.

"We… of Autumn Sea Tribe are willing to buy that stone for 4,000,000 Shaman Crystals." Once Tie Mu and the person from the Great Tribe of Sky World walked out, Wan Qiu's gentle voice came from the third hall.

When she spoke up, she walked out in all her tall and slim glory, with her hair spilling down her shoulders and dancing in the wind, causing her to be filled with so much beauty that she could cause hearts to race. She looked at Su Ming, and there was a scrutinizing look in her gaze, as if she wanted to see through the mask at his true appearance.

"You're thinking of buying that Ghost Spirit Flower with just 4,000,000 Shaman Crystals? Even though you can't turn that flower into medicine, but once you are able to hide yourself successfully with it, it will be practically impossible to find you in the world. We're buying that flower with 5,000,000!"

Once Wan Qiu spoke, a cold harrumph traveled through the air.

That cold harrumph belonged to a woman that walked out from another hall. Her white robes, profound gaze, and the graceful presence made it clear that she was the Celestial Maiden from the Immortal's Hidden Dragon Sect!

She had no idea why herself, but when she saw the Sacred Lady from Autumn Sea Tribe, she despised her, especially when she saw the scrutiny in her eyes when she looked at Su Ming. She detested that look.

Wan Qiu frowned and looked towards the Celestial Maiden dressed in white. The gazes of these two outstanding and beautiful women clashed in midair.

"I'll offer 6,000,000!" When the two women's gazes clashed with each other, a gentle voice traveled forth slowly from the hall to the side. That voice was very gentle and even sounded slightly fragile, and with the voice came a woman with long hair. While she was not breathtakingly beautiful, she was a woman that gave others a feeling that she was a very gentle person.

That woman… was Tian Lan Meng.

When she walked out, there was a smile on her face. She ignored Wan Qiu and the Celestial Maiden in white turning to look at her, choosing instead to look at Su Ming as she spoke softly.

Su Ming was momentarily stunned. He looked at Wan Qiu, then at the Celestial Maiden in white, then finally at Tian Lan Meng, who was walking. He suddenly felt a slight headache pounding against his head.

"Elder sister, you look quite unfamiliar. Where did you come from?" The Celestial Maiden in white immediately looked towards Tian Lan Meng. That gentle temperament of hers also displeased her.

"Elder sister, you must be joking. Compared to you, I wouldn't dare call myself your elder sister. As to where I come from, I believe I am not obliged to tell you. However, compared to us, the Sacred Lady from Autumn Sea Tribe must have the clearest background." Tian Lan Meng let out a gentle chuckle. Her voice was feathery soft, but her words were incredibly sharp.

Wan Qiu frowned, and once she swept her gaze past the Celestial Maiden in white and Tian Lan Meng, she looked towards Su Ming.

Once she did so, the Celestial Maiden in white immediately did the same thing and looked towards Su Ming. Even Tian Lan Meng did the same thing and looked towards him with a gentle gaze and with natural ease.

Su Ming was not the only stunned by the sudden appearance of the three women, even Tie Mu was momentarily taken aback. He cast an odd look towards Su Ming, then at the three women, and suddenly started laughing.

"The God of Shamans Temple will be taking this item!"

At that moment, the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple spoke unhurriedly. His voice was not loud, but the moment it traveled forth, it stirred up a ripple in the area. As that ripple spread out, all the people felt as if a clap of thunder had just struck beside their ears, and it actually managed to cause the loud discussions in the area to fall silent in an instant.

The domineering presence in that voice made Su Ming feel that if he chose to disobey, then his only outcome would be death. It was a straight up disregard for his existence!

Su Ming frowned under the mask.

"I wonder, how much is the God of Shamans Temple offering?" Su Ming looked towards the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple.

"A shadow might have appeared, but we can't be certain whether there is truly something within the stone. 1,000,000 Shaman Crystals!" The Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple stated calmly.

If the man beside Su Ming who had found that dual-colored light had done so at any other time, he would definitely be the center of attention. However, he could only become a decoration, standing there with incredible disgruntlement.

While the rays of unusual light were rare, but there would be some that would shine with that unusual light among the hundred of the Crimson Stones. It had already appeared twice, but this was the first time a shadow had formed!

Su Ming's lips curled up in a cold smile. He wanted to buy his Crimson Stone with just 1,000,000? That could not even be considered a price. Without another word, he lifted his right hand and pointed towards the Enchanted light ring. It immediately started spinning swiftly before slicing down on the Crimson Stone once again. The resolution he showed as he cut down on the stone shocked and scared all those who saw it.

After all, if he did not cut down on that stone carefully, then he would destroy the treasure inside!

However, with that one slash, not only did Su Ming not destroy that stone, he even made the crowd underneath erupt forth with intense cries of surprise in the midst of their silence.

"It's the light! The light has appeared!"

A red light shone from the cut in Su Ming's Crimson Stone. Adding together with the shadow that showed up just now, the appearance of the light exponentially increased the possibility that there was a medicinal herb in the stone!

Nan Gong Hen was incredibly excited and agitated. When he saw Su Ming's actions in midair, he also felt his heart stop in fear and shock. However, just as he, along with many others, thought that Su Ming would stop, he cast the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple a glance.

"Now, how much will you offer?"

Once he finished asking, Su Ming pointed at the Enchanted Vessel. As that Enchanted light ring buzzed, it sliced down on the stone once again, and with a bang, another corner of the Crimson Stone was cut off, and the second ray of light appeared!

The two glowing rays caused the uproars in the crowd underneath to become so intense it looked as if those sounds could not be forced down!

"Dual-colored lights and a shadow, the Ghost Spirit Flower is definitely in that stone!!"

"That Mo Su sure is resolute. He didn't even look at the stone and cut down twice. That's… That's way too risky!"

Su Ming looked at the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple and asked languidly, "Now, how much will you offer?"

"3,000,000!" The Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple glared at Su Ming, and his expression gradually turned freezing cold.

Su Ming smiled, then as he lifted his right hand, he decided to stop using the Enchanted light ring to continue cutting into the stone and seized at the air. Immediately, the Crimson Stone that was now only half the height of a normal person floated towards him.

With a flash of green in his hand, the small sword shot out and pierced through the Crimson Stone. Once it made several holes, Su Ming slammed his hand onto the stone. Fine cracks appeared, and a small part of it crumbled with a bang.

When that small part of the stone shattered, distorted ripples appeared in the air above the Crimson Stone once again, and gradually, a second shadow appeared!

The picture was still that of the Ghost Spirit Flower, but it was no longer as blurred out as before. Instead, it was now much clearer.

"Dual colors and dual shadows!"

"I'm completely certain that there is a Ghost Spirit Flower in this stone, and the rate of its fossilization will not be more than seven tenths of the entire flower!"

"Over the numerous treasure gambling events organized, the dual colors and dual shadows have only appeared fifteen times. I didn't expect that I would be able to see this sight with my own eyes today!"

As the crowd underneath were engaged in intense discussions, Su Ming looked at the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple once again.

"I wonder, how much will you offer now?"

Chapter 450: The Arrival of God Seal!

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

"Still 3,000,000."

The Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple glared at Su Ming coldly. To him, while this person had been a little smart just now, but clearly, he was not tactful. Even if he could fight against a Latter Shaman, under the Grand Elder's immense power, this person would only be able to crumble like a leaf torn apart by furious wind, and he would not be able to resist.

To him, this price was already enough. In the past, the highest price that had been offered by the God of Shamans Temple ever had been 5,000,000. With that price in comparison, if this person did not agree to 3,000,000, then there was no longer any need for the Grand Elder to seek his approval for the price.

Su Ming cast the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple a glance. If he had not made precise preparations beforehand, then as of now, his only way would be to sell the stone.

However, since Su Ming had the courage to stand there and had even dared to say such words to the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple, then naturally, he already knew what was going to happen next.

At that moment, he chose not to speak any longer. Instead, he lifted his right hand, and with a flash of green, he cut down on the Crimson Stone. As rumbling sounds reverberated in the air, Su Ming continued cutting the stone while referring to the picture on the center of the small, black humanoid's brows.

After some time, right under numerous pairs of eyes, the Crimson Stone shattered with a bang, and as a large amount of stone chips fell off and scattered away, a transparent mountain rock about the size of a head appeared in Su Ming's palm!

The mountain rock was translucent and glittered with crystalline sparkles, making it seem as if it contained light. There was a black flower sealed within. Two of its petals had fossilized, but there was one petal that was still overflowing with life. The face of the malicious ghost on the black petal looked as if it was smiling savagely.

The instant the Ghost Spirit Flower was excavated and revealed before the people's gazes, a shocking uproar broke out along with it. Some of the pairs of eyes that were focused on the flower were filled with jealousy, some with envy, some with madness, some with complicated feelings, along with all sorts of other emotions. All of human expressions could be found in the crowd on the ground.

"It's truly the Ghost Spirit Flower, and… one of the petals is still very much alive!"

"That petal is already fully grown and has lived for many years. As long as the method is correct, this person can produce his very first Ghost!"

"Damn it, I placed a bid for this stone in the start, but… but why didn't I continue fighting for it?!"

As the people's voices around the area turned into buzzing, Nan Gong Hen widened his eyes and his breathing quickened. He stared at Su Ming, and a brilliant shine gradually appeared in his eyes.

'Brother Mo's luck is seriously insane. He just offhandedly bought a Crimson Stone and managed to get a Ghost Spirit Flower. The fossilization of the whole flower is over a six tenths, but if we look at just that one petal… then this is a complete flower that is not at all affected by the fossilization!

'The value of that flower is at least 7,000,000!'

Su Ming looked at the mountain rock floating above his palm, and with a flip of his hand, it immediately disappeared. Then, without even looking at the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple, he turned around and walked towards the crowd underneath.

The people who had walked out of the eight halls just now simply cast their gazes at Su Ming but did not stop him. After all, the price given by the God of Shamans Temple was simply too low, and if any of them were in Su Ming's place, they would not accept it either.

The Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple was also looking at Su Ming's back as he walked to the ground. His expression was still as sullen as ever, but he did not speak. In his mind, while the Ghost Spirit Flower was a good item, it was still not valuable enough for him to snatch it right before the people. As long as Su Ming was in the World of Nine Yin, then everything was possible. He did not need to rush into things for now.

As for the man who was beside Su Ming and had managed to obtain the dual-colored light, when he saw the strange atmosphere around him, he hesitated for a moment before he decided to simply grit his teeth and continue cutting into his stone. As he continued and as the dual-colored light shone, the people's gazes gradually gathered on him.

Su Ming returned to the ground and back to his seat. The three youths immediately gathered around him excitedly, and the Shamans around the area too wrapped their fists in their palms to greet him. They originally wanted to approach him, but Nan Gong Hen glared at all of them and pushed them all away with a cold harrumph, completely not bothering with the boisterous and friendly personality he displayed before the people previously.

Towards Su Ming, Nan Gong Hen was filled with non-malicious envy that could not be concealed. He looked at Su Ming, then thought about himself, and as he laughed wryly, he wrapped his fist in his palm towards Su Ming.

"Brother Mo… I'm impressed, I'm absolutely impressed!"

In Nan Gong Hen's eyes, Su Ming was a man filled with astonishing wonders. He could bring Nan Gong Hen through a foreign world filled with threats and arrive at Shaman City safely while avoiding all dangers. He could fight against Tie Mu with just his power as a Medial Shaman. More importantly, after that fight, his relationship with Tie Mu had turned into one as if they had never tried to kill each other. From Tie Mu's words, he seemed to have somewhat acknowledged Su Ming.

When they were in the land of the Spirits of Nine Yin, Su Ming had also shocked Nan Gong Hen because he had absolutely not expected that Su Ming would rent that shameless guardian Spirit of Nine Yin, and just when he had thought Su Ming had to be a pitiful man, he found out that he himself was the pitiful one.

It was as if there was a mysterious layer of fog surrounding Su Ming. The more you wanted to see through him and the more you wanted to get into his mind, the more you would be lost trying to figure him out.

Now, when Nan Gong Hen witnessed Su Ming buying that Crimson Stone offhandedly and causing such a huge stir when he extracted that Ghost Spirit Flower, he came to a sudden realization.

'There must be some mysterious power in Mo Su. That power is invisible and doesn't have form. It cannot be seen, cannot be touched, but its existence will cause others to be unable to figure him out… Yup, if I stay beside a person with this sort of power, then perhaps I will also get some of that power…'

Nan Gong Hen's eyes shone brilliantly. He giggled as he looked at Su Ming, but soon changed his expression and whispered softly.

"Brother Mo, we have to be careful of the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple. That person's power is incredibly great and he's brutal… My father is also in a constant state of isolation as well, so he's not as intimidating as before, I might not be able to use his name to keep this person down…" With a face as if Su Ming was an accomplice of his, Nan Gong Hen talked to him with a frown.

At that moment, the Crimson Stones numbered 701 to 800 were in auction. Perhaps it was because Su Ming had managed to find the Ghost Spirit Flower, as of then, the subsequent Crimson Stones that were being auctioned had reached a rather heated state.

"Brother Mo, you also have to pay attention. If we take a fancy to any other Crimson Stone and enter the bidding, the people around us will also begin bidding for it in a mad craze…" As Nan Gong Hen spoke, the intention to work with Su Ming truly rose within him, and he begun addressing Su Ming and himself as 'we'.

"Er… brother Nan Gong, you don't have to worry about that. While I do have some Crimson Stones I like, I'm lacking in Shaman Crystals. I won't place any more bids." Su Ming shook his head.

"I have! Brother Mo, don't worry. You just have to place your bids. We're definitely going to make a huge profit this time. I prepared a lot of Shaman Crystals for the treasure gambling event this time! By that time, we brothers can… Heh heh, we can talk about how we'll split up our profits later." Nan Gong Hen's whole entire face was lit up with a smile, and there was an eager look in his eyes.

He had come to a great revelation - He must follow Su Ming closely and fight together with him. If he did that, then no matter how bad it would be, he would still not be... as pitiful as he was when he was conned to use several millions of Shaman Crystals to rent a Spirit of Nine Yin, or when all 500,000 of his Shaman Crystals went flying out of his hands in an instant, or when all his other misfortunes happened to him.

"Is that so..?" Su Ming cast Nan Gong Hen a glance.

"Brother Mo, you don't have to hesitate anymore. It's fine. We managed to hit it off right from the start, these materialistic things are nothing compared to our friendship. If you need them, then take it. I will not even frown!" Nan Gong Hen patted his chest.

"All right." Su Ming had no reason to decline. Once he finished speaking, he immediately shouted his bid towards the Crimson Stone in auction at the moment - Crimson Stone No.836.

"500,000!"

Nan Gong Hen was momentarily stunned. He had originally thought that Su Ming would still remain reserved, and then he would persuade him a little more, and eventually, both of them would reach a consensus while beating around the bush due to their own needs. However, Su Ming had stopped being courteous and immediately jumped right into the auction.

In all honesty, Nan Gong Hen was still a little worried in his heart. After all, his Shaman Crystals did not fall from the sky into his hands. He had in fact obtained them through much effort. When Su Ming offhandedly placed a bid of 500,000, his heart immediately clenched in pain, but he had to look completely not bothered. In fact, he had to even smile and nod towards Su Ming to show that he was being generous.

"Brother Mo, how is the quality of that Crimson Stone?" Nan Gong Hen stared at the Crimson Stone in the sky. No matter what, it did not seem any different from the other stones.

The previous highest bid for this stone was 430,000, but when Su Ming placed his bid of 500,000, it was as if a stone had been thrown at the surface of the water that was the crowd around them, and it immediately caught an immense amount of attention from all the people.

It was just as Nan Gong Hen had expected. In truth, many people were paying attention to Su Ming's side and were already prepared to follow his footsteps the moment he placed a bid to buy another Crimson Stone.

When they heard Su Ming calling out his bid of 500,000, many people instantly felt fired up and started shouting their bids.

"550,000!"

"600,000!"

"640,000!"

"660,000!"

When Su Ming saw that the price for the Crimson Stone was getting higher, he turned his head around to cast Nan Gong Hen a glance, who was carefully hiding his anxiety underneath his calm attitude.

"Brother Nan Gong, how many Shaman Crystals do you have?"

"Er… I still have 2,000,000 something, I think…" Nan Gong Hen's heart lurched into his throat.

"750,000!" Once Su Ming heard his answer, he yelled out his bid once again. When his voice fell into Nan Gong Hen's ears, it made his heart constrict, and he felt conflicted, but he still had to force out a smile, all while looking approving of Su Ming's actions.

"Brother Mo, how is the quality of the stone?" Nan Gong Hen's heart was already racing in his chest as he instinctively asked.

"I don't know." Su Ming's words almost made Nan Gong Hen's vision turn completely black.

"800,000!" Once Su Ming shouted his bid, someone else immediately placed another bid. Clearly, he was fully intent on snatching away the Crimson Stone Su Ming had taken an interest to.

There was already red in Nan Gong Hen's eyes. He glared at the spot where the voice that placed that bid came from and whispered to Su Ming, "Should we add?"

"Forget it, we'll place our bids for our next stone." Su Ming shook his head. That Crimson Stone was eventually bought by someone with the high price of 800,000 Shaman Crystals.

Chapter 452

Nan Gong Hen's heart was convulsing wildly in his heart when he heard Su Ming's words. If Nan Gong Hen himself was using his own Shaman Crystals to buy that Crimson Stone, he would not feel this way, but when he was looking at someone else using his Shaman Crystals to place bids, the feeling was completely different.

He had been completely willing to do so and had even made this proposal to Su Ming, but even so, when he truly came face to face with this reality he still could not help but feel his heart clench in pain.

When Crimson Stone No.837 was to be auctioned off, Su Ming placed a bid once again, and with each subsequent stone, he would do the same thing. With each bid he placed, Nan Gong Hen's heart would surge intensely, and he was already a mess of nerves from hearing Su Ming continuously placing those bids.

In fact, there were some times when Su Ming would place his bid in such a resolute manner that he gave the others a feeling that he absolutely wanted to get it. Based on this, the crowd started competing for that particular stone even more intensely.

However, there were still many people who had seen that there was something off with Su Ming's actions, but since this was a gamble in the first place, they could not say anything about it.

Gradually, Nan Gong Hen also saw the meaning behind Su Ming's actions as he placed those bids, but just as he was feeling delighted about it, Su Ming started bidding at a pace that made Nan Gong Hen's heart lurch in fear.

"800,000!"

"900,000!"

"1,000,000!!"

"Brother… Brother Mo, this…" Nan Gong Hen was just about to speak when Su Ming stood up.

"1,500,000!"

He placed that bid without any hesitation and swept his gaze across the crowd, putting on a look that he was definitely going to get that stone. When Nan Gong Hen saw Su Ming's look, he became slightly excited in the midst of his anxiety. With bloodshot eyes, he also glared at the people around them, making it seem like if there was anyone else who placed another bid, then he would become his mortal enemy!

"1,600,000!" A low voice suddenly shot out from among the crowd, and the person who placed that bid was the man who had obtained the dual-colored light beside Su Ming. The man gritted his teeth, and his eyes were similarly bloodshot.

Su Ming remained silent for a moment, and when he gritted his teeth and shouted, "1,800,000!" Nan Gong Hen's anxiety had reached its peak, and his breathing had even began to quicken.

"1,900,000!"

The man lifted his head and stared at Crimson Stone No. 897, and the more he looked at it, the more he felt that it was similar to Crimson Stone No.697. Besides, he had been continuously observing Su Ming, and Su Ming had been the most persistent when he placed his bids for this stone, that was why he had gritted his teeth to place such a gamble.

"2,000,000!" Yet after the man placed his bid, another voice immediately roared, but this time, it was not Su Ming who had shouted, it was Nan Gong Hen, who screamed at the top of his voice.

Su Ming was momentarily stunned.

"2,100,000!!" The man was already close to the brink of asphyxiation as he shouted madly.

Nan Gong Hen widened his eyes, and just as he was about to continue, Su Ming let out a fake cough and pulled Nan Gong Hen's arm.

"We're giving up."

"Okay... Huh?"

Nan Gong Hen instinctively nodded, then was immediately stunned, though realization dawned on him soon after. He looked at Su Ming with a wry smile as he mumbled in his heart that he was not a dumb idiot, he was just influenced by the atmosphere in the area. Once he understood the meaning behind Su Ming's actions, he could do nothing but laugh wryly.

'Damn it, it's only because these aren't his Shaman Crystals. If I was in his place, I would also have the guts to do the same thing…' Nan Gong Hen grumbled in his heart, but still had to force a smile on his face while looking generous.

"These Shaman Crystals are nothing. If you like this Crimson Stone, then we'll fight for it!" Nan Gong Hen said in a rather bold tone.

As he looked at Nan Gong Hen, Su Ming blinked. In truth, when the man shouted that bid of 1,800,000, he had already given up. After all, he was placing his bids at random so that no one would be able to tell what he wanted to truly buy, that was why Nan Gong Hen's shout had made even Su Ming nervous.

Each time he placed a bid for Crimson Stones numbered 830 to 900, he would leave some space for himself to retreat by doing so cautiously. Besides, this batch of Crimson Stones had to be cracked open at the same time, and there were always other lucky people around. By doing so, he had dug a hole for many people to fall into.

When these one hundred Crimson Stones were cracked open, the atmosphere grew so intense that it had become even more heated up than before. After all, most of these buyers had spent a much larger amount of money, and had even snatched them away from Su Ming's hands, especially that Crimson Stone sold for 2,100,000. That was the stone that was sold for the highest price in this auction.

However, as the Crimson Stones were cracked open and as they rumbled in the air before they shattered, the shouts from the crowd became even stronger, but all those voices were filled with disappointment.

Nan Gong Hen looked at the one hundred people in the sky returning with pale and dejected faces, and a smug look appeared on his face.

It was especially so for person with the Crimson Stone that was bought for 2,100,000. When it completely shattered under the crowd's nervous gazes, the man stood stunned in the air for a moment before coughing out a mouthful of blood and staggering back. The cutting of this batch was then over.

It was strange as well. Among the one hundred Crimson Stone, only one of them shone with a faint ray of unusual light, but it was no different from others; it was empty.

Once the cracking was over and the last batch of Crimson Stones to be auctioned off from the one thousand stones arrived, the crowd had obviously become wary of Su Ming. The thought of following in his footsteps had become much weaker.

Which was why Su Ming only needed to spend 400,000 to buy Crimson Stone No.901…

Once that short auction was over, Su Ming had bought four Crimson Stones. Besides numbers 901 and 949, there were another two which had fallen into Su Ming's hands because there was no one else who was willing to continue placing bids.

Nan Gong Hen had spent nearly 2,000,000 Shaman Crystals when the final sum came out. It made his heart clench in pain, but he was most anxious that he might be just wasting all his money. He had looked over at Su Ming multiple times, but since the other's expression could not be seen due to his mask, it made Nan Gong Hen even more anxious.

When the time came for these stones to be cut open, Su Ming flew into the midair. His appearance immediately attracted numerous pairs of gazes, especially Nan Gong Hen's, who was incessantly longing for a miracle to happen.

'It'll definitely work! It'll absolutely work!' Nan Gong Hen gulped. As of then, Su Ming was the only thing that existed in his world.

When Su Ming stood beside the Enchanted light rings, not only was the crowd on the ground looking at him, the people from the eight halls around also looked over, including that Grand Elder from the God of Shamans Temple.

With a calm expression, Su Ming lifted his right hand and pointed at the Enchanted Vessel. Immediately, that Enchanted Vessel expanded and enveloped Crimson Stone No.901 within. Sizzling reverberated in the air, and even the other people who were supposed to be cracking open their stones decided to first look at Su Ming.

Su Ming closed his eyes and focused his divine sense on the small black humanoid in his storage bag. Gradually, as the small humanoid shuddered, a picture slowly appeared at the center of his brows. Within that picture was a four-leaved Dragon Leaf Grass!

Su Ming had known about the existence of that Dragon Leaf Grass beforehand. Two of its leaves had already fossilized and withered away. While there were still two that were alive, they did not have enough life force within them and looked rather wilted. It could not compare to the seven-leaved Dragon Leaf Grass Su Ming had. In fact, it was rather similar to the one the white-robed man from Nine Shaman Pavilion had brought out.

With skillful movements, Su Ming opened his eyes right under the people's gazes, and the light ring he controlled started spinning rapidly. With a boom, it split that Crimson Stone in half, and once it was split apart, a dual-colored light immediately appeared.

But that was not all, as Su Ming turned the Crimson Stone around and cut down once again, a golden light was added to that dual-colored light!

Red, blue, and gold intertwined with each other and immediately began shining in the crow's sight. This time, even the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple could not keep his cool. His expression visibly changed, and he was filled with shock.

If even he was reacting this way, then it was much more so for the other people. After a short period of silence, the crowd immediately burst into an uproar that caused such a powerful wave of sound that it surged into the sky.

Nan Gong Hen was the most worked up and excited among them. He stood there and laughed heartily towards the sky. That excited look was akin to the sort of uncontrollable excitement that would only be experienced by gamblers who saw the light of victory during the instant that determined their win or loss after placing most of their money as a gambling chip.

"Three-colored light…"

"Just where did this Mo Su come from? How… How could he have such insane luck? He was the one who found that Ghost Spirit Flower previously, and now, he got himself a three-colored light for his second stone!"

"My boy Mo, why don't you sell that Crimson Stone to me? I'll give you 1,500,000 for it!" Tie Mu immediately rushed to speak.

Su Ming turned around and wrapped his fist in his palm towards Tie Mu, then lifted his right hand and pointed at the Enchanted Vessel again. With one slash, a large part of the Crimson Stone was cut off once again. At the same time, the light ring spun rapidly, and as dust scattered into the air, the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple stared ahead with a grim face. He was not looking at that Crimson Stone, but at Su Ming!

He refused to believe that there would be such a lucky person in the world!

"Sir, why don't you sell that stone to our tribe? We're willing to pay 1,800,000 for it!" As the light ring spun, another person quickly shouted his price.

Su Ming did not bother himself with the person. He continued controlling the light ring to cut into the stone, and after some time, a glint appeared in his eyes and he lifted his right hand swiftly to tap the wrecked stone. With that one tap, the stone crumbled with a bang, and what appeared in Su Ming's palm was a small transparent mountain rock. The Dragon Leaf Grass could be seen clearly.

"Dragon Leaf Grass! That's a four-leaved Dragon Leaf Grass!!"

"Two of them are still alive. That herb might not be as valuable as Ghost Spirit Flower, but it's still a rare item. I heard that it can cure all the poison in the world, and this is an effect that is unique to this herb!"

"We of Wave Gatherer Tribe are willing to pay 2,700,000 Shaman Crystals for Dragon Leaf Grass!"

"You want to buy that Dragon Leaf Grass with just 2,700,000? We of Nine Shaman Pavilion are willing to pay 3,200,000 for it!"

Nan Gong Hen's heart thundered against his chest. He had never felt this sort of excitement ever since he entered the World of Nine Yin. As he listened to the voices making those offerings, his breathing became increasingly quicker.

Su Ming's expression remained as calm as ever. The herb he had was obviously of a much higher quality than the one in his hand. He dipped his head down and cast a glance at Nan Gong Hen, then threw the transparent mountain rock in his hand to him.

"Brother Nan Gong, you should decide on how you will deal with this stone."

Nan Gong Hen laughed heartily towards the sky, then charged into midair with one leap. Once he caught that transparent mountain rock, he grinned at the people around him. The Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple frowned.

Chapter 453

The Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple did not bother himself with how Nan Gong Hen would deal with that Dragon Leaf Grass. Su Ming lifted his right hand and seized the air, then the second stone flew towards him. Once he placed that mountain rock into the Enchanted Vessel, Su Ming immediately pointed at the ring, and buzzing sounds reverberated in the air. He had bought this Crimson Stone at random and had absolutely no idea what was in there.

At that moment, as the Enchanted Vessel started spinning around rapidly, the Crimson Stone became smaller, and eventually, it crumbled, and there was nothing inside.

When the onlookers saw Su Ming's failure, they felt a little bit better about themselves. If Su Ming had found another item, then it would be difficult for them to believe that this was still luck…

Su Ming's expression remained as calm as ever; he did not feel too much pain at his loss. He seized the third Crimson Stone through the air, and once he placed it in the Enchanted Vessel, he cut down into it without any hesitation.

Su Ming had originally not thought about managing to find anything, but right after he cut into that stone, suddenly, a ray of unusual light shone from the cut.

The appearance of that light immediately caught the attention of numerous pairs of gazes.

Su Ming was momentarily stunned, and while there was not much change on his face, his heart begun racing. This was different from when he cut open those Crimson Stones when he was confident that there was something inside. This sort of feeling towards the unknown, this sort of feeling where his heart shook with excitement, this sort of feeling where he did not know what was contained inside the Crimson Stone made Su Ming understand for the first time why these people were so enthusiastic about the treasure gambling event.

Su Ming's heartbeat quickened slightly. With his eyes fixed on the Crimson Stone, he controlled the light ring and started scraping its surface rapidly. As he did so, the Crimson Stone became smaller. After a moment, a glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes. A sharp needle immediately appeared from the light ring and pierced through the Crimson Stone. After repeating the same action several times, he had the light ring cut the stone once again, and immediately, only a small part of the Crimson Stone was left.

However, there was only one ray of unusual light on that small half of the Crimson Stone, but even though there was only one ray, that light was incredibly eye-catching!

Su Ming's heart raced even quicker. This was something he had never felt before. Just as he was hesitating on how he should cut into the stone once again, the people who had finished trading with Nan Gong Hen looked towards him.

"Ahem, my boy Mo, since the Dragon Leaf Grass has been sold to Nine Shaman Pavilion, why don't you sell that stone to me? I'll pay you 1,500,000 for it."

"I'll pay 1,700,000 for it!" Wan Qiu said calmly at that moment. Right up to that moment, she had her eyes fixed on Su Ming to continue observing him.

Once she spoke, the Celestial Maiden in white also named her price, and Tian Lan Meng followed suit.

When he saw Tian Lan Meng, Su Ming's heart surged, but this was not the moment for them to get acquainted with each other. Besides, Su Ming, who had left the land of the Berserkers, also felt a little complicated towards Tian Lan Meng.

When he saw the three women speaking altogether again, he fell into pensive silence for a moment. He was a little reluctant to sell the stone just like this, which was why he decided that he might as well cut into it once again.

As he cut into the stone and as those rumbling sounds echoed in the air, when the Crimson Stone was fully cracked open, the ray of unusual light disappeared. When Su Ming saw that the stone was empty, a bitter smile appeared on his lips.

He had finally come to understand this heart pounding feeling, and had also come to understand how exactly Nan Gong Hen felt when he smiled this way.

'I could have sold it for 1,000,000 something Shaman Crystals, but now…' Su Ming sighed deeply. This sort of feeling that came from treasure gambling could indeed stir up a person's desires.

The two consecutive failures made the gazes gathered on Su Ming become much more normal. In most people's eyes, Su Ming perhaps really possessed a certain amount of luck.

Even the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Tribe had shifted his gaze away from Su Ming.

Su Ming sucked in a deep breath. Once he had experienced the excitement that came from gambling, he still felt that being completely certain that he would gain something was what he preferred the most. He lifted his right hand and seized the air. Immediately, Crimson Stone No.949 floated slowly towards him.

As he stared at this Crimson Stone, Su Ming hesitated.

He was pretty certain that the item contained within this Crimson Stone would perhaps cause an even greater stir than when he extracted that Ghost Spirit Flower. Even though the herb in there had withered, but at its roots, which also did not have a lot of life force left, there was a venomous wasp sleeping inside!

That wasp was clearly an ancient being that came from ages ago. It was difficult to predict whether it was strong or weak, but based on what Su Ming had heard from Wu Duo and Nan Gong Hen about these Crimson Stones people had been extracting medicinal herbs, Enchanted treasures, and all sorts of other things… just not living beings!

It was just like the small black humanoid. While it could be considered as a living being, compared to the venomous wasp in the Crimson Stone before him, the wasp was truly alive!

'Living beings are even rarer than every other type of objects… Once I crack this stone open, then I will definitely cause a stir in this place…' Su Ming swept his gaze past the crowd underneath, then the people in the eight halls, and even the sullen Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple before he averted his gaze and looked at his Crimson Stone.

'Well, I'd like to see just how you would dare to steal my things!'

A glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes. He, who had come to an agreement with the old Spirit of Nine Yin that could fight against an End Shaman, now had the right to say these words.

He calmed his breathing and started getting prepared for the madness that might come from the item he was going to extract. Once he spent a moment to get ready, he slowly lifted his hand and pressed it on the Enchanted light ring. Immediately, the lights from the light ring criss-crossed each other and started scraping at the stone.

Su Ming's stern look gradually made the people who were watching him from underneath to become serious as well. At that moment, Su Ming had his eyes closed. The small, black humanoid did not tremble too harshly under his divine sense, and it proved Su Ming's assumptions regarding him true. It would only react strongly towards medicinal herbs.

Right now, most of the medicinal herb in the Crimson Stone had withered, and only the roots had any form of life remaining. That was why its stimulation towards the small humanoid was much weaker.

Just as Su Ming was about to start cutting into the stone according to the picture at the center of the small humanoid's brows which he saw through his divine sense, he was suddenly stunned, because he saw the small black humanoid in his storage bag shrinking slightly.

This shrinking meant that it was flinching back. It was not trembling. Su Ming was certain that it was not a figment of his imagination. Uncertainty appeared in his heart. However, his expression remained as usual as he controlled the light ring to continue scraping at the stone. As the speed with which the ring scraped away at the stone increased and as more of the stone dissipated into dust, Su Ming discovered to his shock that the small black humanoid in his storage bag flinched away once again!

It was flinching away, in a manner that was filled with fear. There was even an expression of pain and fear on his face at the moment. Su Ming looked at the change, and bewilderment rose in his heart.

Before the Crimson Stone was scraped away, the small, black humanoid still looked normal, but as it shrank and the thing inside was gradually revealed, the small, black humanoid started showing obvious changes in his expression.

Su Ming opened his eyes and frowned, but did not stop controlling that light ring. He only became even more cautious. Slowly but certainly, once most of the Crimson Stone was gone, that small black humanoid of his was already utterly horrified.

A glint appeared in Su Ming's gaze, and he decided to simply control the light ring and slice down at that Crimson Stone. That one cut immediately caused the mountain rock to lose another huge chunk of itself.

Right at that moment, distorted ripples appeared in the sky above the Crimson Stone. Soon after, an indistinct picture formed between the sky and earth!

That picture was that of an incredibly ordinary looking green plant. It had quite a lot of leaves and was entirely green. If someone absolutely had to mention something different about it, then they would mention that there was a golden line within each of its leaves!

Although the picture was indistinct, the golden lines were very clear.

The instant the shadow appeared, the crowd underneath burst into an uproar once again. However, the commotion this time only lasted for a moment before it fell into dead silence the next instant.

The reason for that dead silence was the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple, who had flown into the sky from the hall for the first time. His hair moved without wind, and there was an expression on his face, it was so stern, like nothing seen on his face before. In fact, the onlookers could even see his excitement faintly, one so great that he could not control!

To an old monster who had walked down the path of cultivation for many years and was already half way into becoming an End Shaman, there were very few things in the world that would cause him to be so excited. However, right at that moment, the old man could no longer control his own emotions!

All of this was due to the shadow that appeared in the sky!

"God String… That's the God String Leaf!!" Nan Gong Hen mumbled, then his expression changed and he cried out his last few words in surprise. As his voice reached others, Tie Mu also recognized the medicinal herb which he had once seen in an illustrated book!

"This is… Could this truly be the God String Leaf? One of the legendary nine mysterious treasures in the World of Nine Yin, the auxiliary leaf of the God Sealing Flower?!"

Wan Qiu was filled with disbelief. She stared at the indistinct medicinal herb in that illusionary picture, and her breathing quickened.

The Celestial Maiden in white shuddered. She looked at the illusionary picture, then at Su Ming, and her face turned pale.

Tian Lan Meng frowned, but before she had time to think, a hoarse voice spoke behind her. As it did, Sky Mist's ancestor walked out of the hall for the first time!

"The nine mysterious treasures of the World of Nine Yin were pictures carved into the back of the stone monument erected in this place in the past. One of them has the name of the God Sealing Flower. There is a unique characteristic to this flower, and when it blooms, its auxiliary leaf, the Golden String Leaf, would appear around it. They are also known as the God String Leaf.

"This God String Leaf has no use… but its appearance means that the nine mysterious treasures are not legends. They… are real!" The voice of Sky Mist's ancestor echoed in Tian Lan Meng's ears. She could hear just how worked up her ancestor was from his voice.

"God Sealing Flower… God Sealing Flower… Legend has it that the flower's nectar contains the power of the World Plane. Just drinking a sip of it… would cause your appearance to never change, for your power to instantly increase exponentially, and so quickly that it could turn a mortal into an Immortal!

"It can make us Cultivators surpass our current Realms and improve by leaps and bounds. It can also let us sense the power of the World Plane!

"This Crimson Stone, or perhaps even the Crimson Stones after this… will have that God Sealing Flower, or else the Golden String Leaf wouldn't have appeared out of nowhere!"

"My fellow tribesmen, Nan Gong Hen of the God of Shamans Temple was the one who bought this stone. If anyone dares to snatch the stone away from me, then don't blame me for turning against you and killing you. Guards of the God of Shamans, where are you?!"

Once the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple saw that illusionary picture, he took a huge step forward and a monstrous presence surged out from his entire body as he walked towards Su Ming, though he absolutely paid no heed about Su Ming. He cared only about the other people from the big tribes. As for Su Ming, he was only an existence akin to an ant before him!

At the moment his words reached the crowd, several hundreds of presences instantly burst forth from within Shaman City. They turned into long arcs and charged forth towards this place from all over Shaman City.

Chapter 451: Appearance of the Spirit of Nine Yin!

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

All the people within those hundreds of long arcs were like arrows that had been fired off their bows. As they charged forth, they brought with them powerful presences as if they were coming together from all directions to become one, as if they wanted to tear through air.

These people were one of the backbones of the God of Shamans Temple, which they had developed over numerous years. They were stationed in the World of Nine Yin at all times and would not easily leave. They came from all sorts of tribes, but at that moment, they were no longer thinking about glory or their sense of belonging towards their own families, but only about the God of Shamans Temple!

Each of them had gone through bloody hardships, experienced the biting, cold brutality of life and death trails. In fact, none of them had names anymore. They only had the battle titles left behind by their predecessors.

Most of them had yet to become Latter Shamans, but even the weakest among them was a Medial Shaman!

As they charged forth, a monstrous, murderous aura spread out from their bodies, causing a large vortex formed by murderous aura to appear and start spinning in the air slowly.

The Guards of the God of Shamans would not easily leave, but now that they had appeared, it could be seen that their arrival signalled that the God of Shamans Temple would stop at nothing to get Su Ming's Crimson Stone!

Tie Mu's expression changed. Once he swept his gaze past the vortex that was formed from the murderous aura coming from the charging long arcs, he looked at Su Ming's Crimson Stone. Then with a dark face, he took a few steps backwards, but he did not return to his hall with his tribe members as a signal of giving up on the stone.

He was waiting, waiting to see what the other tribes would choose.

The middle-aged man from one of the big tribes in the land of the Shamans, the Great Tribe of Sky World, had once offered a price to Su Ming when the Ghost Spirit Flower appeared but stopped when the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple spoke. At that moment, his expression had also turned dark, but in the World of Nine Yin, it was difficult for any big tribes to go against the God of Shamans Temple.

Because the number of people from the God of Shamans Temple who had taken up permanent residence in this place far surpassed the number of all those from big tribes!

Wan Qiu was looking at Su Ming with a slightly complicated look on her face, as if she was hesitating about something.

The Celestial Maiden in white bit her lip. She knew about some of the secrets in the World of Nine Yin, and she also knew that once her sect members learned about this Crimson Stone, they would definitely not give up on it, since it might perhaps truly contain the God Sealing Flower, and she would not be able to stop them… All she could do was to take one step forward.

"You can take that Crimson Stone, but I ask that the God of Shamans Temple does not injure this person!"

As the Celestial Maiden's words were spoken, the Grand Elder who was walking towards Su Ming came to a brief pause. He turned his head around and cast the woman a flat look. A faint glint flashed through his eyes and he nodded.

He was not bothered by the woman, but he was indeed mindful of her status and background… the Immortal Tribe's Hidden Dragon Sect. After all, the relationship between the God of Shamans Temple and Hidden Dragon Sect was rather delicate at the moment.

If the woman had demanded that the God of Shamans Temple did not take that stone, then the old man could just ignore her. After all, not only did that stone belong to the God of Shamans Temple, it would also be highly valued by Hidden Dragon Sect, but she only asked that they did not hurt that little junior, who was really just an ant to him. It was only natural that he did not reject such a small thing.

Tian Lan Meng lowered her head. Even up to that point, she did not speak, and no one would be able to know what she was thinking about.

The crowd underneath had already fallen completely silent. Their gazes were focused on the people in the sky, especially on Su Ming. Most of the people were focused on him.

Some of those gazes were filled with sentiment, some with satisfaction, some with pleasure over Su Ming's misfortune, and some with pity.

The development of everything that had transpired had decided Su Ming's fate. He looked as if he had no power to fight against these people and could only be controlled by other people. After all, power was deciding factor for everything in this place!

How could a puny Medial Shaman hope to fight against the God of Shamans Temple? Even if he could fight against a Latter Shaman, he was still just an ant to the old man who was already halfway through to becoming an End Shaman.

Nan Gong Hen's face turned pale. He did not expect that the cutting of stones would develop this way. If the old man from the God of Shamans Temple had been alone, he would not have been afraid. In fact, he would even help Su Ming fight against him.

After all, his father was still around. Nan Gong Hen knew that the old man could not do much towards him, at most, he would teach him a lesson.

However, the sudden setback right before his eyes caught him completely by surprise. This was no longer a matter of just the Grand Elder. The Guards of the God of Shamans had made their move. The appearance of the God String Leaf had caused the intensity of this issue to reach incredible heights. This Crimson Stone was no longer what the Grand Elder wanted, but what the God of Shamans Temple wanted!

How should he choose..?

Nan Gong Hen's face turned even paler. On one hand, this was the God of Shamans Temple which he had grown up in since he was young, and to which he was intimately connected, and on the other hand was a friend he had just gotten to know not too long ago.

However, this friend had saved his life… This friend gave him a feeling that they had managed to hit it off incredibly well, even though they had just recently gotten to know each other. This friend had only agreed to buy that Crimson Stone under his request…

Su Ming's expression remained as calm as ever. Almost the instant the old man said those words, he stopped cutting and slapped his right hand against the Crimson Stone containing that God String Leaf. Immediately, he put away that stone into his storage bag and looked at the development of the situation calmly.

He watched the old man from the God of Shamans Temple saying those overbearing words and performing those domineering actions simply because he had a high level of cultivation. He saw the aloof Guards of the God of Shamans in those long arcs around him. He caught Tie Mu shrinking back. He perceived Wan Qiu's hesitation.

Similarly, he also saw Tian Lan Meng, who had lowered her head, and along with her, Sky Mist's ancestor, whose familiar presence made Su Ming's pupils shrink when he walked out.

He also saw that Celestial Maiden in white being the one and only person who spoke for him in this place. Su Ming could sense her concern from her words, but it was difficult to tell whether the source of that concern was because he was that Destiny in her mind, or whether it was because of something else.

But no matter what, Su Ming remembered what the woman in white did.

'Everything in the world is a cause, if there are no intense changes and if there is nothing that would turn the tides of the world, then it would be difficult for us to see the real nature of people, who are affected by the things in the world… I understand what the elder meant now.' Su Ming's face remained calm, and a faint smile even appeared at the corners of his lips.

He looked at the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple walking towards him, looked at the different sorts of gazes from the crowd underneath who were looking at him, looked at Nan Gong Hen who was struggling in his mind, and Su Ming smiled even more brilliantly.

At that moment, he was the center of attention, but this sort of attention was not what he wanted in his heart. An epiphany emerged in his heart, and at the same time, Su Ming felt a hint of loneliness.

He was alone, standing before several tens of thousands of people…

"This is the law of the jungle, a path that would never change no matter how much time passes…" Su Ming sighed softly. With one single move, an illusionary shadow immediately flashed beside him, and his Nascent Soul clone appeared.

The instant his clone appeared, Su Ming's presence instantly increased by several fold, making him feel as if he was a Medial Shaman who had reached the peak!

As his clone appeared, a faint commotion broke out among the crowd underneath. However, among all the people who were watching Su Ming in the sky, the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple who was walking towards him with an expressionless face was still completely not bothered by it. To the Grand Elder, Su Ming was still an ant.

"Nascent Soul!" The Celestial Maiden was stunned and her eyes went wide.

Sky Mist's ancestor, who had been watching the entire thing unfold while immersed in his thoughts, narrowed his eyes.

Almost the instant the clone appeared, Su Ming lifted his left hand and swung it behind him. In a moment, a black layer of fog suddenly spread out and filled the area, as it tumbled about beside Su Ming, the Poison Corpse appeared!

As the Poison Corpse walked out, its poison-shrouded appearance and dull eyes caused Su Ming to give others a feeling that he had surpassed being a Medial Shaman who had reached the peak. The clone, the Poison Corpse, and his own self seemed to have gathered together to turn into one full, complete body!

A faint glint appeared in the Grand Elder's eyes, but he was still calm. At that moment, he was less than one thousand feet away from Su Ming. His footsteps were slow, and with each step that fell on empty air, low rumbling sounds would spread out. In fact, the air was also trembling, as if the old man's feet were not stepping on air but on a physical entity!

"Warrior Spirit of Nine Yin!"

With a solemn look on his face, Su Ming swung his right arm before him, and immediately, as the mark of the Spirit of Nine Yin shone furiously, a bloodthirsty laughter rang through the air, and the mark disappeared from the back of Su Ming's hand. In the boundless sky, a red bolt of lightning appeared out of nowhere and descended with a boom.

That bolt of lightning came from the ends of the world, and the instant it descended, a thunderous boom reverberated in the air, and it was followed suit by another eight thunderous claps. Then, right before Su Ming, a tall figure swiftly revealed himself from within the bolt of lightning.

That person was three hundred feet tall and looked like a giant. He had an incredibly strong build, and as he stood there, he looked like a tall mountain standing erect on the ground!

His dark silver armor, crimson hair, healed over scars, and the monstrous murderous aura and battle will caused the Spirit of Nine Yin Su Ming summoned to look as if he was the God of War himself!

"It's been many years since I've killed a person outside. Today, perhaps I'll be able to kill till I'm satisfied!" The Spirit of Nine Yin, covered entirely in armor, spoke with a booming voice that spread to all eight corners of the earth.

The instant he appeared, the old man's face finally changed. He came to a halt, and he was not the only one who did so. All the other people around him did the same thing.

The eyes of Sky Mist's ancestor sparkled, and a smile suddenly appeared at the corners of his lips.

As for the crowd underneath, the instant that Spirit of Nine Yin appeared, a buzzing noise immediately stirred from among them.

"I was wondering why he was so fearless, so it's because he rented a Spirit of Nine Yin!"

"I remember that Spirit of Nine Yin. He… He's a spirit from the fourth layer, but the price for his protection is too great. I can't believe that someone managed to bring him out!"

"By the looks of it, he has the power of a Latter Shaman. I wonder who would win if he fought against the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple…"

Almost the instant the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple froze, a freezing glare appeared in Su Ming's eyes. His clone lifted his right hand swiftly, and the Virescent Light Sword charged forth with a flash, while a large amount of the black beetles on his body spread out to cover the sky.

The Poison Corpse opened his mouth and let out a muffled roar. Black veins popped up all over his body, and a vast amount of poison mist gushed out from his pores. Even his fingernails on both of his hands instantly grew longer and started shining with a sharp glint.

At the same time, Su Ming took a deep breath and lifted his left hand to point at the sky. This was the first of the three styles of Wind Separation, the starting move of Sun Genesis!

"If you want what belongs to me, then you must bear the consequences. Even if you are the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple, it is still the same!

"Protector Spirit of Nine Yin, come, fight with me against this person!"

The moment Su Ming's voice spread, the Spirit of Nine Yin before him let out a roar towards the skies. He lifted his right hand, and a gigantic battle axe that was about the same height as he was appeared!

Translator's Thoughts

Mogumoguchan Mogumoguchan

Preview to next chapter: Fight!

Su Ming can put up quite a decent fight, eh?