Chapter 10: Sanctuary Completed

Xiao Ren's face flushed crimson as the crowd's murmurs washed over him. "Seven hundred million!" he roared, veins bulging at his temples. "This yacht is mine!"

Xiao Yang waited until the auctioneer's gavel hovered mid-air. "One billion."

Gasps ricocheted through the harbor like gunshots. Even the Belarusian escorts paused their champagne pouring.

"You... How?" Xiao Ren spluttered, cognac sloshing from his tumbler. "Show proof of funds!"

Xiao Yang produced a black card still warm from the armored truck. "Eight hundred million deposit today. Two hundred million balance in 48 hours." He locked eyes with the auctioneer. "Contract clause: If I default, keep the deposit."

The crowd inhaled collectively—an eight-figure gamble laid bare.

Xiao Ren's entourage dragged him away as Xiao Yang signed the paperwork, bikini-clad socialites materializing around him like piranhas scenting blood.

 

4:32 PM - Nomad Pods Exhibition

The amphibious capsules gleamed like silver bullets. "Each unit links magnetically," the engineer demonstrated, "creating floating colonies or land fortresses."

Xiao Yang bought all 100 units.

 

7:15 PM - Purple Mountain Sanctuary

Mu Guang wiped engine grease across his forehead. "Triple-redundant power grid. Hydroponic farm modules. And this—" He rapped knuckles against the new blast door. "Takes 152mm artillery shells like mosquito bites."

Xiao Yang's raven swooped into the transformed villa, talons scraping bulletproof glass. The coal furnace's warmth kissed his face—a luxury unthinkable in his previous frozen hellscape.

 

9:47 PM - Hai Jiao Restaurant Private Room

Mu Guang slid an envelope across the table. "Ten million refund. You overpaid."

Liao Yulan chose that moment to deliver mapo tofu laced with Sichuan peppercorns. "Honest contractors?" Her knife-scarred lips twisted. "Rarer than ethical billionaires."

As the siblings left, Xiao Yang pressed survival kits into their hands—down jackets in July, combat knives sheathed in Kevlar.

Mu Wanqing frowned at theDown Jackets. "Heatstroke prevention?"

"Wait nine days." Xiao Yang's smile didn't reach his eyes. "You'll understand."

Twenty-four hours left.