Starting as dockworkers, they swept through Chongqing.

"I found traces of what appears to be religious corruption in one of the survivors."

The room immediately became much quieter.

Ruins and sites of worship for evil gods are completely different things.

The dangers of the former often come from institutions, alien species, and other explorers.

The latter may involve incomprehensible psychological erosion.

A curly-haired man sitting opposite Xilun said in a deep voice:

"One of my men went in there."

"Second-tier extreme realm, extraordinary in the spiritual realm."

"He found nothing unusual in the first set of ruins, but after entering a downward stone corridor, he began to hear crying."

There were six people in the team at the time.

"Everyone hears a different sound."

"Some heard their dead mother calling out, some heard their wealth falling to the ground, and some heard themselves speaking."

"They immediately retreated."

"When they returned to the entrance, the six people had become seven."

Someone couldn't help but ask, "Who's the extra one?"

The curly-haired man looked unpleasant.

"have no idea."

"They can't tell the difference."

"Everyone can tell their name, their experiences, and their secrets."

"Later, the seven men turned on each other, and only my men escaped."

"But after he came back, he insisted that the real extra person was not someone else, but himself."

The lamplight flickered gently.

The temperature inside the sealed room seemed to have dropped a bit.

Xilun remained calm, but he firmly memorized the information in his mind.

Copying memories?

Hallucination?

Or has the spirit been replaced by something?

Either way, it is more dangerous than ordinary pollution.

Elena had obviously thought of this as well, and her right hand unconsciously moved closer to the hilt of her sword at her waist.

The gaunt old man finally spoke:

"The Black King's Palace did indeed send people in."

All eyes immediately turned to him.

"Two teams, eleven people in total."

"Five of them are at the third rank, and six are at the second rank."

"Only two people have come out so far."

"They are all third-tier."

"The two men suffered some mental damage and were in a daze, but they still brought back some things."

The old man picked up the wooden box from the table and opened it.

Inside lay a fruit that was entirely black and shaped like a jujube.

The fruit's surface was covered with natural gray patterns, and after the wooden box was opened, the free demonic energy in the surrounding air slowly gathered towards it.

The old woman in the gray robe suddenly sat up straight.

"Black Soul Fruit?"

Many people looked shocked.

Xilun also recognized the item.

The Black Soul Fruit is a top-grade, extraordinary spiritual material of the third rank.

It has the effect of tempering bones and enhancing bone marrow activity, and is also a main ingredient in the fourth-tier magic potion, Bone Forging Elixir.

So-called bone-strengthening medicine is not an ordinary wound-healing medicine.

It allows extraordinary individuals with perfected third-tier physiques to adapt to bone marrow awakening ahead of time, laying the foundation for some fourth-tier paths.

Even inside the Holy Light Monastery, this material is extremely rare.

The shirtless, muscular man immediately spoke:

"I'll offer eight hundred pounds."

"Nine hundred."

"I traded it for a piece of the spine of a Tier 3 Extreme Sea Beast."

Everyone offered their bids.

The gaunt old man closed the wooden box.

"Black Soul Fruit is not for sale at the moment."

"Taking it out only proves that there are indeed treasures inside the cave."

Several disgruntled snorts immediately rang out from inside the room.

However, since the two leaders of the Black King's Palace were not weak and they occupied the home ground, no one reacted because of this.

Xilun seemed to be deep in thought.

The fact that someone from the Black King's Palace has successfully brought out the Black Soul Fruit but refuses to sell it suggests that they are also preparing a bone-forging potion.

Or perhaps they want to use this fruit to lure more extraordinary individuals into the cave.

Someone nearby asked:

"Did those two surviving Tier 3 Extraordinary beings see the missing Tier 2?"

The woman in the silver mask shook her head.

"no."

"The roads inside the cave will change."

"At least that's how they describe it."

"Once inside, your companions may disappear as you turn a corner around a wall. When you return, the path behind that wall will no longer be the same."

"As for where those second-tier extraordinary individuals went, no one knows."

The group continued exchanging information.

As the information gradually became more complete, a vague outline took shape in Xilun's mind.

Only those at the third-tier extraordinary level have a relatively high probability of surviving.

Most of the second-tier extraordinary individuals who entered the area disappeared completely.

The first half of the cave dwelling is filled with broken walls and ruins, with damaged weapons, shattered armor and buildings scattered everywhere, as if it had been the site of an extremely fierce battle.

Some speculate that it was once a high-level place where demons gathered.

Over countless years, the dense demonic energy settled and gave birth to the Black Soul Fruit and other precious spiritual materials. This attracted a large number of extraordinary individuals to fight over it, eventually leading to a great war that caused the entire building to sink into the sea.

This explanation sounds reasonable.

But Siron didn't entirely believe it.

If the purpose was simply to seize the Demon Gathering Land, why would a faceless, six-armed statue appear?

Why does the remnant of the evil god in the right arm generate such a strong sense of shared origin?

The so-called great war may not be about different forces fighting for treasure.

Instead, they are jointly besieging or sealing away some kind of being.

Xilun gently pressed his right hand against the edge of the table.

Since entering the secret chamber, the remains of the evil god have been exhibiting subtle reactions.

The intensity of the sensor signal varies.

It wasn't just one person in the room.

It's more like an item being isolated in a special container, with occasional leaks of its scent.

He discreetly observed the wooden box behind the two men in the Black King's Palace.

It likely contains items brought out from the cave.

The exchange of information lasted for nearly an hour.

The group eventually reached a consensus on several points.

Although the first half of the cave is dangerous, it is still within the range that a third-tier extraordinary person can handle.

After crossing the downward stone corridor, the mental pollution will increase significantly.

Anyone who hears a calling, crying, or a familiar voice must immediately shut down their senses.

Once the number of people in the team changes, they should not question each other, and they should not stay for an extended period of time.

Most importantly, one should not easily touch those human-shaped statues that are still intact.

Some people witnessed a third-tier extraordinary being simply placing his hand on the stone statue's shoulder, and within a few breaths, he turned to stone.

After the exchange ended, the woman in the silver mask removed a black cloth from the center of the round table.

"Next, the items prepared by the Black King's Palace."

The gaunt old man took out the first wooden box.

A slender sword lay in the box.

The sword is dark blue, with a silver stripe resembling a tide line running down the center of its spine.

"Tier 3 weapon, Wave Chaser Sword."

"Forged from the spine of the third-tier sea beast Silver Tide Fish and Tide Pattern Iron, it can increase the speed of water-based energy flow."

"Starting price: four hundred pounds."

A man who cultivated water-based energy quickly made a bid.

After several rounds of bidding, the Wave Chaser Sword was finally sold for 620 pounds.

The second item was a long spear.

The spear was nearly nine feet long, entirely black, with tiny glints of silver mixed in at the tip.

Xilun lost interest after only a few glances.

This spear is made of hard material, suitable for those with pure strength, but it is far inferior to the Thunder Spear in terms of energy transmission.

When the third item was taken out, the people in the room visibly sat up straight.

It was a piece of pale gold metal, no bigger than a fingernail.

It appears hard, but it constantly changes shape as the thin old man's palm turns, sometimes stretching into thin threads, and sometimes condensing into water droplets.

"Spirit Transformation Gold".

"Weighs seven qian."

"Starting price: £600"

Xilun is no stranger to this.

The reason why his golden spear can be carried at all times, coiled around his waist, and can be both soft and hard, is because it is infused with spirit-transforming gold.

The Sacred Tree of Weapon Forging once specifically mentioned this material.

The more numerous the weapons, the more stable their shape changes.

If this piece of spiritual energy were incorporated into the Azure Thunder Spear, its flexibility would be further enhanced.

However, Celion did not make a bid.

He had just paid off Elena's six hundred pounds debt and used the remaining money to buy materials from the Sea of ​​the Dead, so he didn't have many pounds left to use.

Moreover, the Thunder Spear is currently sufficient for our needs.

There's no need to exhaust funds for embellishing the already icing on the cake.

Ultimately, the Spirit Transformation Gold was sold for a full 1,000 pounds.

The buyer was an elderly man wearing gold-rimmed glasses.

The next few items were mostly extraordinary potions, spiritual materials, and ancient artifacts.

Prices range from two hundred pounds to over a thousand pounds.

Xilun did not make a move.

Until the silver-masked woman picked up a long, narrow wooden box from her feet.

The wooden box was opened.

Inside was a piece of wooden arm.

The arm is nearly a foot long, with a grayish-black surface, and the five fingers are carved with exceptional detail.

Dark red veins are faintly visible beneath the woody surface, suggesting that some kind of liquid has solidified inside.

The moment the wooden box was opened, Xiren felt a sudden pain in his right arm.

Black smoke uncontrollably seeped out of the pores.

A chilling aura surged forth, forcing it back into its flesh and blood.

Thunder Dragon's heart pounded heavily.

Xilun's expression remained calm, but his right hand, which was under the table, had already quietly clenched into a fist.

Shared origins.

Extremely clear.

This piece of wood must have come from an underwater cave.

The silver-masked woman said:

"The damaged wooden statue's arm."

"Material unknown, function unknown."

"These are items brought back by the Black King's Palace explorers from the first half of the cave."

"Tests have shown that it can resist water and fire erosion and cannot be destroyed by ordinary Tier 3 weapons."

The shirtless, burly man frowned.

"You're selling it without even understanding its function?"

The woman in the silver mask remained expressionless.

"The secret shop only provides information that is already known."

Whether or not to purchase is up to each individual.

Xilun's eyes darkened slightly.

The Black King's Palace would never so easily sell an item that is completely unknown and suspected to be related to an evil god.

Either they have tried every possible method and confirmed that it is unusable.

Either this thing has hidden dangers.

There is another possibility.

fishing.

By selling wooden statue arms, they observe who reacts in a special way to them, and then use this to screen out those who possess the relevant secrets.

Xilun suppressed the idea of ​​buying.

While the wooden statue's arm might help him understand the remains of the evil god, there was no need to expose it under these circumstances.

A moment of silence followed in the sealed room.

The man with the hooked nose suddenly spoke:

"Three hundred pounds."

There was no competition.

He successfully purchased the wooden statue's arm.

The men of the Black King's Palace resealed the wooden box and placed it in front of the hook-nosed man's table.

Xilun's gaze swept over the wooden box.

Once the cap was closed, the sensation in my right arm immediately diminished considerably.

The box itself is not made of ordinary materials either.

The man with the hooked nose seemed to notice Xilun's gaze and slowly raised his eyes.

Are you interested?

His voice was deep, with a hoarse, grating quality.

Siren calmly responded, "I'm just curious if anyone would be willing to spend three hundred pounds on something whose purpose I don't know."

The man with the hooked nose twitched slightly at the corner of his mouth.

"The unknown is sometimes more valuable than the known."

"It might also be worthless."

"Then it depends on your eyesight."

The two did not continue their conversation.

But Xilun had already memorized his face and aura.

The next item was a neatly bound stack of parchment.

The gaunt old man unfolded the top page.

"Bone-strengthening medicine formula".

Several rapid breaths filled the room instantly.

"It's not a single formula."

"In addition to the original version using Black Soul Fruit, five alternatives are also recorded."

"Those who have reached the third level of physical perfection can choose according to their own bloodline, strength attributes and available materials."

"Starting price: £800"

A hint of longing also flashed in Xilun's eyes.

The bone-strengthening potion was closely related to his later path.

Swain had promised that once he had mastered the third level of the Overturning Sea Technique, he would take him into the Library Tower to find the method to awaken the Ancestral Blood.

If he could obtain the formula for the bone-forging potion in advance, he could begin collecting materials.

Unfortunately, the price is far beyond what he can afford.

"Nine hundred pounds."

"one thousand."

"One thousand one hundred".

Prices rose rapidly.

The shirtless, burly man took out a jade bottle containing the marrow of a sea monster, attempting to use the material as a bargaining chip, but was still overruled by the others.

The man with the hooked nose spoke again.

"1,500 pounds."

A brief silence fell over the enclosed room.

He raised the price by three hundred pounds at once, clearly demonstrating his determination to win.

The old woman in the gray robe hesitated for a moment, then finally gave up.

The formula for the bone-strengthening potion has once again fallen into the hands of the hook-nosed man.

They took out about two thousand pounds of liquor, but the other party's expression didn't change at all.

Their financial resources are astonishing.

Xilun became even more wary.

The fact that the hook-nosed man could carry such a huge amount of money and dare to flaunt his wealth in front of a group of third-tier extraordinary individuals shows that he was not worried about being targeted after leaving.

The auction continues.

Nothing else of particular interest to Xilun appeared among the remaining items.

Half an hour later, the sale of the Black King's Palace ended.

The silver-masked woman said:

"Next is free exchange."

"Please place any items you wish to sell or exchange on the table."

The stern-faced man was the first to stand up.

He took out two dark blue stones with scorch marks, wanting to exchange them for a bottle of Tier 3 healing potion.

The old woman in the gray robe then took out a set of silver needles engraved with complex runes, claiming that they could suppress the surge of energy.

The group took turns displaying their items.

There were materials from deep-sea creatures, extraordinary weapons of unknown origin, and several bottles of potions with their labels torn off.

Xilun observed quietly.

Until a pale-faced man who had been sitting in the corner took out a thick book.

The book's cover is made of dark green animal hide, with worn edges, and a title is written on the cover in ancient script.

Life forms and flesh reconstruction.

Xilun's eyes flickered slightly.

Mystical texts of the Life School.

Such books are rare even in the library of the Holy Light Monastery.

The Life School studies flesh and blood, soul and the essence of life, and some of its advanced knowledge even involves limb regeneration, bloodline reconstruction and distortion control.

This book is of little use to ordinary extraordinary people.

They lacked the foundation of any life-based school of thought and dared not easily experiment with their own flesh and blood.

That's why, although such items are valuable, they are extremely difficult to sell.

It is a typical case of having a market but no price.

If it's sold too cheaply, the holders will be unwilling to accept it.

If it's too expensive, no one will be willing to buy it.

The pale-faced man had clearly used it in a transaction before.

The book cover showed signs of being opened and closed repeatedly, but the people around it only glanced at it before looking away.

"Complete classic texts on the life philosophy school."

The pale man said, "It records twelve methods for repairing flesh deformities, as well as three surgeries for transplanting xenogeneic organs."

"I need to get a Tier 3 item that's better suited for mental defense."

No one responded.

After waiting a moment, he added:

"Or six hundred pounds."

The shirtless, burly man chuckled.

"Six hundred pounds for a book that might turn you into a monster?"

"You've already taken it out at the secret shop a few times before."

The pale man's face looked rather unpleasant.

"This is the true lineage of the life school."

"You just don't understand its value."

"If it's so valuable, why don't you cultivate it yourself?"

"I don't have any esoteric talent in the life school."

A few low laughs rang out from the surrounding area.

Xilun did not speak immediately.

He pretended to casually browse the other items, only showing interest as the transaction was about to end.

"Three hundred pounds."

The pale man immediately frowned.

"Too low."

"This is no ordinary book."

"To me, it's just an ordinary book now."

Siren said, "I am not a special person of the Life School, and I will only buy it for collection purposes."

"If you can find people who really need it, you might be able to sell thousands of pounds."

"But you obviously didn't find it."

The pale man remained silent.

Xilun did not urge them.

The biggest drawback of these obscure classics is that they are extremely difficult to monetize.

News of the underwater cave has spread, and now is the time to purchase medicines, equipment, and mental protective gear.

The fact that the pale man was willing to take out this book shows that he urgently needed funds.

"Four hundred and fifty pounds."

The pale-faced man tried to raise the price.

"three hundred."

Xilun did not back down.

"I'm just somewhat interested."

"If it's too expensive, then forget it."

After saying that, he actually looked away and looked at the ore that the masked man was selling.

The pale man's expression changed.

A moment later, he gritted his teeth.

"Three hundred and fifty pounds."

"three hundred."

"At least another twenty."

Xilun shook his head.

There was no one else competing in the secret room.

The pale man finally exhaled.

"make a deal."

Xilun took out the money ticket.

The two counted the items on the spot.

The weighty ancient texts were presented to Xilun.

He picked up the book and casually flipped through a few pages.

The yellowed paper was covered with numerous diagrams of human anatomy, not only marking muscles, blood vessels, and bones, but also recording rejection reactions after transplantation of various extraordinary organs.

One of the pages prominently features a replaced arm.

The inside of his arm was covered with dark red lines.

It bears a striking resemblance to the remains of the evil god deep within Xilun's right arm.

He showed no sign of anything amiss on his face, calmly closed the book, and put it into his leather bag.

Three hundred pounds.

This amount of money is not small, but it is absolutely worth it.

Even if the texts cannot directly explain the origin of the evil god's severed limbs, the content about distortion control and flesh reconstruction may help him further understand his own condition.

As the transaction was about to end, the hook-nosed man suddenly stood up.

He put the box containing the wooden statue's arm and the formula for the bone-forging potion into a black leather suitcase, nodded slightly to the two hosts, and walked towards the exit first.

He paused slightly as he passed by Xiren.

A very faint smell of decay seeped from the suitcase.

Several wisps of black energy suddenly twisted beneath the skin of Xilun's right arm.

This time, before the chilling aura could suppress the disturbance, a very light scratching sound came from inside the leather case.

sand!