What do you mean by saying that the corpses I sew are all ominous creatures?

There was a commotion in the audience, but it was mostly whispers.

"What is this thing? It's disgusting to look at."

"Yeah, it feels creepy. I hope it doesn't attract ghosts."

"Bad luck, bad luck."

Just as Jin Wanliang had said, most of the wealthy merchants present were seeking both wealth and peace.

People avoid things that clearly exude an evil aura as much as possible.

Seeing the somewhat subdued atmosphere, the auctioneer's face flashed with embarrassment: "Ladies and gentlemen, this is a truly rare item..."

One million.

I held up the number in my hand.

The sound wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear in the quiet meeting room.

All eyes were on me. Li Qing whistled beside me, while Jin Wanliang winked at me.

The auctioneer's eyes lit up: "Great! This gentleman has bid one million! Any higher bids?"

The entire room fell silent.

Just as the auctioneer was about to bring down the gavel, a hand suddenly rose from the corner of the front row.

"One million and one hundred and fifty thousand."

I turned my head to look where the sound was coming from.

It was a man wearing a black hoodie and a full-face mask, making it impossible to tell his age.

His voice was hoarse, as if he had sand in his throat.

I frowned slightly. There really are people who know their stuff?

"One million two hundred thousand."

I raised my sign again without any hesitation.

For me now, money is just a number.

But the improvement in strength is something that money can't buy.

The man in black turned around and glanced at me.

Even through the mask, I could almost feel two cold, sinister gazes.

"One million four hundred thousand." He raised the price again.

"One and a half million." I said calmly, as if I were buying a head of cabbage.

At this moment, the man in black fell silent, seemingly weighing the pros and cons.

Although the Xuan Yin Sha Crystal is precious, 1.5 million is indeed a bit of a premium for a "stone" that can only assist in cultivation.

Moreover, judging from my determined attitude, he probably realized that he had met his match.

A few seconds later, he lowered his hand, turned away, and stopped looking at me.

"One and a half million once! Twice! Three times! One and a half million sold!"

"Snapped!"

I breathed a sigh of relief as the mallet fell.

won.

I wasn't particularly interested in the next few items, but Jin Wanliang did manage to bid on a jade Buddha, saying he wanted to present it to a very important person as a birthday gift.

After the auction, we went backstage to complete the transaction procedures.

Swipe card, sign.

When the crystal box containing the Xuan Yin Sha Crystal was handed to me, I couldn't wait to open it a crack.

A bone-chilling cold instantly seeped into my fingertips, traveling along my meridians straight to my brow.

The malevolent energy within his body roared with joy, as if it were raining after a long drought.

"Tsk tsk, 1.5 million for a rock."

Li Qing leaned over to take a look, then shook his head.

"Old Chen, you're really rich now. This thing has such a strong yin energy, aren't you afraid of freezing your rented room into an icebox?"

"As long as I can become stronger, I'd jump into any kind of fire pit, let alone an ice cellar."

I closed the lid and put the box away.

"Alright, we've got the stuff, let's go."

Jin Wanliang hugged his jade Buddha, grinning from ear to ear.

"This trip tonight was worthwhile. Let's go get some late-night snacks, it's on me! Let's have some seafood congee to warm us up from this underground chill."

As I stepped out of the hotel, the night breeze felt cool on my face.

I touched the hard box in my hand and felt a sense of reassurance.

With this evil crystal, I am confident that I can push my evil energy to a new level in a short period of time.

Perhaps, we are not far from an even higher realm.

"Hey, that kid who was bidding against you earlier, his eyes looked a bit off."

As they walked into the parking lot, Li Qing suddenly said something casually.

"I saw him staring at your back in the lobby just now. Did you offend him during the bidding?"

My hand, which was about to open the car door, paused for a moment. I glanced back at the brightly lit restaurant entrance.

"We've offended so many people already, one more won't make a difference."

I smiled faintly and climbed into the driver's seat: "If he wants to cause trouble, I'm ready anytime."

Jin Wanliang climbed into the back seat and chuckled, "Impressive! No wonder you're our Master Chen, the mortician."

But seriously, Chen Yang, your strength has increased way too fast. I can hardly keep up with your pace.

If you become successful in the future, don't forget to give your brother a hand.

"Stop talking nonsense and sit tight."

I started the car and drove into the night of Jiangcheng.

……

The seafood congee warmed my stomach and did indeed dispel much of the chilly atmosphere from the auction house.

After drinking a bit, Jin Wanliang, this fat man, started bragging, saying that he would expand his business overseas and then go pick up foreign girls.

Li Qing, on the other hand, mercilessly exposed his shortcomings, saying that his English vocabulary was so limited that all he could say besides "hello" and "thank you" was...

The two bickered and argued all the way, which added a touch of humanity to the late night in Jiangcheng.

After the event, I drove Li Qing back to Tingyuxuan.

When we got out of the car, this guy was unusually serious for once. He put his hand on the car window and looked at me: "Old Chen, the evil energy in that rock is not simple. It always gives me a violent feeling."

Take it easy when you're practicing; don't turn yourself into a madman who only knows how to kill.

If you sense anything is wrong, stop immediately and call me. Although I don't cultivate evil energy, I'm still fairly confident I can help you suppress your inner demons.

I smiled and nodded: "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

After seeing Li Qing off, he then delivered Jin Wanliang to the entrance of his antique shop.

Before he left, he told me that things might not be peaceful in Jiangcheng recently, and that I should lock the doors and windows tightly when I went into seclusion so as not to give any shady people an opportunity to take advantage of me.

It was past 1 a.m. when I got back to my rented room.

The motion-sensor light in the hallway was broken, so I went upstairs in the dark.

As soon as I opened the door, a cool, refreshing scent wafted out.

I didn't turn on the main lights, but only lit a small table lamp.

First, I drew the curtains tightly shut, then sprinkled a circle of special exorcising powder around the door and windowsill, and finally placed the scalpel in the most convenient position at hand.

After doing all this, I took a deep breath and took out the box containing the Xuan Yin Sha Crystal from my pocket.

As soon as the box was opened, that bone-chilling, sinister aura eagerly burst forth.

I examined this evil crystal carefully.

It was much smaller than the one awarded by the provincial bureau, and its color was not as deep; some gray impurities could be vaguely seen inside.

This indicates that its age and purity are indeed slightly inferior, and also shows that the items in the Folklore Bureau's collection are indeed of much higher quality than those circulating in the market.

But for me right now, it's just enough.

I sat cross-legged on the bed and adjusted my breathing.

The cool aura between the eyebrows sensed the presence of the malevolent energy and began to slowly rotate.

I closed my eyes and began to practice the Qi-refining method.