Chapter 2079: The Human Path

Ye Chen's words made all the bidders on site turn their heads in unison, their eyes gleaming with excitement.

"Too focused on the Honghuang bidding, and we completely forgot about Pit Shen."

"This is going to be a good show. When Pit Shen makes a move, it's always spectacular."

"Two hundred and ten million, and still raising the bid. Just who is this Pit Shen?"

"Looks like some rich local tycoon."

"You brat, do you even have that much money?" The skinny old man tugged at Ye Chen. "If Gui Chen Quasi-Emperor drops out, and you can't come up with that many Yuan Shi, Youming Ge will turn you to ash."

"We've got money." Ye Chen shrugged.

"Good, very good." Gui Chen laughed in anger.

"Any further bids?" The Youming elder asked calmly, his mind stirring the Emperor Weapon, letting its imperial might flow out to firmly suppress Youming Ge and prevent Gui Chen from lashing out in desperation and harming Ye Chen.

"I'll raise." Gui Chen bared his fangs, speaking coldly. "Two hundred and five million."

"Raise you one million."

"Two hundred and ten million."

"Raise you one million."

The two exchanged words rapidly, neither backing down.

For some reason, listening to their bidding made everyone on site feel a strange sense of familiarity. Earlier, when Gui Chen was bidding against Taotie, no matter how much Taotie raised, Gui Chen only added one million each time. Now, the situation was eerily similar—whatever Gui Chen raised, Ye Chen only added one million, and he showed no sign of hesitation, his demeanor utterly relaxed.

As the saying goes, know yourself and know your enemy, and you will win every battle.

Ye Chen was exactly like that at the moment. With his Zhou Tian ability, he could peer into people's hearts and had already calculated Gui Chen's limit. For the Immortal Gold bidding, as long as he didn't exceed that limit, he could bid freely.

Suddenly, a cold wind swept through Youming Ge.

All the bidders couldn't help but shiver—it wasn't really a cold wind, but Gui Chen's killing intent.

That guy's face had become hideously twisted.

If not for the ongoing auction and the nine Emperor Weapons holding him down, he would have already struck Ye Chen dead with a palm.

"Any further bids?" The Youming elder glanced at Gui Chen.

"I'll raise." Gui Chen gritted his teeth. "Two hundred and fifty million."

"Raise you one million." Ye Chen said casually.

His words stirred up a thousand waves, causing an uproar in the auction hall.

If you listened carefully, you could even hear the pounding heartbeats.

It was just that the price for the Immortal Gold had been driven too high, and Ye Chen's boldness was extraordinary. After all, if Gui Chen dropped out, that would mean paying over two hundred million Yuan Shi!

Of course, Immortal Gold was precious, but Yuan Shi was money too!

This was a world-shaking gamble.

"Take it easy." Even the Youming elder couldn't stay calm anymore and hurriedly sent a message to Ye Chen, afraid he might get himself killed. Acting as a shill was one thing, but he didn't need to be this dedicated!

"Don't worry, I know my limits." Ye Chen laughed.

Opposite him, Gui Chen's bloodshot eyes flashed with a cold light, his greenish gaze sinister and terrifying. His icy killing intent surged again, condensing into a killing sword that shot toward Ye Chen from afar.

Ye Chen ignored it completely and didn't move an inch.

He didn't need to move—this was Youming Ge, guarded by nine Emperor Weapons, so Gui Chen couldn't act out like that.

Sure enough, the killing sword dissipated before it could reach Ye Chen.

The Youming elder had acted, stirring the Emperor Weapon to crush the sword and suppress Gui Chen along with it. The mighty Honghuang Quasi-Emperor was pressed by the nine Emperor Weapons until his divine body cracked.

Thud!

Gui Chen spat blood, his face deathly pale.

"If you want to die, just say so." The Youming elder snorted coldly, full of dominance.

At that, Gui Chen quieted down, coughing up blood in large mouthfuls. He could clearly sense the Youming elder's killing intent and was certain that if he dared to act rashly, he would be obliterated by the nine Emperor Weapons in the next instant.

Not only did he quiet down, but the other Honghuang Quasi-Emperors did too.

Nine supreme Emperor Weapons weren't a joke, and the Youming elder wasn't kidding around. It was best to behave—keep things peaceful for everyone. If anyone caused trouble, the consequences would be severe. After all, this wasn't their territory, and they hadn't brought any Emperor Weapons with them.

With the Honghuang side behaving, the human cultivators were even more subdued.

Not to exaggerate, the human cultivators from the various heavens didn't even dare breathe loudly, afraid the nine Emperor Weapons might misfire.

The only one acting unfazed was Ye Chen.

He was the real anomaly, propping up his chin with one hand as if nothing had happened. His composure left the elders sighing in admiration—unmoving like a mountain, impossible to discern his true intentions.

The atmosphere became extremely oppressive, the air almost solidifying.

"Any further bids?" After a dozen breaths, the Youming elder finally spoke, his words ethereal and authoritative, breaking the silence of the auction hall. His ancient, unwavering eyes fixed solely on Gui Chen Quasi-Emperor.

"I'll raise." Gui Chen growled lowly. "Three hundred million."

Gulp!

Hearing that price, the human cultivators all swallowed hard in secret.

Three hundred million Yuan Shi was beyond imagination. Even a Quasi-Emperor who had cultivated for thousands of years might not have seen that much wealth. They could only listen and dream—they didn't even dare say it out loud, for fear of biting their tongues.

After a few moments of silence, all eyes turned to Ye Chen again.

What they saw was Ye Chen waving his hand, his gesture clearly signaling one thing: I'm dropping out.

At that, the human cultivators all breathed a sigh of relief.

Dropping out was good—don't raise anymore; our hearts can't take it.

Even on stage, the Youming elder sighed in relief, afraid Ye Chen might raise again. If he provoked Gui Chen to drop out, that would be absurd.

Acting as a shill was fine, just go through the motions—didn't need to dig the pit so deep.

But how could he know that Gui Chen Quasi-Emperor's limit was exactly three hundred million? If it had been four or five hundred million, with Ye Chen's style, he would have taken the shill and Pit Shen roles all the way.

"Still, Honghuang is rich; we can't compare." Ye Chen sighed.

Thud!

Gui Chen Quasi-Emperor spat blood again, nearly collapsing to the ground. He wasn't sure if it was from his injuries or rage. He had thought two hundred million would secure the Immortal Gold, but after going back and forth, he ended up spending an extra hundred million. That amount of Yuan Shi could equip an entire army.

At that moment, he finally realized Ye Chen was pitting him, costing him a hundred million.

At that moment, even the other Honghuang Quasi-Emperors cast pitying glances his way. Pitted out of a hundred million—you've really brought honor to Honghuang. You're the first in history to do so.

Impressive!

In contrast to the Honghuang side, the human cultivators looked at Ye Chen with full respect.

Pit Shen—that was truly a Pit Shen.

"The Youming auction ends here. Fellow Daoists may proceed to the back hall to claim your treasures." The Youming elder's words echoed grandly, ethereal and authoritative, resonating through Youming Ge.

As his words fell, the bidders rose one after another, still not quite satisfied.

Ye Chen didn't move, still sitting there drinking. He wasn't in a hurry to get his items; he'd wait until the end. There were still many things he needed to discuss with the Youming elder, like the commission and the secrets of Youming Continent.

"You'll die a horrible death." A cold voice rang in his ear.

That was from Gui Chen, and the other Honghuang Quasi-Emperors. It wasn't a threat; it was raw killing intent. Gui Chen had been pitted, and so had they. As Honghuang Quasi-Emperors, how could they swallow that humiliation?

"I'm waiting." Ye Chen sneered, the emperor of Da Chu, showing no fear.

The Honghuang Quasi-Emperors snorted coldly and turned to leave for the back hall.

Among them, Gui Chen was the fastest. As the winner of the Immortal Gold, he was the center of attention and couldn't stay long. These were chaotic times, and even a Honghuang Quasi-Emperor could be robbed.

He ran fast, and the other Honghuang Quasi-Emperors followed quickly.

Those Quasi-Emperors had already decided to snatch the Immortal Gold.

If they couldn't bid for it, they'd just take it.

"I calculate that once we leave Youming Continent, there will be a bloody battle." The skinny old man said meaningfully. He wasn't foolish; he could see what was happening—the Honghuang Quasi-Emperors were about to clash.

"If there's an Emperor Weapon, I'll join in too." Ye Chen stroked his chin. He quite liked that Immortal Gold, and his Chaos Cauldron liked it too. Plus, the purple gold vial that Qiong Qi Quasi-Emperor had won—he'd snatch that as well. But alas, without an Emperor Weapon, it would be hard to take on the Honghuang Quasi-Emperors.

With that, he also stood up and headed to the back hall.

Due to his status as Pit Shen, he was highly favored by Youming Ge and led to the back garden.

There, the Youming elder was already waiting in the pavilion.

Seeing him, Ye Chen hurried over.

The Youming elder smiled warmly, saying little, and directly handed over a storage bag. Inside were only two items: True Thunder and Taiyin True Fire. Together, they were worth over eighty million Yuan Shi.

"Thank you, senior." Ye Chen grinned.

As he spoke, he fused the True Thunder and Taiyin True Fire into his Dantian Sea.

The True Thunder and True Fire merged into the Dantian Sea, energizing the Heavenly Thunder and Immortal Fire, though they didn't absorb them. Everything would have to wait for Ye Chen—all of it had spiritual intelligence and needed to recognize him as master before fusing.

"Who exactly are you?" The Youming elder asked Ye Chen with a smile.

"And what does senior think my identity is?" Ye Chen asked in return with a laugh.