?Location: The Lower District – "The Drunken Newt" Inn

  Time: 4 Hours before the Black Auction

  ?The room was dark, lit only by the eerie violet glow emanating from Aris's hands.

  ?On the table sat three kilos of "Pill Slag"—a grey, foul-smelling sludge that was the byproduct of incompetent alchemy. In the Middle Realm, this was waste, toxic enough to kill a mortal and useless to a cultivator.

  ?To Aris, it was raw material.

  ?[Abyssal Sovereign Body: Active]

  [Ability: Entropy Conversion]

  ?Aris didn't use a cauldron. He didn't use fire. He simply hovered his hands over the sludge. The dark grey toxins—heavy metals and corrupted Qi—lifted from the pile like smoke, drawn into his pores.

  ?His body absorbed the poison, breaking it down into harmless energy.

  ?What remained on the table was a pile of dry, crimson powder. It was unstable. It vibrated slightly, reacting to the ambient Qi in the room.

  ?"Standard alchemy seeks balance," Aris muttered, his eyes narrowed in concentration. "It tries to harmonize the Yin and Yang to create a permanent increase in power. That takes time. That takes money."

  ?He swept the crimson powder into a small pile.

  ?"But the poor don't need balance. They need survival. They need to kill the guy trying to kill them right now."

  ?He pressed the powder into rough, jagged spheres. They weren't smooth or beautiful. They looked like clots of dried blood.

  ?[System Crafting Complete]

  [Item Created: Crimson Burst Pill (Low Grade)]

  [Quantity: 12]

  [Effect: Forces the user's Qi channels to dilate by 200%. Grants a momentary boost of +10 Levels to physical strength.]

  [Side Effect: The user's meridians will rupture after 5 minutes. 3 days of paralysis guaranteed. High chance of permanent regression.]

  ?"Nasty," Lin Chen commented from the corner. He could feel the violent energy radiating from the ugly pills.

  ?"It's a suicide vest in pill form," Aris corrected, scooping them into a cheap glass jar. "Perfect for the clientele we're about to meet."

  ?He tossed the jar into his bag and stood up, reverting instantly to the hunched, nervous posture of 'Han Xiao'.

  ?"Let's go, Mo. We have a business meeting."

  ?Location: The Shadow-Walker Auction House – Back Entrance

  Time: 1 Hour before the Auction

  ?The Auction House was a fortress built inside a hollowed-out asteroid that had been chained to the Ringworld's scaffolding. It was neutral ground, guarded by mercenaries who didn't care about the law, only the coin.

  ?Aris approached the "Appraisals & Consignments" desk. The queue was full of thieves trying to sell stolen swords and scavengers with rusted armor.

  ?When Aris reached the front, the Appraiser—a thin man with spectacles made of spirit-crystal—barely looked up.

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  ?"Name?"

  ?"H-Han Xiao," Aris stammered.

  ?"Item?"

  ?Aris placed the cheap glass jar on the counter. The ugly red pills rattled inside.

  ?The Appraiser squinted. He opened the jar, sniffed it, and recoiled. "What is this garbage? Dried mud? We don't sell snacks here, boy."

  ?"It's... it's medicine!" Aris squeaked, looking around nervously as if afraid someone would steal his secret. "I found the recipe in a... a tomb! It's powerful! It makes you strong!"

  ?"It smells like sulfur and failure," the Appraiser sneered. He waved his hand. "Next!"

  ?"Wait!" Aris grabbed the counter. "Test it! Please! Just test one! If it doesn't work, I'll... I'll give you my servant!"

  ?He pointed a shaking finger at Lin Chen.

  ?Lin Chen (Mo) stood stoically, though he telepathically sighed into Aris's mind. "You are enjoying this too much."

  ?The Appraiser paused. He looked at Lin Chen. A silent, masked bodyguard with a visible prosthetic? That was worth at least 500 stones as a slave gladiator.

  ?"Fine," the Appraiser grunted. He snapped his fingers.

  ?Two guards dragged a "Test Subject" from a cage in the corner. It was a Beast-Man—a wolf hybrid—chained and muzzled. He looked half-dead, his cultivation crippled.

  ?"Feed it," the Appraiser ordered.

  ?One guard forced the wolf-man's jaw open. Aris took a Crimson Burst Pill and dropped it down the creature's throat.

  ?For ten seconds, nothing happened.

  ?The Appraiser rolled his eyes. "Get out of here, trash. You're wasti—"

  ?THUMP.

  ?The sound came from the wolf-man's chest. It sounded like a war drum.

  ?The creature's eyes snapped open. The whites were gone, replaced by glowing red veins. He roared—a sound that shook the dust from the ceiling rafters—and snapped the iron chains holding his arms like they were made of paper.

  ?"GRAAAH!"

  ?The wolf-man lunged at the nearest guard. His speed was a blur. He punched the guard in the chest, sending the armored man flying across the room to smash into the opposite wall.

  ?"Containment!" the Appraiser shrieked, diving under his desk.

  ?Four more guards rushed in with suppression spears. The wolf-man fought like a demon, ignoring stab wounds, ignoring pain. For three minutes, he was an unstoppable killing machine.

  ?Then, just as suddenly, he collapsed. He hit the floor, twitching, foam bubbling from his mouth.

  ?Silence filled the room.

  ?Aris stood there, wringing his hands, looking terrified. "I... I told you it was strong..."

  ?The Appraiser slowly rose from behind his desk. He adjusted his glasses. He looked at the unconscious wolf-man, then at the jar of ugly red pills.

  ?"What do you call these?" he asked, his voice trembling with greed.

  ?"Dragon-Blood Pellets?" Aris lied.

  ?"How many do you have?"

  ?"Eleven left."

  ?The Appraiser licked his lips. Mercenaries would kill for these. A pill that could turn the tide of a losing battle? Even with the side effects, it was a "Second Life."

  ?"I'll give you 200 stones for the lot," the Appraiser tried to lowball.

  ?Aris shook his head frantically. "No! No money! I... I need a Token! The Sect Selection Token!"

  ?The Appraiser froze. "The Tournament Token? That's worth 5,000 stones. These are good, but they aren't that good."

  ?Aris leaned in, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "I... I can make more. If I get into the Sect... if I get access to their herbs... I can make hundreds. I'll sell them only to you."

  ?He dangled the bait. An exclusive supply chain.

  ?The Appraiser did the math. If this "Han Xiao" idiot could churn these out, the Auction House could make a fortune selling them to the front lines.

  ?"Deal," the Appraiser snapped. He reached under the counter and pulled out a jade tablet carved with the insignia of the Myriad Beasts Mountain.

  ?He slid it across the counter.

  ?"The Token is yours. But you sign a contract. 100 pills a month, delivered to our contact in the Sect. Exclusive rights."

  ?"Yes! Yes, thank you, Lord!" Aris bowed repeatedly, snatching the token and clutching it to his chest like a lifeline.

  ?He grabbed Lin Chen's arm. "Come on, Mo! We did it!"

  ?As they hurried out of the auction house, leaving the stunned staff to clean up the wolf-man, Aris's face smoothed out in the shadows.

  ?"Contract signed," Aris projected to Lin Chen.

  ?"You promised them 100 pills a month," Lin Chen noted. "Can you deliver?"

  ?"I won't have to," Aris smirked. "In a month, I'll be an Inner Disciple. And this Auction House? I intend to own it by then."

  ?Location: The Streets of the Lower District

  Time: Night

  ?Aris held the Jade Token up to the neon light. It hummed with a specific frequency—a passkey that would allow them to enter the Upper District where the Tournament would be held.

  ?[Item Acquired: Sponsor Token (Myriad Beasts Sect)]

  [Access Level: Outer Disciple Trials]

  ?"Step one complete," Aris said. "Now we just have to survive the trials."

  ?"What are the trials?" Lin Chen asked.

  ?"A battle royale," Aris replied, putting the token away. "10,000 applicants enter a pocket dimension. 100 come out. Standard cultivation culling."

  ?He looked at his hands.

  ?"I need to reach Level 71. My cultivation has been capped at the peak of Nascent Soul for too long. The laws of this Middle Realm are denser. I need to kill something strong to break the ceiling."

  ?He looked up at the floating continent above them.

  ?"Tomorrow, the games begin. Get some rest, Mo. You're going to be carrying a lot of loot."