Chapter Seven: The Elder Auctioning the Combat Technique

Su Yi left the conference room and walked outside, his mood far from pleasant. After seeing Di Yuan today, the scene from last night involuntarily replayed in his mind. Even now, the look on Di Yuan’s face was enough to leave him profoundly irritated.

As he walked along the flagstone path leading to the Treasure Appraisal Room, the sky above was blue and bright, but it could do nothing to dispel the gloom clouding his heart. Su Yi shook his head, trying to banish the heaviness from his mind.

Yet just as he entertained that thought, someone up ahead shattered it completely.

He sensed a chill in the air, as if someone’s cold gaze was boring into him. Turning his head, he saw Di Yuan standing not far away, staring at him icily.

Faced with Di Yuan’s frosty expression, Su Yi felt a surge of impatience. Was this man never finished? All day long he put on this aloof act in front of others, but the moment he saw Mei Ya, his eyes would light up. Was he one of those repressed types?

“What do you want?” Su Yi asked, his voice edged with annoyance. He still remembered vividly what had happened last evening.

Di Yuan stared coldly at Su Yi. “Have you forgotten what I told you?”

Su Yi snorted inwardly, then feigned confusion. “What did you say?”

“You… very well,” Di Yuan’s eyes glinted coldly. He leaned forward, dropping his voice to a menacing murmur, “Just watch how I drive you out of the auction house.”

Su Yi’s expression darkened as he fixed Di Yuan with an unblinking gaze. “Are you finished?”

Seeing that Su Yi wasn’t the least bit flustered, Di Yuan gave a cold laugh. He thought with disdain, No real ability, yet he still pretends to be calm—let’s see how long you can keep up that insufferable composure!

“Let’s see how long you can keep showing your face here!” With a parting sneer, Di Yuan waved his hand and slowly disappeared from Su Yi’s sight.

As he watched the receding figure, Su Yi’s hands unconsciously clenched tighter and tighter. In his heart, he swore, Di Yuan, just you wait—one day…

Su Yi walked on with his head bowed, lost in thought. When he finally looked up, he found himself in a long corridor.

At the far end lay his destination. Every so often along the corridor, guards stood sentry. In the past, they would always greet him with respect; now, they ignored him completely, as if he were invisible air.

Though Su Yi had grown somewhat used to this treatment, it still stung. But just you all wait—one day I’ll astonish every last one of you. With that, he quickened his pace toward the Appraisal Room.

Suddenly, a chorus of lively, melodious voices drifted over. Su Yi looked up to see several pretty maids approaching. When they noticed him, a trace of pity flashed in their eyes.

He remembered when he had first arrived here—how dazzling and extraordinary he had been! In all the past century, no one in Changling City had possessed such talent for cultivation. With the halo of genius about him, Su Yi had stirred the hearts of countless young women; even the daughters of the most powerful clans had secretly fallen for him. What chance did these auction house maids have?

For two years, Su Yi’s fame as a prodigy only grew. When he reached the tenth rank of Battle Adept, everyone watched with bated breath. If he could break through to the rank of Battle Practitioner by eighteen and continue climbing with such talent, even becoming an Earth-Tier cultivator was not out of reach.

An Earth-Tier cultivator! Even the lowest Battle King was a figure these people could only look up to.

More and more young women began to circle around him; even the maids dared to dream—perhaps geniuses had unique tastes and might favor girls like them?

But to their disappointment, not only did Su Yi fail to break through, he even slipped below the level of Battle Adept and had to start cultivating his energy anew. Since then, he had never regained his former rank.

Now, faced with the once-promising Su Yi who had lost all potential, the maids had little to say to him. They hurried past, but as they crossed paths, one suddenly exclaimed, “Oh, Su Yi… Elder Yang had urgent business and isn’t here. He said to leave all the Appraisal Room duties to you.”

Su Yi was taken aback, then nodded to the maid. “Alright, I understand. Thank you, Lan’er.”

The other maids grabbed her by the hand, urging, “Lan’er, come on! We’re almost late!” and hurried away.

Entering the Appraisal Room, Su Yi found it empty and quiet. He shook his head and went to sit by the table. It seemed Elder Yang trusted him enough to leave this responsibility in his hands.

In truth, though it was called the Appraisal Room, few people actually brought treasures for appraisal these days. The auction house had secured a monopoly on resources, with a steady supply of goods and highly lucrative bulk transactions. In comparison, individuals rarely brought in herbs or battle techniques, and as for legendary elixirs, those had vanished decades ago—even the continent’s top factions had little to spare, let alone put up for auction. The chances of a private owner were even slimmer.

Sure enough, Su Yi spent most of the day there, and by afternoon, no one had come for an appraisal.

It was growing tedious. He stretched, suspecting Elder Yang had given him this post precisely because it was so dull. Having just eaten lunch, Su Yi was drowsy and wondered whether he should go watch the afternoon auction.

Before he knew it, his thoughts drifted to a bizarre dream he’d had while dozing off.

It truly was a strange dream—he had become that mysterious bandit, slaughtering people with mad abandon! Blood everywhere—on his hands, in his eyes, all around him! As he felt someone strangling him, Su Yi jolted awake, only to find his own hands wrapped tightly around his throat.

How could this be?

Could someone be controlling him, trying to kill him in his sleep? The notion flashed through his mind like lightning.

He took a few deep breaths, calming himself with a wry smile. How could he entertain such thoughts—it was just a nightmare, nothing more.

Just as Su Yi pulled himself from these musings, a chill seeped into his heart. Startled, he looked up sharply.

Standing before him was a figure shrouded in a black cloak. The cloak enveloped the man’s form and veiled his face, leaving no features visible. Su Yi’s expression shifted; with his keen soul perception, not noticing the man’s approach was unthinkable.

If this man wished him harm, he’d have no chance to resist. Then again… perhaps he never did.

From beneath the cloak came a dry, aged voice, floating lightly through the air: “Are you the appraiser?”

Su Yi quickly hid his surprise and replied solemnly, “I can assist you.”

The cloaked elder drew a brown scroll from his robes and placed it gently on the table.

Su Yi picked it up and examined it. Instantly, his pupils contracted in shock. After a long moment, he managed to compose himself, though his voice trembled with suppressed excitement. “Sir, are you sure you wish to auction this battle technique?”

“Yes,” the old man rasped.

“Then please wait here a moment while I make the arrangements,” Su Yi said.

“The sooner, the better,” came the reply.

Su Yi nodded, clutching the scroll as he swiftly exited the Appraisal Room. After he left, the black-robed elder let out a few low, eerie laughs. “I wonder who the unlucky soul will be to win that battle technique?”

Martial Peak, Chapter 7: The Elder Auctioning the Battle Technique—End of update.