Amidst the ripple of the scene, Zhang Yuanqing arrived at the black market, which had transformed from its usual stall layout resembling a vegetable market into a proper auction hall. The auction stage was a foldable and extendable metal base. A red carpet stretched across a metal platform over three meters high, bearing the banner "Wanbao House Auction." Below, there were several dozen high-back chairs, each accompanied by a simple side table set with fruits and beverages produced in the Lingjing region. However, the hall remained empty, with no guests seated. Twenty minutes before the auction was scheduled to begin, all guests had gathered in the southern octagonal arena to watch the match. Inside the massive octagonal arena, measuring twenty meters in diameter, two extraordinary beings were engaged in fierce combat—one a gushtech master and the other a wood spirit. Cheers and applause filled the air. Typically, saints rarely participated in life-or-death matches on the stage, unless facing a mortal enemy or offered an exceptionally attractive prize. Most often, it was the extraordinary ones—especially independent practitioners—who stepped up to compete. The witch-guater clearly held the upper hand, consistently pressuring the wooden spirit, yet due to the spirit's agility, strength, and ability to neutralize toxins, he remained unvanquished, enduring through sheer resilience. Zhang Yuanqing only needed to observe briefly to realize that the wooden spirit's demise was a matter of time. By nature, chaotic professions outperform orderly ones, and in this confined, simple terrain, a physical confrontation would inevitably favor the witch-guater. If the spirit were a scout, his physical prowess might overcome the witch-guater, but he would still succumb to the venom—certainly and inevitably. Only a fire specialist could triumph within the octagonal enclosure, using the fury of flames to scorch both toxins and insect-like parasites, trading wounds and lives for victory. Indeed, after enduring for a full minute, the wooden spirit was knocked off balance by the witch-guater and struck against the iron cage. Before he could land, his powerful, thick tail spines pierced his chest, infusing him with poison. The witch-guater withdrew the spines, turned away from the lifeless body collapsing at his feet, and raised his fist triumphantly toward the audience in all directions. Applause and cheers rose and fell continuously. Staff members from the black market opened the iron cage and presented the prize, placed on a tray and covered with a red cloth. At that moment, a clear, resonant chime echoed through the hall, signaling the start of the auction. The spiritual realm travelers who had paid for seats took their places in order. Zhang Yuanqing glanced at the chain on his hand, inscribed with: A9—his seat in the very last row, far right. After seating himself, he noticed Lian San Yue, dressed in a black leather jacket and pants, with a black vest, stepping confidently up the stairs in sturdy leather military boots, her stride strong and purposeful, making her way to the auction stage. "Thank you all for being here," said Lian San Yue. "The Wan Bao House auction is now officially underway. Our first offering is the Mechanized Army—comprising a swordsman automaton, a heavy armor automaton, a flying automaton, a scout automaton, and a bowman automaton—offering a balanced combination of close combat, ranged attack, defense, and reconnaissance. Each automaton corresponds to a strength level of 3." She opened the inventory panel and summoned The sword-master puppet is a humanoid figure constructed from steel and wood, wielding a sharp alloy sword. The heavy-armored puppet is a shield standing half a person's height, equipped with wheels at its base. The aerial and scouting puppets are actually part of a single integrated unit—a bird with a wingspan of two meters. The archer puppet is a humanoid archer. "The five puppets communicate with one another, sharing real-time data; the aerial and scouting puppets can serve as positioning and targeting platforms for the archer puppet. The sword-master puppet can also combine with the heavy-armored puppet, at the cost of sacrificing its high mobility and agility—this synergy ensures that, as long as energy reserves remain, only a few extraordinary stage spirit warriors among the transcendent tier can defeat it," Lin San-yue explains with confidence. "This mechanized army is listed at a starting price of 20 million, with each subsequent bid not less than 500,000." As soon as he finishes speaking, a wave of bidding activity erupts throughout the audience, with voices rising continuously. After several rounds of bidding, this regimental automaton was sold for a premium of 30 million, ultimately purchased by a man wearing a monkey mask, his eyes filled with passion. Wow, that's already 30 million—remarkable for a transcendent-domain mechanical weapon. I remember when the Five Elements Alliance sold theirs; none of them reached over 10 million, and many were even sold at discounted prices. Zhang Yuanqing felt his heart squeezed tightly with concern. Yet, recalling that when the moral credit system collapsed, the spiritual practitioners of Songhai region were able to swiftly defeat and repel the evil professions, with mechanical weapons playing a significant role, Zhang Yuanqing found peace. On the auction stage, Lian San Yue smiled and said, "Don't worry if you haven't secured a mechanical weapon—there are still many high-quality ones available with us." The second round of bidding began, and this time, the Mechanical Technology Company presented sixty automata, ranging up to the highest level of 4. Following the mechanical weapons, the Life Source Liquid provided by the Zhishi Palace was introduced—this vital resource, officially monopolized, enjoyed popularity comparable to that of the mechanical weapons. The bidding calls surged one after another, wave upon wave, and the forty vials of diluted Life Source Liquid were swiftly sold out. Finally, after bidding on a batch of materials, San Yue high-said: "Ladies and gentlemen, friends, the final item for auction is now presented—also the primary objective for a portion of our guests." With eager anticipation from the bidders, she withdrew a bead pulsating with icy blue flames and announced: "The Stolen Flame Bead, a Fire Specialist's item, Master-tier, quality assessment: Low-tier." Master-tier items—though rated low—still represent the highest quality in the Master category. The gleaming eyes of the guests, reflecting both greed and longing, revealed that Master-tier items are, in fact, non-transferable within official organizations, always retained internally for internal use. Only the Bachelor Houses sell a few Master-tier items annually, but these are typically acquired by official bodies and rarely reach the broader public. Lian San-month placed the beads into the box and set it on the table, then declared in a clear voice: "The opening bid is any two materials of master quality. Each subsequent bid must increase by no less than five million." The bidding surged continuously, and after a fierce round of competition, only four bidders remained in tense anticipation. The illusionist possesses strong resilience and immunity against mental manipulation, while the scout's mental strength remains as solid as a stone—quite a different feel. Soon, Zhang Yuanqing, through his perception, identified one of the four as an illusionist wearing a ghost-faced mask with a green complexion, draped in a broad black robe. Observing the four competitors' bidding process without moving, after three consecutive rounds of price increases, the illusionist began to show subtle fluctuations in his mental state—frustration, anger, and a growing sense of determination to strike. Is the money running out? Is he getting annoyed? Zhang Yuanqing mused. He then sensed the other three bidders, two of whom exhibited mild tension, indicating their financial reserves were nearly depleted but still capable of enduring a few more rounds. The fourth bidder, however, remained confident and emotionally steady. In terms of financial strength, the evil faction will always fall short against the official authority. I'll lend a hand to you there. Zhang Yuanqing expanded his mental influence, beginning to shape the emotional states of the three bidders, gradually strengthening their resolve to withdraw. The fourth bidding round concluded, and the illusionist calmly managed his inner agitation, raising his bid one final time: "Two master-quality materials, 90 million." This was his bottom line—should the other three bidders continue to increase their offers, he would choose to step back and take responsibility before the elders. Although he could manipulate his opponents' emotions through strategic deception, prompting them to voluntarily withdraw, he could influence at most one of the three saints at a time. Moreover, once the emotional influence wore off, the opponents would immediately sense something was amiss. The best outcome would be being expelled from the Black Market by the owner of the Universal Storehouse. The worst—being killed on the spot. As his thoughts turned, he suddenly realized that none of his competitors had raised their bids. He looked around in bewilderment, noticing that the three bidders had placed their bid cards on the table. Had they withdrawn? The illusionist, wearing the mask of a demon, felt a surge of exhilaration—only to feel a sense of unease shortly after. Based on the emotional responses of the three bidders, they should not have withdrawn. The moment the thought surfaced in his mind, it was instantly overshadowed by feelings of relief and self-confidence—he instinctively felt it was simply good fortune, something that should have happened. "Nine million once, nine million twice, nine million thrice…" Li San Yue snapped his fingers. "Sold." The auction concluded. Bidders proceeded in an orderly fashion, receiving their items under Li San Yue's guidance. The owner of the mask with a greenish, fierce face stepped up first. Li San Yue lit a lady's cigarette, handed him the black box, and with a steady stream of smoke rising, smiled: "You'd better first place the item in your inventory, complete the ownership confirmation before checking its properties. Oh, if you'd like to turn into an ice sculpture right here and now, then I'll simply have forgotten to mention that." The sorcerer with a greenish, fierce countenance calmly accepted the box, then removed it, opened the lid to inspect the properties of the beads, confirming they were a master-tier item. He smiled gently: "Now, whether it's the official faction or the free-aligned groups, everyone is actively spending money—converting it into items, materials, consumables, and all other resources. You, on the other hand, are doing exactly the opposite. May I ask why?" Even the lowest-ranking spiritual travelers sensed that major upheaval was imminent—once the order collapsed, human society's paper currency would become worthless. It was a rational choice for anyone to swiftly exchange their currency into tangible resources while it still held value. Lian San-yue said, "Do you think you're qualified to ask?" The sorcerer chuckled, paused, and said no further, simply: "Take me away." Lian San-yue waved her hand, and the sorcerer vanished into the black market. The next moment, he found himself inside the convenience store, glancing at the shelves filled with materials and props. He suppressed his hunger, a deep vortex forming in the depths of his eyes. A few scattered dreams surfaced in his vision, and then, he leapt into one of the surreal dreamscapes, vanishing within the store. Ms. JOJO, with the assistance of the Dog Elder (through official channels), has identified two illusionists, one of whom holds the position of Dream Master. The King of the Magic Eye has captured a Dream Master, reportedly a subordinate of the Southern Branch's Third Elder. Meanwhile, the Dream Master secured at the auction, Zhang Yuanqing, has been confirmed through dream observations, activity area analysis, and cross-referencing with official records to be a subordinate of the Southern Branch's Ninth Elder. "Kou Beiyue is a member of the Unmarked Hotel and has a causal connection with Ling Tu; therefore, the Dream Master he has targeted can be set aside." The essence of Astral Observation lies in forecasting broad trends and future trajectories—this is the river of destiny flowing through all things. However, in terms of fine-tuned, individual-level operations, Astral Observation can reveal the specific fate of a particular person, but with a condition: the observer must have an extremely deep causal connection with the target. Otherwise, with billions of living beings on Earth, how could one possibly perceive the destiny of each and every one? Even a half-god's cognitive system would inevitably collapse. Lingtu designs a fatal blow to Wuhen Master, ultimately leading to the destruction of Wuhen Hotel. As a result, Kou Beiyue, Xiao Yuan, and Lingtu are now bound by karmic connections, with Lingtu able to perceive their futures to some extent. Therefore, anyone Kou Beiyue targets should ideally be spared or used merely to mislead the other party. Likewise, the karmic ties between Yuanshishen and Lingtu are also significant—Lingtu can observe Yuanshishen's actions and decisions. Nevertheless, this is not a problem, as the plan to eliminate senior figures from the Nan School remains only in conceptual form, not yet implemented, and even the specific targets have not been identified. Under these circumstances, the future revealed by the river of fate remains hazy and indistinct, as human thoughts are constantly emerging and evolving—making it impossible for even a half-divine being to clearly perceive it. For instance, when Zhang Yuanqing sees a young woman downstairs and finds her particularly appealing and moist, he instantly feels a sense of violation. At noon, he still felt a sense of indignity seeing the upstairs aunt—elegant, clearly eager, easy to handle. Yet perhaps neither of these thoughts would materialize into action. In that case, Zhang Yuanqing would never become the old Wang. Therefore, any emerging intentions that had not yet been put into practice were not considered part of the future and thus not observable. As soon as Zhang Yuanqing began formulating a plan, Ling Tu would surely be able to detect it. Zhang Yuanqing had anticipated this and had already devised a corresponding strategy. He opened his inventory, took out Biansheng Ling Yue, and placed it on his forehead. Instantly, vine-like patterns spread across his body, and he became the Day-Wandering Deity specializing in the Yin. Then, he activated the Night-Wandering skill and entered a state of invisibility. In this state, the Night-Wandering skill conferred a secret effect—his thoughts, plans, and intentions would not manifest in the river of fate. At least, Ling Tu would not be able to see them, since Ling Tu was the sovereign of Yin, not of the stars. After stepping into the night journey, Zhang Yuanqing took out banknotes and began drafting his plan. "Objectives: the Third Elder and the Ninth Elder. The Third Elder is an Eighth-Level Void Being; the Ninth Elder is a Seventh-Level one. Following the southern school's tradition, they are likely concealed within their own dream-space realms. Should our combat strength be sufficient, we need not wait for months—or even years—taking a gradual approach. As long as we enter their dream realms and expel them from there, we can launch a full-scale assault. The task of expelling them from their dream-space is something only I can accomplish. I can use the Eight-Arm Mirror to create a duplicate. The Third Elder will be handled by me, Ms. JOJO, Deng Jingguo, and the Ji Shi Society. The Ninth Elder will be dealt with by the duplicate, the Palace Mistress, the Mage-Eye, and Xiao Yuan. Aside from me, these three individuals and Ling Tu share causal connections with each other. Their movements may be observed by Ling Tu. Should they be observed, Ling Tu will naturally remain patient in laying out his strategy for the Ninth Elder’s side. At that point, my uncle and the Commander will