Desolate Devouring Art - Chapter 1510 - Regret

Chapter 1510 – Regret

The tension thickened until it felt tangible, because the Grand Unity Sect’s ambition now stood exposed for all to see. They wanted to seize every astral crystal the Heavenly Dragon Sect carried and cut the Heavenly Dragon Sect out of the remaining auction in one stroke.

Every gaze swung to the Heavenly Dragon Sect, because everything now depended on how many astral crystals they could produce. If the Divine Alchemy Sect fell short, the Grand Unity Sect would cover the gap.

The Divine Alchemy Sect had produced 2,300,000 astral crystals, and even that number sat slightly below the Scarlet Cloud Gate’s level. After all, the Divine Alchemy Sect had suffered immense losses over the past few months, and scraping together two million astral crystals was already impressive. Those 2,300,000 astral crystals represented their entire reserves of astral crystals.

All eyes shifted to Hua Feiyu. The wager had long since ceased to be a matter between the Divine Alchemy Sect and the Heavenly Dao Society. It was now a clash between the Heavenly Dragon Sect and the Grand Unity Sect. The challenge had been laid bare, and the Heavenly Dragon Sect had no choice but to decide how it would answer it.

The first-tier sects began calculating in silence. “The Heavenly Dragon Sect has already spent more than two million, and they should only have about three to four million astral crystals left.” This wasn’t their first auction, and everyone roughly understood each other’s spending limits.

“It won’t be easy. This wasn’t a great year for the Heavenly Dragon Sect, and it would be impressive if they could take out another three million astral crystals.”

Although the Heavenly Dragon Sect had recovered significantly in recent years, its income still couldn’t compare to that of the Nine Dragon Palace. The main reason was the Lingqiong Clan siphoning off a share, diverting a portion of that income into its own coffers.

“I’m afraid that the Grand Unity Sect won’t be able keep up,” Hua Feiyu said, glancing at Venerable Grand Unity before he lifted a hand and summoned astral crystals in a sweeping torrent.

The moment those astral crystals filled the air, the cultivators in the common area were completely dumbfounded, and even Elder Wu Hen stared in disbelief.

Because they stood inside an immortal artifact, the space could expand without limit, and the sea of astral crystals only grew larger.

Staring at that vast glittering flood, Venerable Grand Unity felt a premonition coil in his chest as the number kept climbing.

“One million… Two million… Three million… Four million!” An elder from the Nine Dragon Palace pointed toward the sky, because every one million astral crystals condensed into a sphere, and four spheres already hung there.

Most importantly, the flow didn’t slow at all as more astral crystals continued streaming from Hua Feiyu’s hand.

“Five million… Six million… Seven million!” The hall nearly went insane, because no one could believe Hua Feiyu carried that many astral crystals.

Elder Wu Hen narrowed his eyes. He had guessed something, and his gaze shifted to Liu Wuxie’s face, where he caught a faint smile.

Sheng Yuan’s eyes turned green with greed. If he could win those astral crystals, the Divine Alchemy Sect would make a fortune. In this moment, the Divine Alchemy Sect looked like gamblers teetering on an edge, already seeing the astral crystals waving at them.

Only a handful of people sensed something wrong, because a nagging dread told them this was a trap meant to bury the Divine Alchemy Sect and the Grand Unity Sect.

At that moment, everyone finally understood why Liu Wuxie had dared to propose that the Divine Alchemy Sect pay for all their purchases. If Liu Wuxie won, the Divine Alchemy Sect might fail to cover the price even after selling every asset they owned, and the loss would destroy them.

“Eight million… Nine million… Ten million!” Ten spheres hovered overhead, and those ten million astral crystals lay bare for all to see, a sight that made hearts tremble.

“Ten million astral crystals! Where did the Heavenly Dragon Sect get them from? Did they rob another superpower?” That was the only explanation anyone could accept for such an absurd amount.

“It’s the Grand Unity Sect’s turn now,” Hua Feiyu said. The Heavenly Dragon Sect had produced ten million astral crystals, and the Divine Alchemy Sect had produced over two million, so the gap still exceeded seven million. The Grand Unity Sect had to fill it.

“We don’t have that many astral crystals on us,” said Venerable Grand Unity with a grim face.

“Then take out whatever you have,” Hua Feiyu said, sounding as though he had anticipated this outcome from the very beginning.

Venerable Grand Unity waved his hand, and seven million astral crystals appeared, condensing into seven spheres. Even with the Divine Alchemy Sect’s contribution added in, they still lacked seven hundred thousand.

“Liu Wuxie, let’s begin already. If you fail to take out one million astral crystals, the ten million will be ours!” Bai Ran said, drawing a deep breath as he urged Liu Wuxie.

If they could claim even a fraction of those ten million astral crystals, it would more than suffice to strengthen the Divine Alchemy Sect drastically.

Everyone locked their gaze onto Liu Wuxie, because this moment would decide the outcome. If Liu Wuxie lost, the Heavenly Dragon Sect would plunge into an abyss, because they couldn’t afford a loss like this.

The same danger hung over the Grand Unity Sect. Should they lose, the consequences would be identical: they would be barred from further bidding in the auction, a devastating blow to their operations.

“Is it too late for regret now?” Liu Wuxie asked, forcing a fearful look onto his face.

“Liu Wuxie, stop wasting everyone’s time and admit your loss if you can’t take out one million astral crystals!” Bai Ran pressed.

“Do you all regret it?” Liu Wuxie asked again, as though deliberately offering the Divine Alchemy Sect one last chance to back out.

Voices erupted from all sides, urging Liu Wuxie to finish the wager and stop dragging everyone through suspense.

“I gave you all a chance, but since you want to go ahead with it, so be it then,” Liu Wuxie said with a sigh. He flicked his hand, and a sphere formed in midair as one million astral crystals hovered before everyone.

The instant the first million astral crystals appeared, the Grand Unity Sect’s members nearly collapsed. Yet the display was far from over. One sphere became two, then three, four, and five, appearing in rapid succession until five spheres hovered in the air, declaring a total of five million astral crystals.

When Bai Ran looked up at those spheres, all strength drained from his body, and even his mind went blank.

“This is impossible!” Bai Ran muttered after a long stretch of silence, then collapsed to the ground with blood sliding down his lips. His body twitched as he lay there, because he understood precisely what losing this bet meant.

Not only would the Divine Alchemy Sect fall into an abyss, but the Grand Unity Sect would also be dragged down by this ten-million astral crystal wager.

The faces of the Grand Unity Sect’s experts turned paper-white, and even Venerable Grand Unity’s expression grew terrifyingly grim. Only now did they realize they had fallen for Liu Wuxie’s scheme.

He had bid on the Starfall Jade to plant the impression that he had no astral crystals left, then let the Heavenly Dragon Sect pay, sealing that belief in everyone’s mind. That trick hadn’t just fooled the Divine Alchemy Sect, but the entire hall, making the Divine Alchemy Sect lower their guard and step deeper into the trap.

“I’m sorry to disappoint everyone,” Liu Wuxie said with a shrug, because this clearly wasn’t the outcome most people wanted.

Everyone had assumed he would lose the bet for sure, yet the result had flipped in a single breath.

Hua Feiyu raised his hand and collected the 2,300,000 astral crystals from the Divine Alchemy Sect, then turned his gaze toward the Grand Unity Sect’s private room.

“Venerable Grand Unity, the auction is still ongoing, and I won’t take your astral crystals. I only want seven million astral crystals. As for the remaining three million, I want Cypressia Star’s governing rights,” Hua Feiyu said, taking 4,700,000 astral crystals from the Grand Unity Sect while leaving the rest untouched.

After adding the 2,300,000 astral crystals taken from the Divine Alchemy Sect, Hua Feiyu had collected a total of seven million astral crystals, and he intended to convert the remaining three million debt into a planet’s governing rights.

Venerable Grand Unity stayed silent. Hua Feiyu had calculated it precisely, leaving the Grand Unity Sect with exactly 2,300,000 astral crystals, identical to the Divine Alchemy Sect’s number, and the humiliation burned in his chest.

If Hua Feiyu had stripped every astral crystal from the Grand Unity Sect, they would have been forced to end their auction there, unable to mobilize anything. Yet Hua Feiyu had left them with over two million, still enough to fight for at least one item.

The Grand Unity Sect began discussing with hushed intensity whether to relinquish Cypressia Star’s governing rights or pay another three million. If they paid three million, the pain would deepen, because they didn’t want to miss the final few treasures.

Cypressia Star produced Soul Stones, and if the Heavenly Dragon Sect acquired the planet, they could tighten cooperation with the Spirit Martial Astral Domain even further.

The Grand Unity Sect controlled more than one planet that produced Soul Stones, but Cypressia Star had the highest output.

The common area exploded in uproar, faces lit with excitement. “Liu Wuxie is too terrifying. He laid the trap step by step right from the very beginning, baiting the Divine Alchemy Sect and the Grand Unity Sect to walk right into it.” A gamble of this scale rarely appeared, even once in ten thousand years. This wasn’t casual anymore. It had put an entire sect on the line.

“The Divine Alchemy Sect is the pitiful one. They won’t be able to recover from this one.”

Without astral crystals, the Divine Alchemy Sect would sink into even more disastrous straits, unable to purchase spiritual herbs at all.

They could borrow from the Grand Unity Sect before, but now even the Grand Unity Sect struggled to keep its footing, and they had just lost massive reserves as well.

“I’m curious, where did Liu Wuxie get so many astral crystals from?”

After all, Liu Wuxie had already spent over a million astral crystals, so it made no sense to them that he could still produce five million.

“Where did the Heavenly Dragon Sect get ten million astral crystals?” The other first-tier sects began to debate among themselves. They knew the Heavenly Dragon Sect’s foundation well, and producing ten million astral crystals should have been impossible for them.

“The problem still leads back to Liu Wuxie. I suspect that he deliberately placed ten million astral crystals with Hua Feiyu on purpose.”

Rumors multiplied as people recalled Liu Wuxie visiting the Heavenly Dragon Sect’s private room before the auction began.

“It looks like we should consider increasing our cooperation with the Heavenly Dao Society in the future. He’s too terrifying, and we won’t have a good time if he sets his sights on us.”

Those who had mocked Liu Wuxie earlier now felt regret clawing at them, especially the Scarlet Cloud Gate, the Nine Palace Manor, and the sects that had sought to profit from his hardship under the guise of helping him.

“This year’s auction had turned interesting. We’re only halfway through, and two sects have already been forced to withdraw,” someone said, watching the Grand Unity Sect and the Divine Alchemy Sect with open malice. With those two weakened or driven out, everyone else’s chances of winning the treasures increased.

“Three million for the ownership of a planet. It’s not a loss for the Grand Unity Sect. Do you really need to consider it?” Hua Feiyu asked, clearly in high spirits, because the Grand Unity Sect had walked straight into the trap he and Liu Wuxie had laid.

No one rushed the Grand Unity Sect for an answer, because either choice would wound them, no matter what they decided.