The sky over the lower realms shimmered faintly, as though echoing the tremors of fate itself. Hidden from the gaze of every cultivator, Li Xuan sat cross-legged in his concealed sanctum beneath the Blackflame Abyss. Ethereal karma threads swirled around him like serpents, each line a silent whisper of cause and effect, betrayal and promise, life and death.
Li Xuan opened his eyes. They gleamed not with mortal light but with something far more ancient. The Voidheart Enlightenment Sutra pulsed within his mind, its boundless pain still echoing through every nerve. He did not grimace. He had long surpassed the need to show discomfort. Pain was his cultivation now. Suffering, his path to ascension.
"Status report," he said, voice like a whisper of winter wind.
Seven figures materialized in kneeling postures. His generals. Each radiated immense power, but none dared meet his gaze directly. Though loyal, they had begun to understand the chasm between their strength and his was no longer mere cultivation. It was comprehension of karma itself.
General Xue, a pale woman clad in ice-blue robes, spoke first. "The 17th Supporting Realm has submitted fully. The auction node has been installed and is attracting mid-tier sect interest. We've initiated baiting operations."
"What of the Deepgold Sect?" Li Xuan asked.
"Resisted," answered General Huo, flame tattoos writhing over his arms. "We executed their elders. Their disciples have been...reassigned."
Li Xuan nodded slowly. "All for the auction. All for the karmic harvest."
His gaze turned upward as if piercing the layers of the realm itself. Above him were still the Upper Realms, the God Realms, the Ancient Realms, and finally, the Forbidden Realms where even time dared not intrude. But here, in the Low Realms and its million tributary realms, he was already a god.
"Begin the second covert auction," he said. "Only elites under your command may participate. The theme shall be 'Forged Contracts of Fate.'"
A ripple of surprise passed through the generals. That theme meant binding karmic threads to those who bid. It was dangerous. Permanent.
"Shall we inform the buyers of the full cost?" asked General Lei.
Li Xuan's smile was almost imperceptible. "No. Let them feel power first. Understanding always follows regret."
The hall darkened as his aura flared. He raised his hand, and karma threads fused into a scroll—an artifact formed entirely of cause and consequence. He handed it to General Xue.
"This shall be the centerpiece. The Eternal Debt Writ. A single signature on it... and their entire clan line is mine."
Silence followed. No one objected.
Later that night, Li Xuan sat alone in his chamber. Flames danced in a circle around him, fueled not by spirit stones, but by the memories of those he had killed. The Voidheart Sutra opened once more in his mind.
He bit down as waves of mental agony surged through him. Faces of the dead screamed across his consciousness. He did not retreat. He welcomed them.
"Suffering... reveals truth. Pain... defines karma."
Somewhere, in the far reaches of the Supporting Realms, the second auction had begun.
And somewhere even farther, beyond the veil of space and silence, ancient eyes opened.
Li Xuan's shadow reached further.