I Am the Fated Villain
chapter-548

Three days quickly passed and the Divine Stone Conference, which attracted many Upper Realm forces, was held as scheduled. Dark Kun City was even more animated than usual, filled with noise from crowds of people while rainbow beams and flying boats flew over it from multiple directions to gather here.

Every Force had their own booths in the market of the city specifically displaying the precious rare rocks they had acquired over the years, including various divine rocks. The markets were packed to the brim and people could be seen within the various palaces and pavilions. Not just beings and cultivators from different families had joined in the occasion; several lone cultivators from the older generation had come here from different locations to pick out any unique stones.

If there was some kind of divine item, it would be put up for auction here as well. Anyone who participated in that event was thought of as the elite in the Upper Realm in terms of seniority and status, with even the Sect Masters and Heads of Families having a lower position than them. The Immortal Gu Family, the Immortal Wang Family, Sky Emperor Mountain, Mortal Palace, the Celestial Ancient Ye Family, the Hidden An Clan, the Lake of Reincarnation, Primordial Temple, and various other Forces were participating in the event.

A dragon-drawn carriage landed on the street, from which a tall slender woman in a phoenix robe emerged first. She looked elegant, noble, and beautiful. Other cultivators and beings with formidable abilities followed behind her, both male and female.

“Is that the eldest princess of the Great Yu Celestial Dynasty? Her beauty is truly rare and unparalleled.”

“I didn’t expect the usually low-profile Celestial Dynasty to also send an entourage here. It’s said that the eldest princess has a younger brother who has just turned 13, yet his abilities have far exceeded those of his peers in the dynasty. He’s known as the Little Emperor.”

The scene caused a violent ripple, with many cultivators discussing the matter. Many of them looked reverent at the mention of the Dynasty.

Behind the Eldest Princess, one youth stood out. He shone as brightly as the sun and shimmered with a divine golden light which made him resemble a young emperor. He marched confidently and proudly, while exuding an untamed aura. His life force was like a small true dragon which pressed down on the shocked cultivators.

The Great Yu Celestial Dynasty was an immortal and unrivalled dynasty located in Glorious Sky Domain which had prospered for eons. As mountains collapsed and rivers dried over the long passage of time, everything else in Glorious Sky Domain had rotted away or became old yet it remained incorrupt. There were even stories that the first emperor had cut out the Great Yu Immortal Scripture from a rock before eventually founding the Great Yu Celestial Dynasty.

To everyone else, the Great Yu Celestial Dynasty felt distant and mysterious to them. There didn’t seem to be any of its members present during the war in the Eight Wastelands and Ten Domains, yet they had unexpectedly sent someone to the Divine Rock Conference. The shock from this occurrence was great, with many cultivators observing their journey towards the depths of the markets.

“Sister, what’s the use of coming to this Divine Rock Conference? It’s no fun at all.” The youth behind the eldest princess looked around at the cut stones scornfully, clearly bored.

“Father said that the lost page may come up during this conference, so we do have to pay attention.” She shook her head lightly. Her steps were light and elegant, resembling the beginning of the sunrise or even the moonlight. She looked refined and noble, and many cultivators unconsciously made way for her. She was Yu Feiya, whose movements exuded an undeniable regal air.

“Even our Prime Ancestor can’t find the lost page, so what can we do? I think I’ll find a husband for you instead. From what I see, only Gu Changge is compatible with you. The offspring of you two will—”

At Yu Ming’s reckless statement, she shook his head lightly and interrupted him. “Watch your mouth. If Young Master Changge hears that, how can I look him in the eye?”

“Why should I be scared? Your beauty is unparalleled and any man will be attracted to you. You merely like to stay low profile. Otherwise why won’t even I know about your abilities? Well, the King with Six Crowns or Young Holy King does not deserve your attention at all.”

He rolled his eyes, feeling that she was merely being humble and did not wish to act conspicuously. Even the Great Yu Immortal Scripture, the most mysterious item in the dynasty, had materialised during the birth of his sister and gifted her with divine talent. Many Ancestors had even claimed that she was a prodigy with the most mysterious prodigy they had ever seen.

It was not the most powerful, but the most mysterious. As for how mysterious, those ancient beings in their family couldn’t decide at which stage her cultivation was. It was to the point Yu Ming considered those new Sacred Emperor Realm experts to be weaker than advertised, since they were inferior compared to his sister.

“Don’t be so dismissive of everyone or you will get your due someday. Speak less in front of outsiders.” She was extremely familiar with her younger brother’s character and while she was concerned about his frankness, she had no way of dealing with it.

“Do you really have feelings for that silly youth from the Tuo Ba Family, whose only focus is practising his sword skills? To me, that’s all he knows.” Yu Ming did not have the tact to remain silent, and his words sounded to be helpless and in disbelief.

Yu Feiya merely shook her head silently in response and rubbed her brow to help with her headache.

The group continued further into the market. It was a much bigger and unique place which was filled with rock mountain formations, flowing springs, bridges, and mansions. Many stones were placed everywhere while being watched over by specific cultivators. Each one shimmered with multicoloured light and was surrounded by mist.

Many people stood around them, carefully observing it or taking their artifact to investigate it.

Each Force had its own section within the market which displayed the rare special stones they had collected over the years. The asking price for each was enough to make any ordinary cultivator turn pale since it easily started with hundreds of millions of Spiritual Stones. Some were even too precious for their value to be determined by Spiritual Stones. After all, remant pieces cut from those rare stones also demanded a great price

“We can finally see the Seven Divine Rocks of Dark Kun City in real life now. If we could get a small piece from them, then our journey will be worth it.”

Many cultivators had come to see the Seven Divine Rocks. After all, those were special rocks which had been acquired by many ancient beings since the founding of Dark Kun City. Most of them originated from Kun Mountain while some came from the other forbidden areas. There had been Ten Divine Rocks, but three had been cut open and so seven were still left.

*Boom!*

Just as the cultivators were excitedly discussing, a strong beam of green light shone from a nearby compound. It felt like a lake full of life rushing towards them which immediately captured their attention.

“This aura…is that the Spiritual Spring of Life?”

“There’s no mistaking it. This is definitely energy from the Spiritual Spring of Life. Did someone manage to get it after cutting open a rock?”

Many older cultivators were stunned and stricken with disbelief after sensing that aura fluctuation. Almost immediately, their eyes turned predatory like they had smelled prey, and they transformed into divine light to rush towards the compound.

Shock erupted in the surrounding area as many cultivators and beings quickly ran towards the source in order to see the Spiritual Spring of Life for themselves. The entourage from the Great Yu Celestial Dynasty also couldn’t help themselves either and headed there after hearing the commotion. Other young prodigies, including the King with Six Crowns, Phoenix Lady, Chosen Monk Jin Chan, and many others, looked towards the source with some surprise before marching towards it.

To ordinary cultivators, the Spiritual Spring of Life was precious but not as powerful as other treasures. However, to the older generation, especially those close to their deaths, it was a miraculous medicine which could lengthen their lifespan and was far more valuable than any other herbs for longevity. Many even ended up fighting over it since the Spring had no medicinal properties, meaning that the life-extending effects didn’t diminish no matter how much one consumed. If it ever appeared in an auction, a bloodbath would ensue and not even someone offering a high price could get it.

“A pool of Spiritual Spring of Life as big as a fist…oh my.”

The compound was soon flooded by cultivators, and many members of the older generation couldn’t help taking a sharp breath. Hovering silently amongst the broken pieces of original rock was a Spiritual Spring of Life as big as a fist, exuding the thick aura of life. It resembled a lake which reflected light and brightly illuminated the place. The Life Force emanating from it attracted many people and several older beings could barely remain still. If not for concern about the people present, they would have immediately enquired about the price.

“I told you there’s something good inside and you didn’t believe me. You should accept that you lost and I won. Now, you have to agree to a condition of mine.” An ethereal, cold yet pretty woman couldn’t hide her joy and clasped her hands delightedly, while Gu Changge rubbed his brow beside her to avert his headache as if he hadn’t seen this coming.

“I’ve been careless. You have great luck.” He sighed lightly as if disappointed.

“What do you mean great luck? It’s because of my abilities!” Gu Xianer was clearly annoyed by his reply and glared at him. “Don’t even try to wriggle your way out of this. You promised me.”

“Fine. I accept my loss. It’s only one condition and I’ll agree to that.” Gu Changge shook his head briefly. Gu Xianer looked satisfied and waved a hand to retrieve the Spiritual Spring of Life.

The crowd were green with envy and wanted to ask her if she was selling it, but Gu Changge’s presence at her side silenced them and they could only laugh bitterly. If anyone else had discovered it, they might enquire about buying it or getting it in some other way since this was an extremely rare item. However, it was Gu Xianer who discovered it, which made a vast difference.

They were tactful and did not dare ask any other questions for fear that Gu Changge might misunderstand the situation and think they wanted to take something of hers. They could still clearly recall what had happened to the hidden An Clan three days before.

“You’ve already cut the stone apart and I’ve agreed to your condition. Are you done being angry now?” Gu Changge did not care about the feelings of everyone around them and smiled lightly at her pleased expression.

“In your dreams. This isn’t over yet. Why did you bully me three days back, huh?” She was immediately enraged at his mention of the event and a blush appeared on her pale face.

“I’ll let you return the favour. Won’t that be enough?” He shook his head gently and helplessly.

“You wish. I will never let you off that easily.” She glared at him.

He laughed a little. “Is it so bad that you had to ignore me for three days?”

He had taken the opportunity to teach her a lesson three days ago, which infuriated her to the point she refused to acknowledge him. Her expression had become stiff, cold, and distant. He had originally been too unbothered to pay any attention to this since he had gotten used to such occurrences and knew she was merely feeling humiliated and would get over it soon. However, considering that he needed to borrow her big red bird during the Divine Rock Conference, this couldn’t go on.

He had gambled with her to place a bet on a rock based on her abilities, where he would lose if she gained anything good. He had to agree to one condition from her if he lost, while she wasn’t allowed to be angry if he won. At the suggestion of such a sure win without any losses from her end, she couldn’t control herself and immediately agreed to it since she considered it a chance to finally redeem and avenge herself. That was what had led to the current situation.