The Stretch Lincoln Limousine came to a stop, and out came a bald, burly man. Standing at 6 feet 3 inches, he resembled an ox, and his muscles were the size of mountains. A crimson flower was tattooed on the back of his head.The bald man opened the car's door, after which a handsome, smiling lad came out, followed by an old man in a black shirt. The old man had sunken cheekbones and a gaze as sharp as a falcon's.He radiated an air more terrifying than the bald man. The final member of this misfit group to show was a woman in a bodycon dress, and she attracted everyone's attention.The lady was gorgeous that everyone could not tear their gaze away from her. She had a voluptuous figure, and her purple dress clung to her skin tightly. The men couldn't stop staring at her legs.Everyone around the woman, the old man included, bowed to her."Who are those people?""No idea.""Weird. Why did these guys come? Seems like they're from out of town."The local bluebloods were surprised
More and more bluebloods arrived at Universal Center. The auction would be a gathering to behold, and yet a storm was brewing.The rich guys all over the nation were gathered on the 66th floor. Redmoon Auction House was a famous international auction house, so the auction tonight would surely be spectacular.The auction house occupied two stories. The first story was for the retail investors, while the second story was reserved for the VIP players, and there were only little more than a dozen rooms on the second story.Nox was in one of the rooms. As the richest man of Riverton, Alexander had reserved a room in the VIP zone for Nox the moment he knew the ice plant would go on auction.Alexander was standing beside Nox quietly while Jebediah was on Nox's other side. The auction hadn't begun yet, and more guests were trickling in.The flags of Voxlia and the emblem of Redmoon Auction House could be seen everywhere. There were also warriors from Voxlia standing around as well.Nox c
While everyone was preoccupied with the almost lascivious dance, no one noticed Nox slowly opening his eyes. That was because he sensed that the dancers were all warriors.When he took a closer look, he noticed a black sauvastika symbol etched on the dancers' arms. "Hm? That's the sign of Black Flag!" Nox radiated killing intentions.Black Flag was the largest spy organization of Voxlia, and they worked in the fields of assassination, information, and recon. During the Battle of the Ten Nations, Black Flag had tried to get their hands on Faeast's information.Nox was surprised to see this group infiltrate Riverton. "I see the auction house is connected to Black Flag." Once again, Nox scanned the whole place, and he noticed powerful warriors hiding in every corner."Interesting." Nox sneered and closed his eyes again.The dance ended soon after, and it was now time for the main event. The man with the turban appeared on the stage once more to explain the rules of the auction. Natur
"That's the ice plant."The moment the old man pulled the cloth away, everyone looked at the cabinet. Within the crystal cabinet sat a flower clear as crystal and slithering as a snake. The flower only had four petals, and its stem meandered like a viper.Discussion rippled through the crowd as Nox stared at the flower. "The flower is freezing, and it has the shape of a snake. Yes, it's an ice plant that's been living for a thousand years."The moment Nox was sure the flower was what he needed, Alexander said, "Milord, this is the treasure I told you about."Nox nodded. "Leave everything else to me." He stood up.The Voxlian elder announced the starting bid, which was at 10 million. The bluebloods were in an uproar. Most of them didn't think the plant was worth that much.Still, some of the richer guys made their bids. The first bid was 12 million."15 million!""18 million!"The Riverton locals were bidding against the guys from other states, perhaps to make things more inter
"No idea. He's from out of town.""Unbelievable. They came here and challenged Alexander himself?"The bluebloods were in discussion while Alexander looked at Madam Rose's room. Larry looked at Alex smugly.Alexander was unfazed. He didn't care about money. He'd spend all of it to get the plant for Nox. Thirty million was nothing. He raised his hand. "Seventy-five million."And the crowd was in an uproar. Even the host looked at Alexander in disbelief. 'Five times the price at one go?' he wondered in bewilderment."That's Riverton's richest man for you.""Yeah. He's the only person who can make that offer."Larry was not intimidated by the offer. He smiled. "Ninety million."Before the host could say anything, Alexander raised his hand once more. "A hundred and fifty million."In mere moments, Alexander had doubled his bid. The bluebloods fell into stunned silence."Who is that guy? I can't believe he's going against Alexander," one rich guy asked."I know! They're Sovereign
Alexander and Jebediah felt their legs buckle. If anyone else had said something like that, Sovereign Society's members would hunt them down, but not if it was Nox. Not if it was the same man who destroyed the army of the ten nations alone.Alexander took a deep breath and gave Nox a thumbs up. "That is very impressive, milord.""We got the plant. Time to leave." Nox didn't want to stay anymore, so he got up.Before he could leave, however, the host announced, "Next up is our last item for the night. It is the most expensive and valuable item we have ever auctioned off since the inception of our auction house. And this is the treasure of your previous guardian, Lord Nox."The event fell deathly quiet. The previous guardian of Faeast, Lord Nox, was the very same man in the room on the second floor.Nox did not expect these people to auction his possession, and the gaze in his eyes turned icy."Milord, the bastards are going to auction your stuff?" Alexander was flabbergasted.Jeb
Madam Rose finally stood up after the announcement for the final item was made. She looked sharply at the stage. Her skin was perfect, and it was impossible to tell her age. She said, "It is finally going to appear. Larry, with the power vested in me as the third hallmaster, I command you to retrieve that item. At all costs."Larry smiled. "No one can take the item away from us, Madam Rose."The people's emotions were burgeoning. That was what the host wanted to see, and he smiled. "Calm down, sirs." He waved his arm."I know what Lord Nox means to all of you, and I respect him, but you cannot bring back the dead. My condolences."One man screeched, "Shut up and present Lord Nox's item! We will get what is rightfully ours, no matter what!""He's right!""Show us the item!"The man smiled again. "Very well, if you're in that much of a hurry." He clapped his hands, and out came five warriors in black. They wore Voxlian attire, had heads wrapped in turbans, and they wore masks.Wi
More importantly, this token gave its owner power over the nation's wealth. It was unthinkable that the Voxlians had their hands on this token.Alexander was the first to protest. "Milord, what is this? You have the Nox Token. Why do these people have it, too?" He fell quiet, a little speechless.Eventually, Alexander smacked his leg. "Damn the bastards. That must be a fake."Nox smirked as well. He thought the Voxlians had something to show, but they had only a fake item. He mused, 'I see they set this up because they thought I was dead. This is a trap to scam these people's money. But still, it's effective.'The bluebloods had no idea this was a fake token, and they were ecstatic to see it. Though Nox had fallen, he still remained their object of worship. This token was the closest thing Nox had. No foreigner had claim to it."Quick, make a bid. I'll give my all if it means we can get back what is ours!""Me too!""Us too!"More people stood up. Even Madam Rose was getting ex
The talismans were Magic Mountain's Forbidden Art, and Nox had fused them with Ultimate Sun Dragon Manual. Nox's mentors back in Mystia had taught him the Sovereign Seal earlier than expected.Their goal was simple. If Nox became the Sovereign, he could use the seal to command all the natural energy around him. If he didn't become the Sovereign, he would teach the Sovereign how to use the seal.The Sovereign Seal was a Saintly technique and the most ancient technique around. It was stronger than a Celestial technique.A golden seal brighter than the sun slowly rose into the air. It was the Sovereign Seal.As it appeared, natural energy gathered around it. The energy flew into the relics Brundela took from Faeast. Within a museum not open to the public, a bronze sword started to tremble as natural energy flowed into it. That got the attention of a professor."That sword belonged to Faeast's Emperor Elijah! What is going on?"A silhouette came out of the sword, and his aura was maj
Back in the navy command center, Fergus got the drone footage of Brundela's latest development. There were a few generals from the Nox Army with him. They could see that the monsters in the capital were far stronger than the ones they took out."It's a pity the capital is too densely populated. We have the weapons, but we can't use them." Fergus slammed the table in frustration. Even if the capital were to fall into enemy hands and the people torn apart by the monsters, Fergus could not order his men to fire at the capital, or things would be bad for them.Fergus could only open fire if the monsters were in a no man's land."Commander Parrish, the lord has orders. We are to keep the waters guarded. Once the capital's crisis is over, we are to make our way to the port and give humanitarian aid," a Nox Army general said telepathically. He just got Nox's orders."Is that so? Then Nox can stop this crisis." Fergus' eyes shone. He had no idea what Nox was planning, but he was the Sovere
Demons were walking the lands of Brundela. Legendary creatures were roaming the streets as if the end of days were here. The resurrected monsters were causing chaos everywhere. When the Titans showed themselves, despair washed over Brundela.There were too many monsters running around. Even after the Twilight Order and Ice Temple cultivators sent out everyone they had, it still wasn't enough to stop these creatures. The monsters went straight to the council hall, and so did the Titans.The Ice Temple Lord created a Magic Ice Formation and kept using Forbidden Arts and mystical artifacts to fend off the enemies. He had already done his best."You have to do something, Nine-State Lord. I can't hold on much longer!" the Ice Temple Lord said telepathically.Though monsters were about, they were not a threat to the Ice Temple Lord. he could leave anytime he wanted, but he had a deal with Nox. If he were to desert the battlefield, he would face a hell far worse than he could imagine late
Their targets were the relics around the altars. The moment the whirlpool showed up, the black energy conjured black walls and kept Brundela on lockdown, cutting off all communications.Possessed by evil spirits, gods from ancient civilizations came back to life. In the underground graveyard, the dead came bursting out of their coffins, and skeletons with phantom flames flickering around them charged at the holy knights and James' secret agents.Nothing more needed to be said. The holy knights' leader led the charge. The other knights resolved to fight to the death as they battled the skeleton gods.James and his secret agents fired off at the enemies, but the bullets did nothing to the skeletons. All they managed was to light a big spark. Only grenades and howitzers could deal damage to them, and even then, the damage was light.The battle was fierce. Though the knights did not fear death, they were still weaker than the prehistoric gods. These skeletons were nigh invincible, and
Nox was hovering higher than the Ice Temple Lord, and he got everyone's attention."Who's that?""It's a Faeastian!""My God, it's the Nine-State Lord!" Nox was known throughout Faeast and the world. Brundela's council members had recognized him the moment he showed up. They had nothing but fear for gods, yet Nox was the strongest man in the Mortal World, so they respected him.The clouds in Brundela's skies were hanging heavily over the ground, and the icy aura they radiated was making everyone shiver. Winter seemed to have come early for Brundela. The temperature was dipping fast.Back in the control center, intelligence agents were watching the surveillance footage closely, and they noticed the altar. The Twilight Order and Ice Temple cultivators were there, strengthening the altars' seal the best they could. There were soldiers guarding the altar as well.For some reason, the secret agents had a feeling something bad was going to happen. Murphy's Law, as they said.Suddenly,
A sliver of energy flew out of the puppet and gathered natural energy around it. Then, the temperature rose at a blistering rate. Fortunately, Bard's reminder came just in time, and Vermilion Bird was prepared for this. She led her team away from the spot.A pillar of fire engulfed the building, and heat waves shot off in every direction, lethal and deadly. The light eventually faded, and all buildings in a few hundred yards were razed to the ground.If Vermilion Bird had killed the puppet without thinking just now, she would have lost all her men and suffered serious injuries. "That bitch! I'm going to make her into a human swine one day! I'll give her hell!" she cursed.Bard gasped. 'Yeah, women can be really terrifying.' Not one General was a normal person.This incident didn't escape Nox, of course. He saw it through his divine sense. "Heh, you can't fight the flow of history? You say that, Aphrodite, but you've done the same thing more than once. Schemes and plots when your ey
Aphrodite was a master manipulator. She knew the weaknesses of Nox's underlings, and she praised Bard, "At least you know where you stand, Bard. You never overreach. Though we failed to make you one of us, I still thought it'd be a shame to kill you."Bard smiled. "Oh, you're such an actor, Ms. Mousse. You know why we don't like you? Queenie is a genuine lady, just like our lord. You're far inferior to her. And don't flatter yourself. Of course, I know where I stand. I can't even reach the pinnacle of martial arts, let alone cultivation."No matter how smart I am, my lack of talents holds me back. I can never be made an important leader." He was only spared because he couldn't become a threat to the Mousses.Nox didn't use schemes because he didn't need them. Absolute power could trump any plot.Vermilion Bird clenched her teeth. "What is the meaning of this? The lord knows that the bitch is here?"Bard shook his head. Vermilion Bird was a smart woman, but Aphrodite made her lose
Aphrodite felt nothing but sorrow, and Vermilion Bird burst into laughter. "I expected nothing less from these people. Your men are just like their employers. Hey, knights, you guys want to find out more about Faeast martial arts? See those Mousse guys? They're masters. Deal with them."Vermilion Bird gave her orders. She knew these people would escape the moment she showed up. The knights flew off, going after the escaped Mousses. The Mousses were a family of warriors, while these knights were cultivators, to an extent. They wore mystical artifacts, and the Mousses' guys didn't have something like that.The battle was fierce but short. The Mousses' powerhouses were taken out, and the rest were dealt with by the Shadow Division."And now only you're left. Interesting, isn't it? Karma always bites you in the ass. You betrayed my lord, and now your men betray you. You deserve this," Vermilion Bird cursed."Yes, I deserve this, but as long as he wants to be the Nine-State Lord, then w
'The beating heart of this land?' The woman's underlings looked grim. They were supposed to be the master tacticians here. Yet, Nox played them like a cheap kazoo. 'He's a far better tactician than we expected!'Nox began his counterattack not long after the Ocean of Death incident. This woman was none other than Aphrodite, Nox's old flame. When she saw Brundela's fate stabilizing, she knew right then that things had gotten out of her hands."Tell the Mousses in Eropa to retreat right away. There is no need to stay here any longer. He's not attacking us because he's waiting for us to do the same. The moment our men try to start anything, he'll swoop in and take them all out. "No one can beat him if he decides to go all the way. Not even me," said Aphrodite.Suddenly, the Mousses' powerhouse noticed something. "I sense bloodlust. Who goes there? Show yourself!" The powerhouses unsheathed their weapons and stood around Aphrodite, protecting her.A group of black silhouettes appeare