C36 In a Desperate Situation

"Grandfather, take this Healing Pill first and leave the rest to me," Min Zhenkang urged as he swiftly retrieved a Healing Pill from the Bag of Heaven and Earth and placed it into Min Hanshi's mouth.

"Zhenkang, no, you must flee now. As long as you survive, there will come a day when the Min family can rise again." Witnessing the unfolding events, Min Hanshi realized his fate was sealed.

If Min Zhenkang could get away, and with Min Qigang outside, there was a chance to restore the fallen Min's mansion!

"Escape? It would be laughable to think you could slip through my fingers!" The mysterious man scoffed at Min Hanshi's suggestion.

"Who are you?" Min Zhenkang demanded, turning to face the enigmatic figure.

"I've said it before; you're not entitled to know my identity. Just understand that I am the one who ended you today. You wouldn't want to arrive in the underworld ignorant of who sent you there!"

As the mysterious person prepared to strike, Min Zhenkang called forth his Martial Spirit for protection, drawing a mid-grade Profound Rank spirit weapon with his right hand from the Bag of Heaven and Earth, while his left hand blazed with the Sun Devouring Demonic Fire—his most formidable combat form.

The flames wielded by an alchemist, powerful enough to concoct various Pills, were equally formidable in battle, their inflicted harm rivaling that of Profound Qi.

Inside the hall, Chu Keke had been reduced to tears. Her rare smile from the past ten days emerged when Min Zhenkang dispatched the Guo family's guards.

Yet, as the mysterious man made his move, Chu Keke's face was etched with concern. Having clashed with him before, she was acutely aware of his fearsome power—none present could match him.

Even if all the attendees banded together, they would stand no chance against him, especially not with just the three of them at Min Zhenkang's side.

Now, with Min Hanshi incapacitated by injury, Min Zhenkang and Min Huiyu were already hard-pressed in their struggle against Guo Yong alone. Facing the mysterious man as well, the outcome seemed all too clear.

Seizing a moment of distraction from her two maids, Chu Keke broke free and dashed forward at her top speed, determined to shield Min Zhenkang with her own body, ready to die for him if necessary.

If death was their fate, they would face it together.

"Zhenkang, I'm so sorry, it's all my fault!" Chu Keke sobbed, her tears making her look like a little kitten.

"Silly girl, what are you saying?" Min Zhenkang extinguished the Sun Devouring Demonic Fire in his left hand and tenderly stroked her cheek.

"To die alongside you, Zhenkang, I'd be at peace," Chu Keke said, her tears giving way to a smile.

"Silly girl, don't talk like that. I won't let you die," Min Zhenkang declared, pinning his final hopes on his enigmatic dantian.

"Zhenkang, there's no cure for me. I took the Heartbroken Powder before coming here, and it's about to take effect," she confessed.

"I know, and I'm going to wrestle you back from the clutches of the King of Hell himself," he assured her.

"Thank you, Zhenkang!" Chu Keke nestled into Min Zhenkang's embrace, finding solace there.

Elder Zhou, witnessing the Sun Devouring Demonic Fire in Min Zhenkang's hand, was visibly shaken.

He finally understood the sense of familiarity he felt towards Min Zhenkang; he was the enigmatic figure who had repeatedly auctioned Pills at the Heaven and Earth Auction. Elder Zhou had been searching for him for so long, at one point even suspecting someone from the Guo family, which was why he had brought gifts to celebrate their union with Chu Keke.

He had been mistaken all this time, and had inadvertently steered the auction house's executives astray.

The apothecary's shopkeeper was equally taken aback by the sight of the Sun Devouring Demonic Fire. Over the years, only one person had purchased the specific Pill materials needed to merge the flame into one's body from his shop. If his guess was right, it had to be Min Zhenkang—the very same man who had crossed paths with Jee Gong at the shop.

The Jee family members were beside themselves with excitement at the unfolding scene.

Their eyes were fixed on Min Zhenkang's hands. In his right, he clutched a Profound Rank Middle Level Spirit Weapon, a prized possession of the Jee family, which he had wrested from the grip of their Second Young Master.

The Sun Devouring Demonic Fire in his left hand, though not belonging to the Jee family, was linked to them by Jee Gong's previous encounter with an offender in Whalespell, whose defining trait was the possession of a flame.

The Jee family had poured considerable resources and Mysterious Stones into the search for this individual, only to come up empty-handed.

Now, they were convinced that Min Zhenkang was the very person who had wronged their young master in Whalespell.

The mysteries that once shrouded Whalespell were unraveling at last.

Min Zhenkang was indeed the man that both the Heaven and Earth Auction House and the Jee family had been desperately seeking!

Elder Zhou's mind raced with another revelation. Min Zhenkang had previously traded two martial arts techniques and an array formation from the Guo family for the Sun Devouring Demonic Fire. Shortly thereafter, word of Guo Tao's death had spread. It seemed Guo Tao had met his end at the hands of Min Zhenkang!

But the evidence suggested that Guo Tao had suffered wounds inflicted by a Demonic Beast. Could it be that the beast had slain Guo Tao, only for Min Zhenkang to stumble upon the scene and claim the contents of the Bag of Heaven and Earth?

One mystery cleared only to be replaced by another, shrouding Elder Zhou's heart in uncertainty.

But there was no time to dwell on these thoughts.

Chu Keke had already dashed to Min Zhenkang's side, ready to stand with him against the enigmatic assailant. Meanwhile, Min Huiyu, bereft of Min Zhenkang's support, was driven to the brink by Guo Yong, her body bearing numerous wounds.

Crucially, Min Huiyu's Martial Spirit had been suppressed back into her Dantian by Guo Yong's own.

Across from them, the enigmatic figure had approached Min Zhenkang and the others, his hand raised, poised to end their lives.

"Please, have mercy, sir!" Elder Zhou interjected suddenly.

"And who might you be? Why should I heed your words?" The mysterious figure paused, his hand suspended mid-air.

"I am the presiding Elder of the Heaven and Earth Auction in Whalespell, and Min Zhenkang is the very individual we've been diligently searching for. I implore you, on account of the Auction's reputation, to spare these people," Elder Zhou stated with dignified composure.

Elder Zhou had good reason for his confidence; in the Bacia Dynasty, everyone, including the royal family, showed a measure of respect to the Heaven and Earth Auction.

"The Heaven and Earth Auction? Never heard of it. What is that supposed to mean to me? I'm afraid I can't just take your word for it," the stranger retorted, ready to lower his hand.

"Such arrogance! To dismiss the Heaven and Earth Auction so flippantly," Elder Zhou couldn't help but exclaim, his voice tinged with disbelief.

But the mysterious person ignored Elder Zhou, intent on completing his motion.

Realizing the stranger's prideful disregard, Elder Zhou quickly assessed the situation. He resolved to rescue Min Zhenkang, who was akin to a walking treasury of pills, all of the highest caliber.

"Elder Zhou, perhaps it's best not to meddle in the affairs of others," the Jee family's leader interjected just as Elder Zhou was about to take action.

"What are you implying?" Elder Zhou inquired, puzzled.

"It's simple. The boy has a score to settle with our Young Master Jee Gong. If someone else is willing to take care of a thorn in our side, we're more than happy to watch," explained the Jee family representative.

"And if I choose to save Min Zhenkang regardless?"

"Then, regrettably, we must cross swords with the Heaven and Earth Auction," came the reply.

"Well, if it's a fight you want with the Heaven and Earth Auction, then prepare to show me what the Jee family is truly capable of!"

The confrontation escalated, with Elder Zhou clashing against the Jee family members. Despite his superior cultivation, the sheer number of opponents and their formation of the Thousand Killing Array meant Elder Zhou would need time to break free.

Bang!

A single palm strike shattered Min Zhenkang's Martial Spirit, leaving him wounded. A mouthful of fresh blood rose to his lips, but with sheer willpower, he swallowed it back down.

It was an unprecedented moment for Min Zhenkang—his Martial Spirit had always been the one to crush others, never retreating into his dantian.

The destruction of his Martial Spirit barely caused the mysterious man's palm to hesitate in mid-air before it relentlessly descended once more.

Bang!

Clang!

Another strike sent the middle-grade Profound Qi from his right hand flying across the distance, one end embedding itself deep into the earth while the other quivered ceaselessly.

Yet again, the mysterious man's palm paused momentarily, only to continue its downward trajectory.

Bang!

The next palm strike snuffed out the Sun Devouring Demonic Fire in his left hand, contorting his arm into an inconceivable angle.

The mysterious man's garment was singed slightly, but his unyielding palm remained unaffected.

Min Zhenkang watched the descending palm with a surge of helpless rage.

He was painfully aware of his own weakness; anyone could overpower him, even end his life.

Since his arrival in Suanikos, Min Zhenkang had never felt such an intense longing for greater power.

As the palm loomed larger in his vision, Min Zhenkang closed his eyes and clutched Chu Keke close.

"Keke, I'm sorry. I can't keep the promise I made," Min Zhenkang silently apologized in his heart.

Bang!

The palm fell, but not upon Min Zhenkang.

Puff! Blood sprayed across Min Zhenkang's face. He snapped his eyes open to see Min Huiyu had taken the blow for him.

"Second Uncle!"

"Guangxia!"

"Uncle Min!"

Three voices cried out in unison.

"Hehe—I'm okay," Min Huiyu managed a weak smile, but it only deepened the trio's distress.

As it turned out, Guo Yong, after injuring Min Huiyu, hadn't immediately finished him off but instead stood by, observing Min Zhenkang's plight.

In a swift move, Min Huiyu seized the moment of Min Zhenkang's distraction and intercepted the palm strike meant for him.

The act of deflecting the blow came at a grave cost to Min Huiyu. His internal organs were shattered, his meridians severed, and his bones crushed, leaving him clinging to life by a mere thread.

It was a stroke of luck that Min Zhenkang's Martial Spirit and weapon had absorbed much of the force from the mysterious man's palm strike. Without that, Min Huiyu would have undoubtedly perished.

Surviving such catastrophic injuries meant a recovery time of at least two or three years, and that was if recovery was possible at all. The question of whether he could ever return to his martial cultivation loomed large.

The mysterious man, realizing his palm strike had been thwarted by Min Huiyu, swiftly turned his gaze to Guo Yong.

Guo Yong, noticing the attention shift to him, dropped to his knees in a plea for mercy. "Sir, it was not intentional. I believed Min Huiyu to be gravely wounded already, so I hadn't yet managed to finish him off!"

Tears streamed down his face as he begged, his head bowing repeatedly in fervent kowtows, not ceasing even as his scalp split open.

The mysterious man, unswayed by Guo Yong's display, surveyed the four individuals before him and once again lifted his palm, poised to strike.

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