From Secret Clan to the Divine Dynasty

Chapter 590: Chapter 526 Consecution “Bidder

As the smoke from localized warfare over the Aphotic Sea gradually dispersed, amidst the ruins, a new chapter was silently unfolding.

The “Cyart East Sea Trading Company” descended upon this war-torn land like a colossal beast.

Though ostensibly a company engaged in trade and reconstruction, it harbored ambitions and purposes unknown to others.

Representatives of the company, dressed in crisp clothes and shiny shoes, sat down alongside the Aphotic Sea Overlord.

The meeting table was adorned with exquisite tea sets and a map of the Lightless Sea Islands, which the company’s representatives seemed to view as a new world ripe for conquest.

“Hello, what we’ve come here to do is not to conduct business,” they said, “but to help you rebuild, to bring the various convenient technologies of the continent to you.”

“The conditions I’m about to discuss total over seventy in number, and the details are all laid out in these contracts. It should take around twenty hours for you to review them all; it’s not very complicated.”

Their fluent speech painted a grand blueprint for post-war reconstruction, promising advanced technology, capital, and employment opportunities, as if the “Cyart East Sea Trading Company” was the sole savior for the rebirth of this land.

However, behind these polished promises lurked a covetous greed for local resources.@@novelbin@@

For decades, the Cyart East Sea Trading Company had wantonly seized indigenous lands, mineral resources, forests, and even water sources across the Nine Seas. They acquired these at rock-bottom prices, or even without compensation, only to convert them into their own sources of wealth.

They built factories, mined minerals, and cut down forests, turning the local people into a labor force and consumers.

All decisions made by the company were secretly manipulated by a boss behind the scenes.

Like an invisible hand, this boss ensured that the company’s interests were maximized at all times.

From a distant city on the Ouden Continent, he tightly controlled every detail of this offshore land via a complex chain of power, using political influence, economic means, and even threats of violence to ensure that the local indigenous people and lords could not effectively resist, forced to watch helplessly as their homeland was gradually eroded.

This man was one of the eight of noble blood within the Dawn Church, Colin.

Without the strong support of the Dawn Church, even a merchant as cunning as Colin would not have possessed the ability to grow the Cyart East Sea Trading Company to such an extent.

Today, the Cyart East Sea Trading Company shone brightly, its influence far-reaching. It was not merely a commercial enterprise but had become a colossal entity that spanned borders and dipped its toes in various industries. Its scale was staggering.

It could be said that the yearly main income of the Fischer family and the Dawn Church came from taxes of four countries, in addition to the Cyart East Sea Trading Company.

“Do I have the right to refuse?” the great overlord asked with a furrowed brow.

“If you do, you’ll be unable to repay the various expenses that have arisen after renting forces from our friendly business, the ‘Mo’er Security Company.'” he said. “The debt has now been transferred, and this way of repayment is beneficial for both of us.”

The company representative leaned forward, whispering like a demon,

“Why not take a closer look at the contract? You will find that your core powers will not change. You are still the ‘king’ here, so why would you refuse?”

From bustling cities to remote rural areas, from the deep azure seas to the vast expanse of land, the reach of the Cyart East Sea Trading Company was everywhere.

With the help of the Dawn Church, its business empire spanned energy, manufacturing, finance, information technology, real estate, agriculture, mining, and services, covering nearly every corner and boldly becoming the world’s largest monopoly company. Undoubtedly, its real influence was much greater than that of Mo’er Security Company.

Moreover, should any foolish Extraordinary Exponent dare to raid the Cyart East Sea Trading Company, its affiliate, Mo’er Security Company, would intervene for free, according to the regulations, and crush the opposition completely.

Mo’er Security Company and Cyart East Sea Trading Company, both could be said to be extremely important organizations under the Dawn Church, and by now, they were indispensable to one another.

Of course, their greatest enemy overseas was none other than the Lorne citizens!

To date, eighty percent of the losses suffered by both companies were due to the Lorne Empire, because the Emperor of Lorne knew very well who their boss behind the scenes was.

—

In a hidden corner of a small city in the Southern Cyart Emerald Lake Province, there lay an extravagant private club known as the “Shadow Abyss.”

This was a labyrinth where power and wealth intertwined, a sanctuary for the elite at the pinnacle seeking refuge and indulgence.

Deep within the club, a door carved out of ebony wood with golden bas-reliefs slowly opened, revealing a soft and mysterious light.

A middle-aged man with a stern face and profound gaze, dressed in a tailored coat, entered the hall. He was the elusive legend who controlled the offshores from afar, the boss behind the scenes of the Cyart East Sea Trading Company—Colin.

Colin walked leisurely toward the center of the club, towards a special bar made of pure silver, adorned with an assortment of rare drinks.

With a slight wave of his hand, a waiter in a tailcoat immediately approached and prepared him a tailor-made cocktail.

Colin took a sip, seemingly savoring the complexity of flavors in the drink while pondering profound issues.

Because the act of “doing business” itself accelerated the mastery of the Power of Consecution, he had now successfully ascended to the 6th Rank on the Path of Contract.

The Bidder.

In the Spirit Realm, it was depicted as a young man with his hand raised high, his face filled with excitement.

The enhancement of physical fitness and Spiritual Power was in a ratio of one to nine.

Colin thus acquired a bizarre extraordinary power called “Auction,” which allowed him to bid for something on himself or his enemy using lifespan or life force. It could be ordinary items or even forbidden rare artifacts and other extraordinary items. If the opponent wanted to keep that item, they too had to participate in the auction.

In the end, the one who paid more would gain the right to use the item, and deciding how much lifespan or life force to use in the auction, as well as when to give up on bidding, were matters that required quick thinking during the battle.

Colin truly felt that the “Path of Contract” required the most intellect among all the stages of the God Pantheon stairway, and it had the greatest potential for growth. To him, this was not bad at all.

At that moment, a subordinate clad in a black coat rushed in, his face unable to hide his excitement and awe. He approached Colin and whispered a few words into his ear.

Colin’s expression instantly froze, and a fleeting, enigmatic glint crossed his eyes.

“You mean to say, that top-tier extraordinary material ‘Stone Heart’ has finally been found?” Colin’s voice was deep and forceful, each word seeming to carry an immense weight.

The subordinate nodded and quickly handed over a sealed document, which detailed the discovery location, nature, and preliminary assessment report of the “Stone Heart.”

Colin took the document and read it carefully, his eyes growing brighter and brighter.

“This is really fantastic. Now we can report back on Miss Hecate’s task. Hehehe, compared to Moore and the others, I am the fastest.”

He was well aware that many others among the Blood Receivers of Noble Blood, like Moore, had been entrusted with finding the Stone Heart, yet only one person could truly be the first to find it.

No matter how big the surface businesses are, the power of the Heavenly Enlightenment or the legends of the Eighth Tier is what’s most important… and now that he had found the Stone Heart, as long as Miss Hecate successfully advanced to the Eighth Tier because of it, she would owe him a tremendous favor.

Very good, very nice indeed!

Colin gently closed the file, a subtle smile curling at the edge of his mouth.

The Stone Heart was a legendary piece of extraordinary material, its odd shape memorable at a glance.

It was not, in the conventional sense, a “stone,” but a blood-colored crystal radiating a soft glow, as if the brightest red sun of the night sky had been captured within.

The crystal’s surface was smooth as a mirror. Although not large, about the size of an adult’s fist, its weight was extraordinarily heavy, as if it contained the essence of mountains and earth.

A faint energy fluctuation surrounded the Stone Heart. This pure and powerful energy was unparalleled by most other extraordinary materials.

The extraordinary materials needed to ascend to the Eighth Tier were hard to come by. Now that the Seven Stars Empire and the Lorne citizens could no longer be relied upon, for the Fischer family to obtain the “Stone Heart” was like a divine blessing of ultimate fortune.

On the same night that Colin learned the Stone Heart had been found, the curtain of the dream realm quietly opened.

A woman in a black robe, her face obscured by the hood’s shadow and her eyes closed, descended silently. She was Hecate Fischer, the infamous “Demonic Woman” within the high-position Fischer family.

The her of now seemed like a being who traversed the edge of reality and dreams, wielding ancient magic and endless wisdom.

In the dream, Colin was holding a blood-red Crystal Stone when suddenly, he saw the witch step toward the Stone Heart, her eyes flashing with an unusual light in the dark.

She reached out with slender fingers, lightly touching the Stone Heart. As the witch’s fingertips barely grazed it, the blood-red glow on the Stone Heart’s surface began to flow slowly, eventually turning into a thin beam of light that entered directly into the witch’s palm, as if merging with her.

Colin slowly knelt down, saying very loyally, “Respected Miss Hecate, I have lived up to expectations and found the Stone Heart to present to you and the Fischer family first.”

Hecate smiled slightly, her tone indifferent, “That is truly wonderful, Colin. Neither the Fischer family nor the great Lord of the Lost will forget your contribution.”

Suddenly, as if he had made up his mind, Colin spoke through gritted teeth, “Respected Miss Hecate, I hope you can help me fulfill a wish!”

“Oh? What is it, Colin? I owe you a favor, and as long as it’s not too much, I can make it happen for you.”

“That is…”

The deal was done.

The witch turned to leave, her figure gradually blurring in the dream’s fog, leaving behind her words echoing in the air:

“Remember, Colin, every wish comes with a price.”

At that moment, a familiar figure slowly stepped into this dream realm. It was Inna, the Blood Receiver who had been dead for many years. She was dressed in a white gown, her smile as warm and inviting as ever.

“Is it really you? Is this truly you?” Colin’s voice trembled slightly, his eyes quickly reddening.

Inna smiled and nodded, her eyes twinkling with a gentle light that seemed to melt all the sorrow in the world.

“Yes, it’s me. Thank you for always remembering me, even in the deepest nights.”

They embraced tightly, and Colin’s tears finally fell as he released his pent-up emotions.

In the dream, they revisited places filled with memories, shared unspoken thoughts, as if all regrets were being healed in that moment.

“Inna, Miss Hecate has helped me… Don’t worry, we’ll never be apart again… I will come to the dream realm to find you every night from now on,” Colin murmured to himself.

Inna’s smile turned slightly bitter, then tender again.

“That’s wonderful, Colin, I will always love you too.”