Chapter 93: Unmasking the Fraud!

"Mr. Chu, if you say the Dragon Crown is fake, then what about the spirit stones and spirit talismans we bought before? What's the story there?"

Su Dingguo caught the implication in Chu Tian's words, and his expression shifted immediately.

"The spirit stones and talismans you bought the first time were indeed genuine, but they were merely bait to lure you in."

"Once you were thoroughly hooked, they brought out counterfeit goods to deceive you, trying to swindle your money away."

"Not to mention this Dragon Crown—even the treasures you just purchased are all fakes."

Chu Tian showed Wan Rongsheng no mercy at all, directly exposing his fraudulent scheme.

"This... how is this possible?"

Su Dingguo found it hard to believe, looking once more at the spirit stone in his hand.

Hearing this, everyone else's faces changed as well. They took out the auction items they had purchased, their expressions turning uncertain and alarmed.

"Give me the spirit stone."

Chu Tian extended his hand, his gaze settling on Su Dingguo.

"Yes."

Su Dingguo handed over the spirit stone he had just bought.

Chu Tian took it and gave the lightest squeeze with his palm.

In an instant, the spirit stone crumbled into several pieces, revealing an ordinary rock at its core, without so much as a trace of luster.

"This is merely a simple illusion. Since you are not cultivators, you cannot sense the spiritual energy within the stone, and naturally cannot distinguish the real from the fake."

Chu Tian tossed it aside casually, the scattered bits of rock clattering to the floor.

"Wan Rongsheng, you dare to deceive me?"

Su Dingguo shot to his feet, glaring furiously at Wan Rongsheng not far away.

"Wan Rongsheng, we came to this auction because we trusted you. What is the meaning of this?"

"If you don't give us an explanation today, we will not let this go."

"Give us back the money we just paid!"

The crowd erupted in angry accusations, their discontent boiling over.

Yet not a trace of tension showed on Wan Rongsheng's face.

"Return your money?"

"Once money has entered the pockets of the Wan family, do you honestly think I would give it back?"

Wan Rongsheng let out a cold laugh, openly admitting to the fraud, and even doing so with the utmost arrogance.

"Wan Rongsheng, what are you playing at?"

"Do you think we'll simply let you off the hook after you've swindled us?"

Su Dingguo's rage surged, his aura bursting forth as he prepared to strike.

A Grandmaster naturally carried the bearing of a Grandmaster. He had always been a man of great pride—otherwise, when he first encountered Chu Tian at the Wei residence, he would never have clashed with him over a seat. Though he now showed Chu Tian the utmost respect, he would never let Wan Rongsheng's deception go unpunished.

"Master Ma, I must ask you to act now."

Wan Rongsheng took two steps back, turning to look at Ma Tianxing.

It was clear that Ma Tianxing was also a participant in this scheme, perhaps even Wan Rongsheng's backing.

"Hmph. I had no intention of raising my hand, but since you have ruined my good fortune today, do not blame me for being merciless."

Ma Tianxing's body shuddered. His robes began to move without any wind, slowly swelling as if storing boundless power, waiting to be unleashed.

Boom!

The next second, his robes burst apart. A cloud of black mist spread from beneath Ma Tianxing.

The mist took form, instantly coalescing into more than a dozen ghostly faces.

These faces emerged from within the darkness, letting out a cacophony of wails and howls—piercing and ghastly in the extreme.

In an instant, everyone present blanched and scrambled backward.

Such supernatural, unfathomable means truly terrified them all.

"Master Ma, let's talk this over. Please don't resort to violence."

"I don't want the money anymore. I don't want a single cent of it."

The crowd's knees went weak, and they fell to the ground in sheer terror.

No matter that they were business tycoons of immense wealth, before this dreadful might, they could only bow their heads in submission.

Within the private room, the only ones still standing were Chu Tian and Su Dingguo.

"Break!"

Su Dingguo struck out in fury, his fist hurtling toward the black mist in midair.

Boom!

The fist force shot forth, piercing through the mist in an instant and leaving a fist-shaped dent in it.

But no sooner had Su Dingguo's force entered the black mist than it dissolved without a trace, utterly failing to shatter the whole.

The next second, the mist surged again, sealing the gap completely.

"Grandmaster Su is already a Transformation Realm Grandmaster, yet even the power of his punch cannot break through this black mist?"

"If even Grandmaster Su cannot break it, could Ma Tianxing have already broken through to the Martial Venerable realm?"

"For a cultivator to have reached the Martial Venerable realm—how terrifying is that? Are we all going to die here today?"

The crowd was paralyzed with fear, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.

"Soul Devour!"

Ma Tianxing slammed a palm forward. Driven by the force of his strike, the black mist surged straight toward Chu Tian.

Su Dingguo, who had been standing shoulder to shoulder with Chu Tian, immediately retreated several steps.

He knew full well that he could not withstand the might of that black mist.

Even before it had fully closed in, Su Dingguo could sense an immense crisis—a deathly aura unlike anything he had ever experienced.

But Chu Tian, on the other hand, stepped forward, meeting the oncoming black mist head-on.

"Hmph. A paltry trick like this, and you dare to show off before an expert?"

Chu Tian let out a light chuckle, two fingers pressed together, and slashed down through the void.

Boom!

In an instant, a sword aura shot forth, cleaving through the black mist.

The snarling ghostly faces let out even more miserable screams.

"Ah! Ah! Ah!"

If the earlier howls of the ghostly faces had only grated on the ears with their shrillness, then the wailing now could truly be called the bitter weeping of vengeful spirits.

The next second, the black mist was split cleanly in two.

The ghostly faces dissolved into the air, and the dreadful cries that had filled the room vanished without a trace.

As Chu Tian took another step forward, the black mist seemed to recoil in fear of his presence, retreating hastily toward Ma Tianxing, not daring to draw near him in the slightest.

"Impossible!"

"You can't possibly have broken through my black mist!"

Ma Tianxing's face contorted in shock, unable to believe what he was seeing.

The black mist he relied upon was his most powerful killing technique, and now it had been shattered by a single gesture of Chu Tian's finger.

"A mere wisp of ghostly fog—what is it worth?"

Chu Tian struck out once more. A sword aura split the air, descending upon Ma Tianxing.

Ma Tianxing's expression changed drastically, and he hastily retreated.

But the sword aura was faster. In an instant, it was already before him.

"Block!"

Ma Tianxing thrust out both palms, and boundless black mist poured from his sleeves, condensing into a barrier before him.

This barrier of black mist took the form of a colossal ghostly face, its gaping maw lined with fangs, attempting to swallow Chu Tian's sword aura whole.

Boom!

The next second, Chu Tian's sword aura rent the ghostly face apart.

The entire face split in two, and Chu Tian's sword aura, its power undiminished, continued straight for Ma Tianxing's face.