Reincarnation Sword God

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[Blood Realm, you say?]

Zhuge Sa explained with an air of annoyance.

[I don’t know what kind of fellow it is, but they’ve sealed off an entire area of the Blood Realm and connected it directly to the mortal world. So by using this passage, you’ll arrive in some random region of the Central Plains, as if teleporting.]

[I don’t quite understand…]

[It’s practically impossible to grasp, so I’ll let it slide. To put it simply, it means they’ve folded space and stuck it together. It’s a different principle than your boiling point.]

[Hmm.]

Swoosh!

I stepped into the passage, and before long, I found myself inside some dark building. Around me, ‘guests’ who had arrived earlier were lounging comfortably in seats, watching the stage, which left me utterly clueless about what this place was or where it lay in the Central Plains.

Half-naked beauties moved around, serving food to the ‘guests’ or being toyed with. In addition, under the bright lights on one side of the stage, I could see slaves who appeared to be the auction items locked in cages.

The faces of the slaves were quite diverse, regardless of age or gender. As I scanned the area in wonder, a small, hunchbacked elder approached me, rubbing his hands together.

“Ah, I see you have an invitation. May I ask your name?”

I replied with a name I’d heard, devoid of any accent.

“Shangguan Zheng!”

The elder seemed taken aback.

“Oh! You’re from the distinguished Shangguan family. Then, please follow me to the VIP section…”

Murmurs

As the name Shangguan echoed, I felt the curious gazes of the surrounding ‘guests’ upon me. They all seemed to have brought masks, concealing their faces. Yet, several displayed clear shock or confusion. Naturally, I was also wearing a mask, so I worried not about being exposed.

‘Why such a reaction?’

I felt like I had drawn attention all at once. As I sat down in the esteemed seat, Zhuge Sa let out a chuckle.

[The Shangguan family is a renowned lineage dating back to the legendary figure Shangguan Wanyan. It’s no less illustrious than the Han family in terms of history. The Sect Leader has surely prepared an impressive identity for you.]

[Damn it! We’re undercover; why bring so much attention to ourselves…]

As nearby half-naked beauties drew closer to my side, I waved them off with a gesture.

[Well, maybe you’re the only one feeling that way.]

[What?]

As I growled at Zhuge Sa, he feigned disinterest.

[The auction will begin shortly. Focus.]

Soon, without any elaborate opening remarks, a single slave began to walk onto the auction stage. Upon seeing that slave, I felt my breath hitch.

“……!!”

Wearing the robes of the Huashan Sect from the Nine Great Sects!

The Huashan disciple seemed to be in her twenties and was a woman. With shackles clanking on her wrists and ankles, she stood there with a vacant expression, mouth agape. I hurried to sense her aura and indeed, she possessed the remarkable internal strength befitting a disciple of a prestigious family, which puzzled me.

‘With that level of internal strength, she can’t escape…?’

The masked host on stage ascended and shouted loudly.

“Presenting the second-rate swordmaster of the Huashan Sect, Sa Uhee! She has been quite the trouble to capture. Once hailed as one of the beauties of the martial world, the organizers assure us that she has great value! Please make a wise choice.”

Suddenly, one of the guests sitting in the crowd exclaimed loudly.

“If she’s a master of martial arts, won’t she just rebel and attack her owner when she gets the chance?”

“Hahaha, a valid concern! We have thought deeply about that, and rest assured, we have thoroughly trained Sa Uhee all the way to this day.”

Chuckling, the host approached Sa Uhee, whispering something in her ear. She visibly shivered and began to cry. Suddenly, she started to take off her clothes, evoking gasps from the crowd.

“Oh!”

Sa Uhee crawled off the stage on all fours, going to a guest who had raised doubts, clearly doing something beneath the table, judging by the satisfied expression on the guest’s face.

Disgusting. It felt as ridiculous as watching a third-rate sleazy novel unfold.

I shook my head in disbelief.

“Insane.”

This place felt like a congregation of madness. How could a prestigious swordmaster from the Nine Great Sects act in such a grotesque manner on a mere command? Yet the guests seemed to catch the madness, eagerly calling out bids on the forthcoming ‘items.’

Not only were sexual slaves up for bid. Even martial artists were auctioned off as bodyguards. Bizarrely, I even saw scenarios where a father-son duo or a mother-daughter pair were separated and sold off. The wretched screams of despair rang out as husbands and wives were torn apart.

It was inhumane for slaves to be sold, but it was even crazier to see the ‘guests’ casually buying them like objects.

“Ughhh!!”

“Get that guy!”

Whenever a slave rebelled, the waiting warriors nearby rushed in to sever the slaves’ hands and feet or behead them with remarkable efficiency.

“……”

It was pitiful. But getting involved out of sheer pity could end up ruining everything.

I maintained my composure amidst the madness, calmly observing the trading spectacle. The auction had been ongoing for nearly two ‘shijins’ already, and since I hadn’t made any transactions, the earlier dwarf elder approached me, stating,

“Hehe… Is there nothing here that interests you, esteemed guest?”

Feigning indifference, I replied curtly,

“I came to buy something valuable. I have no interest in second-rate swordmasters or some lowly pairings. The market appears to be of such lowly standard?”

The elder’s eyes lit up with surprise.

“Your standards are indeed high… Even our regulars today are quite satisfied with the offerings… So, what kind of item are you looking for?”

“The most expensive and exquisite!”

I firmly declared, subtly revealing my intent.

“Bring forth something that boasts of its unparalleled existence in the world. Price is no object.”

I was raising the stakes.

After all, purchasing a mediocre item wouldn’t draw any attention from the organizers. Thus, aiming for the most expensive and rare would surely reveal a connection to the Feng family or the Imperial Palace. Besides, it helped that it wasn’t my own money to spend freely. The elder murmured thoughtfully.

“Just a moment…”

He vanished for a while, only to return shortly and beam at me.

“Fortunately, I have just the thing. Please follow me.”

“Good. Will you be able to satisfy me?”

“Of course.”

I followed the elder outside the auction hall, only to discover that there were not just one or two, but more than six auction venues running simultaneously. It appeared to be a rather closed-off area for a forested space.

As I followed the elder, unease gnawed at my mind.

‘When’s my Helper going to show up?’

The Helper was said to be infiltrating the slave market from the beginning and would naturally follow me when I arrived. In other words, they should have detected my presence and been tailing me somewhere. Yet, despite being on high alert since earlier, I had no clue where they could be.

Eventually, the elder led me deep into one of the buildings and ushered me into a room. It resembled a closed-off chamber, separated by a glass wall. Wondering if it was a trap, I shot a glance at the elder, but he waved his hands dismissively.

“Rest assured, nothing will harm you. Please take your time and enjoy…”

“I can’t trust that. What guarantee do I have that you won’t imprison me in there?”

“Umm… It’s such a precious item that we can’t simply show it to anyone we don’t trust.”

“Then you should come in with me as well.”

“Ugh… Very well.”

Once we were both inside the chamber, light began to shine beyond the glass wall, revealing a single beauty, sobbing pitifully.

“Wahhh…”

Her appearance was truly stunning, yet compared to the most breathtaking beauties I had encountered, she seemed to fall short. Dressed in elaborate garb, she likely hailed from a noble background but was merely crying endlessly.

“Who is that woman?”

“Don’t you know? I thought you’d recognize her if you were from the Shangguan family…”

Shangguan Zheng?

As my confusion grew, Zhuge Sa’s voice echoed in my mind.

[That’s Princess Hyosung.]

[What?!]

[I’ve seen her when I was in the Imperial Palace. She is the daughter born to the current Emperor’s fifth consort, conferred as a princess at the age of thirteen. Many said she would become an exquisite beauty if raised in the palace.]

[Are you certain it’s the princess?]

[Without a doubt.]

A sense of disbelief washed over me.

A princess!

It meant she was a royal descendant, a member of the most exalted nobility, transcending all amidst countless clans. Though her social standing as a woman was low, her status as a princess granted her tremendous advantages, often marrying kings or lords. It was quite unusual for a consort’s daughter to be made a princess, but regardless, there was no denying her status and nobility.

I cleared my throat and spoke,

“Is that… really you, Princess Hyosung?”

“Indeed! Truly remarkable that a young master from the famed Shangguan family recognizes me right away.”

“What on earth brings a princess to the slave market…?”

As I asked, evidently perplexed, the elder chuckled lightly.

“It so happens that her husband, King Yinghui of Henan, made a humongous blunder and has incurred the Emperor’s wrath. To smooth things over, the king offered his own wife, and now a fake has taken her place beside him. We hold the genuine article.”

“……”

Could it really be possible for royalty to sell their own wife?!

Feigning surprise, I stammered,

“Th-this is unacceptable! Do you know what might happen if I were to take a princess as a slave?”

“Sheesh… The collectible value is second to none, however… In fact, I had to rather forcefully fend off interest from other guests to bring this to your attention…”

“Is that true?”

“Yes. Some guests said they wanted her to bear children for them.”

Is there really someone crazy enough to want to take a princess as a slave!

I was reeling in shock after shock. However, I composed myself and replied calmly,

“What I want isn’t a woman.”

“Um… Then you should have mentioned that from the start.”

“Do you have any weapons or a magic artifact?”

The elder pondered for a moment before responding.

“Of course, but we will need a promise from you first.”

“A promise?!”

The elder glanced at Princess Hyosung behind the glass wall.

“Her situation is extremely confidential. How could we trust a newcomer like you, Shangguan Zheng? However, we’d like to secure a regular customer, so we don’t resort to threats or coercion. Hence, the one promise we need is that you must definitely purchase the next item we show you.”

I grimaced.

“That’s extortion.”

“No, it’s not. It’s only proper etiquette to buy something after viewing it, isn’t it? Rest assured, you can see as many items as you want until you are satisfied…”

“……”

It felt like a standard back-alley merchant’s bargaining technique. While it sounded plausible on the surface, accepting it would likely land me into trouble later on. Normally, I’d never agree to this kind of thing even if they threatened to cut my throat, but since I had another purpose for being here, I pretended to hesitate before relenting.

“… Alright.”

“Then we shall continue showing you other items.”

After the elder signaled, several people entered and took Princess Hyosung away. Moments later, an exquisite sword, shimmering brilliantly, appeared on the display case beyond the glass. Seeing that item, my eyebrows raised involuntarily.

“A famous sword?”

“Indeed. But it’s no ordinary famous sword.”

The elder chuckled.

“That dark, tranquil hue… It’s the finest sword that chooses its master. Its name is Damo.”

“……!!”

Damo!

It was said to be a legendary sword among the world’s finest, crafted by the renowned artisan Gu Yaza from the Yue Kingdom. What made Damo particularly famous was its history as a royal sword, said to be capable of conquering the world, with only the king worthy enough to wield it.

‘That sword is no ordinary object!’

Having trained in martial arts for countless years and beginning to awaken my spiritual insights, I could tell that the power radiating from that sword was on an entirely different level from any regular broadsword. If that sword was truly Damo, it would be a match for the legendary Longyuan I had seen in the Han family’s estate.

“I’m going to…”

As a martial artist, I felt an impulse to purchase it without realizing. Yet, just then, Zhuge Sa interjected.

[No! Are you planning to just gawk at valuable items forever?]

[What for?]

[Princess Hyosung and Damo aren’t what you should be focused on. There’s only one thing you’re supposed to ask for here.]

[What is that?]

[Listen closely. It’s…]

As Zhuge Sa continued, I bit my lip.

‘This guy may speak foolishly, but he always makes sense…’

It seemed wise to heed his advice this time.

Clearing my throat, I said,

“This won’t do. What I’m looking for is something else.”

“Hmm… What would that be…?”

“Are you really that dim-witted?”

At my words, the elder widened his eyes.

“Please present me with a magic book or a magic artifact. I came here specifically to buy that!”