Up in the elevated VIP control box of the Grand Supreme Amphitheater, Pavilion Master Jin gripped the obsidian balustrade, his fat fingers clutching frantically at his embroidered collar.
The crimson backdoor runes on the master console were still sizzling under his palm, and a feral, desperate madness gleamed in his bloodshot eyes.
“You think you won, Lin Mo?” Jin wheezed, spraying flecks of bloody foam onto his satin robes. “You think you can buy my floating herb continent for a song?”
With a trembling hand, Jin reached into his shredded inner sleeve and crushed a pitch-black jade token.
The small token cracked into dust between his knuckles.
Deep beneath the auction stage, nine hidden array pillars groaned like dying beasts. The golden verification banner on the giant sky-screen flickered violently. A sharp screech tore through the acoustic horns, followed by a harsh, bloody glare that washed over the entire amphitheater.
The words on the massive screen shifted into jagged red runes:
[CRITICAL TRANSACTION ALERT!] [TRANSFER VERIFICATION FAILED: UNIDENTIFIED FUNDS EXCEED CONTINENTAL ESCROW LIMITS!] [SYSTEM ERROR CODE 904: 100 BILLION SUPREME SPIRIT STONES FORFEITED TO ESCROW VAULT!]
