As he arrived, John saw a person in the crowd walk up to the stage, at which point he grabbed the chains of one of the mortals. It was a boy in his late teens, no older than John. The boy had no cultivation, and was incredibly dirtied. A look of hopeless despair was evident on his face, as well as the faces of the others on the stage.
The boy was led by his chains through the crowd, and the auctioneer on the stage immediately started the next bid. A woman in her thirties was the next to be auctioned. She was relatively attractive, but the dirt and grime on her face and body hid that fact.
"We'll start the bid at one thousand Spirit Crystals," the auctioneer bellowed out. His cultivation was at the Core Formation Realm, and he appeared to be in his forties.
"One thousand Spirit Crystals," someone in the crowd shouted.
"Two thousand!"
"Three thousand!"
After a series of bids once more, the woman was auctioned off for four thousand spirit crystals. The woman, her face equally despairing and hopeless as the first, was dragged off the stage by her chains by the one who had purchased her, disappearing into the crowd
John eventually snapped out of his shock at the sight before him.
'They're auctioning slaves?'
Such a practice was long ago outlawed in the lands John lived, but apparently things were different in the Forbidden Alliance lands.
'Can I do anything to help them?'
John thought about helping the captives, but eventually figured out his hands were tied. If he bought them and freed them, they would most likely be captured again, as they were mortals and could not flee far.
As for escorting them back to the Honorable Alliance lands, he couldn't do that either. He had no transportation ship, and so the journey across hundreds of miles would have to be on foot. That would take the mortal's weeks to do, which was time he could not afford to waste.
As for purchasing their freedom and setting them up with housing, he couldn't do that either. A Bloodfiend disciple would never be so altruistic, and so he would be quickly exposed after doing such a thing.
His mission was his main priority, and he could not do something that would delay it or expose it.
'If only I had teleportation talismans to help them all out, but sadly I only have a few remaining.'
John shook his head in pity, displeased that he could not help the captives. He glanced at them a moment longer before turning to leave.
"What's this? It appears we have a very special guest here today," the auctioneer suddenly called out.
His vision landed on John, and all eyes in the crowd turned to look at him.
"It appears we have a Bloodfiend Sect disciple in our midst," the auctioneer called out in an eager tone. Bloodfiend disciples were quite rich when compared to commoners such as themselves, and were a great source of potential income.
John paused as he noticed the gazes of all those on him, and turned around to look at the auctioneer that was addressing him.
"Honorable Bloodfiend disciple, do any of these slaves suit your eyes? I'll give a special discount, just for you," the man called out.
Those in the crowd frowned slightly upon hearing this, but did not protest. Establishing a relationship with a Bloodfiend Sect member was something they all hoped to do, as it could lead to much greater riches.
"Not interested," John replied, his tone flat and emotionless.
"Surely at least one suits the eye of someone as great as you. How about this girl," the man pointed to a girl, around John's age, who was quite attractive.
John frowned as he replied once again. "Not interested."
The man cleared his throat, not prepared for the hard no's from John. Most Bloodfiend disciples, as well as the other strong sect disciples, would purchase several slaves for whatever purposes they had, before disposing of them.
Not only that, but many of the cultivation techniques required humans, either for their blood, or other purposes, and so slaves were a hot commodity in these lands.
After rejecting the man's offer for the second time, John pushed his way through the crowd as he walked away. His face, gloomy and dark, caused all those around him to part away quickly, allowing him a quick path out of the crowd.
The man watched John leave, as a frown sat on his face. John had given him no face or respect, which was highly valued in these lands. He beckoned towards a man standing next to him, and whispered a few instructions in his ears.
The man's eyes narrowed as he heard the instructions, and he nodded his head soon after in affirmation.
…
John quickly left the city after determining there was nothing else he could do for the slaves, or anything worth buying within the city.
'My mission is my priority above all, but...If I manage to destroy the Bloodfiend Sect, situations such as these won't happen in the future. So...my goal is still the same as always. Destroy the Bloodfiend Sect.'
John walked down the main road leading deeper into the Forbidden Alliance lands. He travelled down the road for several dozen miles, before stepping off the road and venturing into the forest that lined the road.
After walking for several miles, John stopped.
"Are you going to keep hiding in the shadows, or are you going to come out?" John's voice echoed through the forest.
Silence descended on the area for a moment before a voice replied from the shadows.
"You were aware of us trailing you? Not bad, as expected from a Bloodfiend Sect disciple," a voice replied.
Soon after, six men appeared from all directions. Their cultivations were all in the Late Core Formation Realm, and they quickly surrounded John from all directions.
John's divine sense washed over them, and he instantly recognized one of the men.
"You're the man who was standing on the stage next to the auctioneer. Was this his bidding?" John asked, his face and voice calm.
The man smiled as he looked straight at John.
"It doesn't matter who instructed us to do this. All that matters is that you have gotten yourself into a situation that you won't be able to get out of," the man replied with a large smile.
"Aren't you afraid of my Bloodfiend Sect finding out about this and destroying you all?" John asked curiously.
The man scoffed, his smile growing larger. "Don't try to use your sect to scare us. You're alone, travelling from the borderlands. If you had means to travel to your sect quickly, you would have already done so. As for sound transmissions, we won't give you the time to send one out if you have a transmission formation," the man replied. "So, your sect won't find out about anything, as your body will never be discovered."
John nodded his head in agreement with the man's assessment. What he said truly would have been correct, had the Bloodfiend youth who John had recognized truly been the one before them.
They were most likely coveting his wealth, as even an Outer Sect Disciple of the Bloodfiend Sect would have a level of wealth that these people would desire.
"Not a bad plan. Unfortunately for you, things wont go according to those plans. Also, you've given me a great excuse to solve something I had been brooding over, so thank you for that," John replied with a calm tone.
The man, dumbfounded by John's words, began to laugh boisterously as if he had heard the funniest joke. He opened his mouth to reply to John, but instantly felt cold steel touch his neck. His expression became confused, as his vision began to fall to the ground below.
The eyes of the man's severed head stared back upwards at John, who stood before him with cold, emotionless eyes. His vision faded as his life left his body. The sounds of pained cries were the last thing he heard as he died.