Crouching Flood Dragon Island lay deep within the East Sea archipelago, under the jurisdiction of the Fang Family of Penglai. It was neutral ground, where anyone could come ashore to trade at the sea market.
Fighting was forbidden on the island. This had been the Fang Family's decree for hundreds of years, and anyone who dared violate it would be considered their enemy.
In more serious cases, they would even issue a "Sea Soul Order," offering a bounty for the offender's capture throughout the East Sea. No one who broke the rule ever came to a good end!
The sea market was enormous, with major pawnshops scattered across the island.
Among them, the Heaven Round, Earth Square Pavilion offered the rarest freshly unearthed burial goods, and an invitation was required to attend.
The Heaven Round, Earth Square Pavilion opened once a month, issuing three hundred invitations each time, generally distributed among the East Sea's factions.
Occasionally, invitations also went to prominent families and sects in the Central Plains that enjoyed good relations with the Fang Family.
The pawnshops conducted most of their business through auctions, so those attending were generally wealthy and influential.
Gu Xiaoyu was no exception.
He was the seventh son of Gu Can, the current head of the Gu Family, and the most gifted practitioner of the Son of Heaven Qi-Watching Art the family had produced in two hundred years.
Despite his youth, he had already advanced past the Human Realm, one of the three realms of Heaven, Earth, and Human, and reached the Earth Realm.
He could observe the geography of Yin-Yang and "see" the Eight Qi of heaven and earth.
Disheveled as he looked now, he was actually highly valued by the Gu Family. Whenever he traveled, he was accompanied by ranks of servants and