THE SUPREME AUDITOR: Liquidating The Multiverse.

Chapter 3: I Just Bought This Hotel

The ballroom of the Grand Hanhai Hotel was a vacuum of silence. Every eye in the room was fixed on me, but I only had eyes for the two people on the raised platform who had left me for dead. Lin Xinyi—the woman I once called wife—clutched her silk robe as if it could protect her from the ghost standing in front of her.

"Ming?" she whispered again, her voice cracking like dry parchment. "How are you... how are you standing here?"

I took a step forward. The expensive Italian shoes I’d just materialized through the System didn't make a sound on the plush carpet. "The Atlantic was a bit chilly, Xinyi. But the thought of our anniversary dinner kept me warm. You didn't think a few bullets and a three-hundred-foot drop would keep me from the party, did you?"

Chu Haoran finally found his voice. He slammed his champagne glass onto the table, the crystal shattering. "I don't know what kind of trick this is, or what high-level illusionist you hired to wear your face, but you’ve got a lot of nerve coming here."

"A trick?" I let out a dry, sharp laugh. "Is the blood on the balcony a trick too, Haoran? Or the power currently surging through your veins that you stole from my marrow?"

"Shut up!" Haoran roared. He turned to the perimeter of the room. "Security! Why are you standing there? This is a private gala for the Chu Corporation. This man is a trespasser! Throw him out! Break his legs and toss him back into the harbor!"

A dozen guards in tactical gear surged forward. They were the hotel's elite response team, all trained in basic martial arts and carrying high-voltage batons.

"Sir, you need to leave now," the lead guard barked, reaching for my shoulder.

I didn't move. I didn't even look at him. "I wouldn't touch me if I were you. I'm currently worth more than your entire lineage's future."

"Is that a threat?" the guard sneered, his hand closing on my suit jacket.

[System: Physical contact detected. Spend 1 Million Spirit Coins for 'Repulsion Pulse'?]

Do it.

A silent shockwave erupted from my skin. The lead guard didn't just stumble; he was launched backward, flying fifteen feet through the air until he crashed into a buffet table, sending lobsters and ice sculptures flying. The other guards froze, their eyes wide with terror.

"Ming, stop this!" Xinyi stepped to the edge of the platform, her eyes darting around the room at the influential guests watching the spectacle. "You’re embarrassing yourself. You’re a househusband. A nobody. You don't belong in the Hanhai. You don't even have a reservation!"

"She's right," Haoran sneered, regaining his composure. "This hotel is the pinnacle of the city. You need a net worth of at least nine figures just to pass the lobby. Look at you, coming in here with your fake SUVs and your cheap parlor tricks. You don't have a reservation? You don't even have a bank account that isn't monitored by my company!"

I pulled my phone from my pocket. It was a sleek, black device that felt heavy with the weight of the System. "You're right about one thing, Haoran. I don't need a reservation."

"Exactly. Now get out before I have the police drag you to a psych ward," Haoran said, waving a hand dismissively.

I looked at the screen.

[System: Grand Hanhai Hotel and Land Assets available for immediate acquisition. Market Value: 12 Billion. Instant Buyout Price: 50 Billion. Proceed?]

Purchase.

"What are you doing, Qin Ming? Calling your lawyer?" Xinyi mocked, her voice gaining its usual venomous edge now that she thought I was just a delusional man seeking revenge. "You don't have a lawyer. You don't even have a last name anymore. I’ve already filed the death certificate."

"I'm not calling anyone," I said, tapping the screen one last time. "I'm just checking the deed to the land you're standing on."

[System: 50 Billion Spirit Coins Deducted. Transaction Complete. You are now the 100% owner of the Hanhai Group.]

"The land?" Haoran burst out laughing, looking at the guests. "Did you hear that? The trash thinks he owns the Hanhai! This hotel is owned by the sovereign wealth fund and the Ouyang family. You couldn't buy a floor in this place if you lived a thousand years!"

"Ten seconds," I said quietly.

"Ten seconds for what? For your brain to realize you're dead?" Xinyi spat.

Suddenly, the massive gold-leafed doors at the back of the ballroom slammed open. A man in a frantic, disheveled tuxedo came sprinting into the room. It was Manager Wei, a man known for his unflappable calm and his habit of looking down his nose at anyone who wasn't a billionaire. He was sweating profusely, his tie crooked.

"Manager Wei!" Haoran called out, pointing at me. "Perfect timing. This lunatic is claiming to own your hotel. Have him arrested immediately. The Chu Corporation will hold you personally responsible for this security breach!"

Manager Wei didn't even glance at Haoran. He didn't look at Xinyi. He sprinted straight toward me, his shoes skidding on the marble as he came to a halt. The entire room gasped as the most powerful hotelier in the city bent his back in a perfect, ninety-degree bow.

"Sir!" Wei shouted, his voice echoing in the silent hall. "The notification just came through the central server! The board of directors has been dissolved! The deed... the deed has been transferred in full!"

The silence that followed was heavy enough to suffocate.

Haoran’s face turned a sickly shade of purple. "Wei? What are you talking about? I’m Chu Haoran! I have a standing contract with this hotel!"

Manager Wei turned his head just enough to look at Haoran with absolute chilling indifference. "Mr. Chu, your contract was with the previous owners. As of thirty seconds ago, your standing, your reservations, and your presence in this building are at the sole discretion of the Chairman."

Wei turned back to me, his forehead nearly touching the floor. "Sir! The deed is confirmed! You are the sole owner of the Grand Hanhai Hotel and all its subsidiaries. My apologies for the delay in my arrival!"

I looked down at the top of Wei's head, then shifted my gaze to Xinyi. Her mouth was hanging open, her champagne glass-stained robe trembling.

"You were saying, Xinyi? About me not belonging here?" I asked, my voice smooth as silk.

"This... this is a mistake," she stammered. "He’s a beggar! He was my husband! He doesn't have fifty cents, let alone the billions required for this!"

"Manager Wei," I said, ignoring her.

"Yes, Chairman?"

I gestured lazily toward the platform where Haoran and Xinyi stood. "I find the atmosphere in my ballroom has suddenly turned... trashy. How shall we dispose of these trespassers?"

Wei stood up, his face hardening as he looked at Haoran. He pulled a radio from his belt. "All security units to the Royal Gala. We have two individuals occupying the VIP dais without authorization. Remove them. If they resist, use maximum force. They are blacklisted from every Hanhai property globally, effective immediately."

"You can't do this!" Haoran screamed, his Sky Realm aura flaring up again. "I am a Chu! I will burn this hotel to the ground!"

"In my hotel?" I whispered. I stepped forward, and with a flick of my wrist, I released a fraction of the 'God-Body' pressure.

Haoran’s aura didn't just flicker; it imploded. He fell to his knees, the marble cracking under his weight as the sheer gravity of my presence pinned him down. Xinyi fell beside him, her face pressed against the floor she had just been bragging about.

"I don't just own the hotel, Haoran," I leaned down, whispering so only they could hear. "I own your future. And I’m just getting started on the bill."

The security guards, seeing the manager's stance, moved in like wolves. They grabbed Haoran by his expensive collar and dragged him toward the exit. Xinyi followed, screaming, her heels dragging against the carpet.

But as they reached the door, the lights in the ballroom flickered and turned a deep, blood-red.

[System: Warning! A high-level bypass has occurred. The 'God-Body' signature has been detected by a 'World-Class' Predator.]

 A cold wind swept through the windowless ballroom. At the entrance, a woman in a crimson dress stood, her presence making even the System's golden screen flicker with static. She looked at me, then at the trembling Xinyi. "So," she said, her voice like grinding tectonic plates. "This is where the stolen blood ended up. And who is this little thief holding my family's coins?"]