Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
It was almost the beginning of spring, hence the sunlight was finally warm today. The snow had melted and Huixun City was extremely lively.
Inside the auction house, Wang Haobin seemed to have sensed Ou Yangming looking at him. He looked up with a threatening look in his eyes, and he stirred up his spiritual Qi to release his majestic momentum like a lurking dragon emerging from the sea.
Ou Yangming was not afraid at all. He scoffed coldly with a sharp look in his eyes, which looked like weapons that were covered in blood. The young fellow triggered his Qi momentum, which carried his spiritual power and mental power, and faced Wang Haobin’s threat.
An invisible wind was stirred up in the air when their eyes met. They looked away after 2 breaths as though everything went back to normal, but they were still confronting each other secretly.
“What’s wrong?” Wang Weinian turned around and asked softly.
“Nothing!” Wang Haobin smiled. He looked calm but was shocked as he wondered, ‘Has he been hiding his cultivation base? If not, how could he have withstood being crushed by my momentum?’
He became more curious about the young fellow, but Wang Fu had not found out anything yet.
Wang Haobin looked deeply at Ou Yangming before he made his way to the private room on the third floor. Before long, all of the notable figures from Huixun City had arrived, and there was a lively atmosphere in the air.
Xu Heran from the Beyond Heaven Pavilion came as well, and he was served by Su Tianqian himself.
Soon enough, a green-clothed man walked out with a smile and cupped his hands.
“I’m Song Qing, and I’ve frequented the Auction Meet, so I believe that many of you know who I am. I’ll be hosting the Auction Meet this time. There aren’t many rules—the highest bidder wins.”
His speech was concise and served its purpose. When he waved his hand, a young lady walked out from the long corridor with a tray. The lady had an elegant and refined look, and she was also an Extreme Grade cultivator. A seemingly ordinary dark red root could be seen on the tray, where red mists could vaguely be seen lingering around it. At the end of the root, a drop of red liquid dripped and released a fragrant smell.
The eyes of the several 10,000 people in the main hall lit up one after another—some even looked surprised yet overjoyed. On the other hand, the private rooms were quiet. Even so, the atmosphere had been livened up completely!”
“This first time to be auctioned is a Water Spiritual Root. It can strengthen one’s foundation and has a wonderful effect on cultivators that are below Advanced Spiritualists. The starting bid is 6,000 spirit ores, and each bid increment must be at least 1,00 spirit ores.”
Song Qing’s voice contained his spiritual power as he spoke, and his voice spread in all directions.
“6,100 spirit ores…” Someone shouted as soon as he finished.
“6,500 spirit ores!” Before the first person’s voice was gone, another voice was heard.
At last, the Water Spiritual Root was sold to an elder for 7,200 spirit ores.
Ou Yangming’s face darkened, and he estimated his head before he thought, ‘Looks like it won’t be easy to fight for the Heavenly Fire Ore. It’s clear that the big aristocratic families are all here for the ore.’
Just as he was pondering with a dark face, soft knocks were heard on the door.
“Come in!” Ou Yangming uttered calmly.
Xue Xiaoqing wore a light-colored dress, which made her look beautiful and gratifying. She curled her lips and chuckled. “Young Master Yu, Shopkeeper Su asked me to tell you that you can bid for any item that you fancy. If you don’t have spirit ores with you, the auction house can pay 70% of the amount for you first. Besides that, you can also ask me to help you with other things.”
Ou Yangming grinned. “Brother Su’s really thoughtful. Please help me to… Thank Shopkeeper Su.”
Xue Xiaoqin’s dress fluttered as she smiled and responded, “Young Master Yu, you’re being too polite.”
Ou Yangming rolled his eyes and thought for a brief moment. He then tapped his interspatial bag with his right hand and asked, “Miss Xue, does the Su family’s Chamber of Commerce allow people to exchange spiritual herbs and pieces of equipment for spirit ores?”
Xue Xiaoqin was slightly stunned, and she had a more gentle look in her eye.
Ever since she met Ou Yangming, she thought that he was quite special and different from other people, but she could not point out the difference. When the lady heard him address her as Miss Xue, she finally knew what was different. It was a sense of identity, and it carried an unordinary meaning for her.
Xue Xiaoqin bowed and smiled with her eyes. “Of course. They only need to be appraised, but it won’t be a problem at all.”
Ou Yangming nodded and pondered for a long time before he looked down at the platform.
Xue Xuanle twisted her body and shifted closer toward Ou Yangming. She touched the red jade on her chest across her clothes, and her eyes curved more beautifully than crescents as she asked softly, “Big Brother Yu, do you not have enough spirit ores? I have some with me so why don’t I lend you first? I don’t have a lot though, so I hope you don’t mind.”
“Thank you, Miss Xue, but I don’t need them for now.” Ou Yangming developed a more favorable impression of her. He could tell that she was being sincere and was not faking it.
He thought, “I’ll help the Xue family as much as I can this time. Even if it’s for her sake, it’ll be worth my effort.’
Everyone had a balance in one’s heart. Whether a person was good or bad, one would know if one weighed the person in one’s heart. Ou Yangming was not an unfeeling person, thus he would not be unmoved.
“Oh,” Xue Xuanle replied to him softly, then she focused on the platform again.
Throughout the auction, Ou Yangming feasted his eyes as he saw various unusual items. There were amulets, queer treasures, techniques, sword skills, and so on…
Everything was successfully sold; none of the items were passed. Regardless of the number of spirit ores, someone would always make a bid, so the atmosphere became livelier as the auction went on.
Nonetheless, Ou Yangming never once bid. Not only he, but the aristocratic families from the city were also doing the same as they were waiting for the last item.
A private room on the third floor in the auction house was exquisitely decorated.
The word “Wang” could be seen on the door. It was embroidered using Heavenly Silk, which could not be damaged by water and fire, on a brocade cloth. The cloth fluttered without the presence of wind and carried a strong killing intent as if one would enter a world of bloody corpses by taking a look at it. It would be fine if that was all, but a small formation was even set up in the private room to prevent anyone from probing the room with mental power.
A charcoal fire was burning inside the room while purple smoke rose from a small pill furnace next to it.
Wang Weinian was fiddling with a white jade pearl in his hand. It carried a light that made it look like colored glass.
He kept quiet for a long time before he lamented, “It won’t be easy to fight for the Heavenly Fire Ore this time. I have no idea how many spirit ores will be needed for us to win the bid, and I’m afraid that it’ll cost us a lot this time.”
Wang Haobin inhaled some purple smoke and asked in confusion, “Is the Li family determined as well?”
“Yes. It’s a Heavenly Fire Ore, after all. It’s something that can be discovered but not sought, and it’s something that’ll move even a Venerable One. Besides, during the recent years, the Li family somehow received news that our Venerable One’s near the end of his life and has a declining vitality, so they’re eager to make a move. Given the situation, why would they let us have this Five Elemental Ore?”
Wang Weinian sounded worried. He thought the matter over again before he added, “The relationship between our older generation has been going on for centuries and has long been worn off.”
Although Wang Haobin was arrogant, he was incredibly smart. Countless thoughts crossed his mind, then he asked probingly, “Have we been befriending the Chen family these few years so that we can borrow their force?”
Wang Weinian cast a gentle look at his son and was deeply moved. He nodded and replied to him, “Yes, we can help ourselves by borrowing force from others.” He looked into the distance and spoke slower, “We know our affairs. If Great Ancestor leaves, given that our clan doesn’t have another Venerable One, the situation in Huixun City will be complicated. Since we gained fame and wealth, we can only continue to grow them without limits.”
Nobody knew what Wang Haobin was thinking, but he nodded at the elder.
The room fell silent for some time. Wang Weinian took a sip of his tea and asked in a deep voice, “Did you send Wang Fu to look into Yu Tianrui?”
Wang Haobin nodded coldly.
The patriarch was not moved. He chuckled and asked, “Why? You have a knot in your heart after you lost?”
Wang Haobin leaned against his chair and shook his head. “It’s not that I have a knot in my heart, but I just want to know if it was worth it. No matter what, it’s a magnificent feat for a person to crush all of the aristocratic families in Huixun City.”
“It’s amazing indeed!” Wang Weinian kept quiet for a brief moment then noted seriously, “It’ll be good to do a thorough checking but remember—don’t do anything to him before we find out about his background.”
He knew Wang Haobin had always been proud and unwilling to admit defeat, hence the young man would naturally not be resigned to the outcome now that someone else finished first in the Hunting Meet. Despite that, there were too many forces in the Spiritual World that the Wang family dared not offend. Besides, their great ancestor was not in great condition at the moment. Since the Wang family was going to keep a low profile, they must not learn from Li Tianyu, or they would be in trouble.
Song Qing walked out again to the platform and announced, “Alright, the next time will be the last item for this Auction Meet. It’s a Heavenly Fire Ore. I believe that everyone knows a Heavenly Fire Ore is one of the Five Elemental Ores, and it can be discovered but not sought. I hope that you won’t miss this opportunity.”
His voice contained his spiritual power, and it spread such that the several 10,000 people in the main hall immediately clamored. They knew the Heavenly Fire Ore could only be bid by the aristocratic families on the different floors in the pavilion. Having said that, they were busybodies, thus they wanted to see which clan would bag it in the end.
As Song Qing clapped his hands, a red-clothed lady walked out with a tray. A brocade cloth could be seen on the tray, and it was clear to everyone that the Heavenly Fire Ore was beneath it. They stared with bright eyes at the tray while breathing rapidly.
The lady was graceful, unhurried, and had a noble temperament. Her aura was so notable that she vaguely suppressed the auras of the people behind her red dress. She was none other than Xue Xiaoqin, who had changed into a different outfit. The young lady was calm and elegant at this moment.
Ou Yangming’s eyes gleamed, and he chuckled in the room. “Not simple!”
“Who’s not simple?” Xue Xuanle asked curiously.
“Su Tianqian and Xue Xiaoqin are not simple,” Ou Yangming answered. Given that the shopkeeper gained such an outstanding reputation in Huixun City as a rogue cultivator, could he be a simple figure? Of course not. In this chaotic world, simple people would have been devoured long ago.
