Chapter 335: The Fourth Young Master |
"Xiao Yun, escort this esteemed guest to VIP Room No. 1."
The elder called out to someone outside the door. Shortly after, a beautiful maid entered the room.
"Please, sir." The maid made a polite gesture to Long Xuan.
Long Xuan nodded slightly and followed the maid out. Before leaving, the maid thoughtfully closed the door behind her.
The sound of the door closing echoed, and the elder's smile vanished, replaced by an expression of utmost seriousness.
"Someone in this world has actually managed to refine a spirit pill capable of summoning a thunder tribulation?"
"I can’t imagine who could achieve such a feat. Summoning a thunder tribulation is remarkable enough, but to protect the pill from it? Even a peak Gu King would struggle to do that."
The elder’s face grew increasingly grave as he pondered aloud.
As his voice fell, the silhouette of a young man gradually materialized behind him, who then spoke:
"This individual is truly terrifying. It’s no wonder they could withstand a heavenly tribulation. We must avoid provoking them at all costs."
The young man’s sudden appearance caused the elder to stand up immediately, bowing respectfully as he said, "Fourth Young Master, why have you come in person?"
"This Land of Sin is too chaotic, full of evildoers. Many bold enough to ambush practitioners from the Qian Clan’s Chamber of Commerce roam these parts. You shouldn’t risk coming to such a dangerous place."
"It’s enough to leave these matters to an old man like me."
The elder’s eyes betrayed his nervousness as he looked at the youth. If something were to happen to the Fourth Young Master here, the consequences for him would be dire.
"No need to worry," the Fourth Young Master replied confidently, waving his hand. "No one can see through my Stealth Gu—not even a peak Gu King. The man earlier was just an exception. After all, this world doesn’t have that many exceptions."
"The Qian Clan’s Chamber of Commerce is auctioning off treasures like the Moon Tree here. How could I not personally come and take a look?"
"The profits from this event are credited to me, after all."
"Tell me, how many spirit stones do you think the Moon Tree and that heaven-defying pill can fetch at auction?" the Fourth Young Master asked, his eyes gleaming with interest.
The elder considered for a moment before replying, "Priceless treasures have no set value. The final price will entirely depend on how much spiritual wealth the buyers possess."
"If two great empires compete, given the resources of their treasuries, these two priceless treasures could easily fetch tens of billions."
"That piece of Living Wood, for instance, fetched a staggering 40 billion because an empire was involved in the bidding."
"But if no nation-level forces participate in the auction, the price will plummet."
"How much money can a local power have? 10 billion at most."
"The heaven-defying pill may fetch slightly more than the Moon Tree, but it will still be limited by the financial resources of the buyers."
Hearing this, the Fourth Young Master smiled bitterly and sighed. "That’s a shame."
"The Moon Tree was originally discovered by the three great empires of the Central Lands, and they almost went to war over it."
"To prevent needless bloodshed, the three empires decided to divide 90% of the Moon Tree’s leaves among themselves and sell the trunk for spirit stones to split among them."
"Since the Land of Sin is beyond the jurisdiction of the three great empires, they felt it was safe to auction off the remaining Moon Tree here."
"But now it’s just a dead tree with only a few leaves of any remaining value."
"The three empires have already claimed the valuable leaves, so they won’t bother sending representatives to this auction."
"Even if an imperial family member attends, they likely won’t have prepared enough spirit stones for bidding."
"As far as I know, none of the wealthiest merchant associations have sent representatives to this auction."
"Without any affluent factions, these two priceless treasures won’t achieve their true value. What a pity."
Suddenly, the Fourth Young Master’s lips curled into a sly smile, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "But in this case, it’s even better. Without wealthy competitors, won’t the treasures be ours for the taking?"
"Which faction here could possibly rival the financial power of the Qian Clan’s Chamber of Commerce?"
"The heaven-defying pill is already as good as mine."
The Fourth Young Master’s gaze fixed on the pill bottle on the table, his eyes filled with greed.
"To think a heaven-defying pill can raise one’s aptitude by two grades. How could I not be tempted? I’m already at a heavenly-grade aptitude. If I consume this pill, won’t I become the world’s greatest genius?"
He clenched his fists, his ambition burning brightly in his eyes.
The elder was stunned. The Fourth Young Master intended to compete for the heaven-defying pill at the auction.
While it wasn’t strictly against the rules for someone associated with the auction to bid, it was still frowned upon. But as long as he wasn’t recognized, it could be done. The Qian Clan’s Chamber of Commerce had engaged in such practices before.
However, the elder couldn’t shake the feeling that this wasn’t a good idea. If things went awry, disaster could strike.
After all, this was the Land of Sin—a place teeming with evildoers.
Once someone acquired the heaven-defying pill, they wouldn’t possibly face robbery; they would certainly face it.
The attacks wouldn’t stop at just one. Waves of greedy marauders would descend upon them.
Even the four infamous evildoers of the Land of Sin might make a move.
These four individuals are peak-grade Gu Kings, notorious for countless evil deeds throughout their lives. Among all peak-grade Gu Kings, their combat power stands at the very top.
Even if just one of them acts, the guards of the Qian Clan Chamber of Commerce cannot possibly withstand them.
As powerful as the Heaven-defying Pill is, it’s extremely perilous to possess—those who obtain it are highly likely to lose their lives.
“Fourth Young Master, please reconsider! At least two of the Four Evildoers from the Land of Sin are already in the City of Sin.”
“They initially came to bid on the Moon Tree, but with the Heaven-defying Pill now available, their attention will undoubtedly shift to it.”
“Whoever takes the Heaven-defying Pill will definitely become the target of their relentless pursuit.”
“With the current strength of the Qian Clan Chamber of Commerce in the City of Sin, we simply cannot protect you!”
The elder’s expression darkened as he hurriedly tried to dissuade him.
“No worries!”
The Fourth Young Master’s fiery gaze remained fixed on the Heaven-defying Pill as he confidently declared, “I’ve said it before: no one can see through my Invisibility Gu.”
“What just happened was an accident—such an accident will never happen again. Not even a peak-grade Gu King can find me when I’m invisible.”
The Fourth Young Master’s eyes brimmed with self-assurance as he continued with a smile: “When the time comes, I’ll have a group of death warriors escort a fake Heaven-defying Pill away. If they’re intercepted, the death warriors will destroy the fake pill.”
“Meanwhile, in my invisible state, I’ll quietly take the real Heaven-defying Pill without anyone noticing.”
“This plan is absolutely flawless—no one will uncover it.”
However, the elder’s expression remained heavy with concern. Could the Fourth Young Master’s Invisibility Gu truly deceive everyone? The elder sighed inwardly.
He had realized that greed had taken root in the Fourth Young Master’s heart.
The Fourth Young Master was now dead set on acquiring the Heaven-defying Pill—there was no persuading him otherwise.
All the elder could do at this point was pray that the Invisibility Gu would truly work and that no mishaps would occur…
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At this moment, Long Xuan, led by a maidservant, entered VIP Room No. 1.
He had previously been to a Qian Clan Auction House’s VIP room in the Western Lands.
All Qian Clan Chamber of Commerce auction houses were designed with ten or more VIP rooms above the auction stage, reserved for individuals of high status or those who could offer rare treasures.
After all, a dignified peak-grade Gu King could not possibly sit among weaker individuals below.
As Long Xuan stepped into this VIP room, everything felt strikingly familiar to him.
The layout was identical to the VIP room he had previously visited, only with more luxurious decorations. The tea and snacks on the table were also of a higher grade.
He vaguely recalled sitting in a similar spot, with Long Ziyan perched on his lap.
A smile crept across Long Xuan’s lips.
Suddenly, he noticed the maidservant still standing there, staring blankly at him. Long Xuan composed himself and said, “What are you still doing here? Leave. I don’t need anyone waiting on me.”
After sending the maidservant away, Long Xuan sat back in his chair, lightly tapping the table with his fingers.
He pondered over the invisible person he encountered earlier in the appraisal room. Who was it, wandering around so boldly, thinking he wouldn’t notice?
While his current clone indeed couldn’t see the invisible person, his distant true body could perceive them through the Eye of Heavenly Secret.
Moreover, a strand of his true soul resided within this clone, enabling seamless information sharing between them.
The invisible person might have escaped his immediate sight, but they could never evade the gaze of his true body.
Who could this invisible person be? They didn’t seem like a thief—thieves would target the treasure vault, not the appraisal room.
Most likely, they were someone from the Qian Clan Chamber of Commerce itself, perhaps a mischievous young master or young lady of lesser cultivation.
Long Xuan chuckled and dismissed the thought, deciding to wait patiently for the auction to begin.
Time passed slowly. Just as Long Xuan was on the verge of dozing off, a commotion erupted below.
He immediately straightened up, fully alert.
“Is the auction finally starting?” Long Xuan murmured to himself.
Outside the auction house, chaos ensued.
A seductive woman walked forward, and all the Gu cultivators in her path turned pale with fear, hastily making way for her.
Many, caught off guard, were shoved to the ground and cursed loudly. However, upon seeing who it was, their expressions quickly changed, and they retreated even further.
“It’s actually the Jade-Faced Rakshasa, one of the Four Evildoers. She’s here for the auction as well.”
“She practices a sinister technique with severe side effects—she must drink human blood daily to survive, which forces her to kill someone every day. Her habit of feeding on human blood earned her the nickname Rakshasa.”
“She’s picky and fastidious, only choosing handsome men and beautiful women as her ‘blood bags.’ The number of beauties and handsome men who’ve perished at her hands is staggering.”
“Stay far away from her. Her combat power is nearly unrivaled, and being targeted by her is a certain death sentence.”
Hearing this, all the handsome men and beautiful women in the crowd turned pale with fear and hastily covered their faces.
Of course, most of them lacked self-awareness—despite having unremarkable looks, they covered their faces in terror, afraid of being targeted.
“So she’s the Jade-Faced Rakshasa, one of the Four Evildoers. I’ve heard of her infamy even in the Northern Lands.”
“Her only way to rid herself of the daily blood-drinking side effect is to change her cultivation technique, right? Has she never considered doing so?”
“That’s easier said than done. Switching techniques isn’t something one can just do on a whim. She gained her current combat prowess by practicing the ‘Blood-Drinking Demonic Technique.’”
“She won’t settle for techniques weaker than the Blood-Drinking Demonic Technique, and finding a stronger one isn’t easy.”
“She’s been trying to switch techniques, though. I heard she recently teamed up with another Evildoer, the Burial Demon Old Ghost, to search for a technique in the Thunder Swamp that could trigger a phenomenon. Who knows if they succeeded?”
“She killed a young beauty from the Flaming Court Empire just yesterday. What do you think—did she find the technique?”
Listening to the discussions below, Long Xuan grew cautious and silently committed this character’s name to memory.