Wen Qingye walked for the time it takes half an incense stick to burn before finally arriving at the Ninth Trading House’s auction hall. Before him was a veritable sea of people. A cacophony of clamor and curses rose and fell. Everyone present was a renowned prodigy from some faction or another, each one prouder than the last and looking down on everyone else.
However, they were all standing at the entrance, forming a long line. Not a single person dared to cut.
Wen Qingye gazed ahead. The auction hall before him was immense. From where he stood, he could only see the tip of the iceberg.
At this moment, Wen Qingye could clearly sense several extremely powerful auras surrounding the auction hall.
’So that’s how it is.’ Wen Qingye chuckled to himself.
’These experts must be from the Ninth Trading House. An event of this magnitude, especially one attended primarily by the younger generation, could cause a huge shock to the entire Royal City of the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty if a commotion were to break out.’
’That’s why the Ninth Trading House has hidden so many experts around the auction hall—to prevent any mishaps.’
Just then, Wen Qingye’s eyes landed on another passageway to the side. This path also led into the Ninth Trading House’s auction hall, but the scene there was completely different from where he was. Not only were there very few people, but the ground was also covered by a red carpet.
The passageway had very few people, just a handful, creating an empty stretch. It was clearly not a path for ordinary people.
At that moment, several figures began walking down the carpeted path. When they appeared, most of the crowd paused and looked over, because their robes were not ordinary—they were the attire of the Taiyi Pavilion.
Wen Qingye’s gaze hardened as he watched a man and a woman at the center of the Taiyi Pavilion group. The woman was devastatingly beautiful, with looks that could topple nations. The man was also dashing and handsome, with a blue satin ribbon tied at his waist.
’The man next to Guu Hongxiu must be Hai Ning, Huangfu Tian’s senior brother from the Taiyi Pavilion,’ Wen Qingye thought, observing them. ’His strength is impressive. He’s actually reached the Sixth Heaven of Life and Death Realm.’
"Look, I think those are the people from the Taiyi Pavilion."
"That’s them, the disciples from the number one Sect in our Eastern Profound Domain. That man is no simple character. He’s the Taiyi Pavilion’s Sea Venerable. After the Little Demon Venerable, he’s the most powerful."
"So that’s Hai Ning. I heard that after he kills someone, he likes to drain their body of all its blood. I can’t believe it’s really him."
"Is that Guu Hongxiu, one of the three great beauties of our Eastern Profound Domain? She’s truly a peerless beauty, utterly enchanting. I heard she’s engaged to the Little Demon Venerable."
"How could that be? Hai Ning seems to have his heart set on Guu Hongxiu. Besides, Huangfu Tian and Hai Ning are as close as brothers. I heard the one engaged to the Little Demon Venerable is someone else..."
...
As Wen Qingye listened to the crowd’s chatter, his heart sank. He looked at Guu Hongxiu and Hai Ning, committing Hai Ning’s face to memory. A flicker of killing intent flashed in his eyes before vanishing.
Did Wen Qingye have any personal grudge against Hai Ning? No. But the moment Hai Ning was identified as a member of the Taiyi Pavilion, he became an enemy.
He was never one to kill the innocent, but he was also not one to show mercy.
As if sensing Wen Qingye’s murderous gaze, Hai Ning, who was just about to enter the auction hall, paused. He turned his head slightly, his eyes chillingly cold and devoid of light, and glanced in Wen Qingye’s direction.
But as his gaze swept across the area, all he saw was the noisy, milling crowd. He found nothing. Frowning slightly, he hesitated for a moment before following Guu Hongxiu into the auction hall.
"’Interesting,’" Wen Qingye chuckled, now standing at the front of the long queue. He watched Hai Ning’s back disappear from view.
He had, of course, sensed Hai Ning’s cold, sinister gaze, which was why he had vanished from his original spot in an instant.
"Quick, look! The people from the Sword Sect are here too! I think that’s their Inspection Disciple, Lü Xiongjie."
"It’s not just the Sword Sect. People from the Thousand Nether Valley are here as well."
"As expected of the Super Sects. Even the Ninth Trading House has to give them face, opening a special VIP entrance just for them."
Another wave of exclamations rippled through the crowd.
Following that, Lü Xiongjie of the Sword Sect and Gul Lian of the Thousand Nether Valley both proceeded down the passageway and into the auction hall.
It was only then that Wen Qingye realized the passageway was for VIPs. The top right corner of his own invitation was inscribed with the word "VIP."
Wen Qingye smiled and shook his head, muttering to himself, ’Oh well. It doesn’t matter which way I go in.’
Just then, Wen Qingye spotted a young man with a personal guard walking down the VIP passageway and heading inside.
The young man wore a red robe. His features were refined, and his eyes were bright and full of life. His guards, however, stood by with cold expressions, an unnaturally sinister and terrifying aura emanating from them.
’An expert from the Qinghuo Clan,’ Wen Qingye’s thoughts stirred as he watched the youth. ’Is the Qinghuo Clan about to make its move?’
The Qinghuo Clan was part of the Spirit Race. At the same cultivation realm, Human Race experts were no match for those of the Spirit Race, save for a few with extraordinary talent. If the Spirit Race decided to get involved in the affairs of the Eastern Profound Domain, the entire region would be thrown into even greater chaos.
’Things are certainly getting interesting,’ Wen Qingye thought, shaking his head with a wry smile.
Before long, members of numerous Sects and factions had entered the Ninth Trading House’s auction hall. Of course, there were also many unaffiliated individuals. However, every one of them was a famous expert on the Eastern Profound Domain’s Immortal Ascension List and could not be underestimated.
Wen Qingye followed the crowd and slowly walked into the auction hall.
Upon entering the venue, he saw that it was densely packed with seats. At the very front stood a purple-gold auction stage, with rows of seats descending in tiers toward it. A quick count revealed over three thousand seats.
Of course, this was just the first floor. The second floor featured individual VIP chairs upholstered with Demon Beast pelts and inlaid with brilliant, iridescent gems, looking truly exceptional.
Many people were already seated up there. As Wen Qingye’s gaze swept across the second floor, he was surprised to spot a few familiar faces: the siblings Su Ding and Su Qingyun from the Great Daoist Mansion, Jun Buwu from the Desert North Ancient Land, Youu Junlian from the Jade Maiden Sect, and others.
There were also others whom Wen Qingye didn’t recognize personally but could identify by their attire, such as those from the Yin Yang Sect, the Mountain River Sect, and the One Sword Tower.