章 40: Thousand Gold Leaves Auction House
“Heh,” the Fourth Demon Prince chuckled a little as he pondered something.
A grin surfaced on his face, making him look even more sinister and cruel. “For now, keep an eye out. Make sure you catch every bit of information about my brother’s companion and report it to me as soon as possible!”
His words were quickly received by the Silent Crows organization, and they started their new mission without the slightest delay. To them, it was like an order from the heavens and failure would mean extermination!
Unknowing of what his brothers were scheming, Jiang Yao observed Luo Xiao as the youth absorbed the essence of the heavens and earth into his body and then refined it into spiritual energy for his soul lake.
In such a manner, three more hours passed until Luo Xiao couldn’t absorb any more. His body felt as if it had been completely saturated with energy, and he felt that his lake of golden energy in his Soul Palace was full.
It would need to be gradually assimilated. Luo Xiao had the feeling that if he were hasty and took in too much, he would experience a backlash from the energy.
When he opened his eyes, he was instantly met with Jiang Yao’s focused gaze.
“Ah!” Luo Xiao gasped. He almost jumped in fright, his eyes wide. Naturally, that expression of his was as if he were the perfect little dessert for Jiang Yao, who laughed. “So, how does it feel to be a Low Sky Ranked cultivator?” Jiang Yao asked.
Luo Xiao blinked a few times, shaking away the surprise Jiang Yao had brought a few breaths earlier before closing his eyes. With that, he spread his sense into his body and observed the changes in himself before opening his eyes once more to look at the other man.
“I feel as if I’m bloated... It’s like if I absorb one more drop of energy, my mind will explode! Also, my golden orb has melted into a sea in my mind, it’s so odd,” Luo Xiao said, “Is that normal?”
Jiang Yao nodded, satisfied with his progress, though a rather unexpected trace of worry appeared in his eyes. The feeling of being completely full of energy was one he knew very well; after all, his own breakthroughs in his earlier years were filled with them!
“It’s normal for the orb to turn into a sea, Xiaoxiao. That way, it can accommodate far more energy than before,” Jiang Yao said, “Your sense should be able to cover a much larger radius now too, and you will even have the energy to cast a few abilities in succession without a problem.”
At the mention of abilities, Luo Xiao opened his eyes, which sparkled with interest “Abilities?” he asked.
Jiang Yao laughed at the excitement in the other’s eyes. “I knew you’d be intrigued by that. I'm going to find you a few once we get home,” he said, “The quality of spells here is pathetic.” He took Luo Xiao’s hand and pulled him up to stand next to him.
“What are we going to do for the rest of the day then?” Luo Xiao asked as he looked around the room, unsure what Jiang Yao’s plans were. After all, the man controlled practically his entire life.
“Want to go to an auction?” Jiang Yao asked with a playful smirk on his lips as he looked into Luo Xiao’s eyes.
Luo Xiao’s face lit up with excitement. It was so easy for one to tell what he felt, and Jiang Yao couldn’t help but sigh a little at his innocence. It really was refreshing.
Luo Xiao had never been to an auction. The word itself had only been mentioned a few times by passing merchants in his small village, and so he knew only the basic idea: rare objects being sold off in front of a lot of people to the highest bidder.
At the same time, that vagueness only made him more excited, but then he remembered that to participate in an auction he had to be rich. That thought immediately made his mood turn sour. “I can’t afford anything…” he said dejectedly.
Jiang Yao almost laughed at that statement - he was the Seventh Demon Prince! What was there in this world he couldn’t purchase, even with his influence alone?
“Don’t worry about money, Xiaoxiao. I’ll get you anything... As long as I get my payment,” he said with a chuckle, “Deal?”
At the mention of the ‘payment’ the white-robed youth’s face instantly blushed a deep red. Payment! This was extortion! But then he thought about getting to go to an auction, and his expression became thoughtful.
On one side, he was getting to go to his first auction and maybe he’d even get something precious, not to mention that it was just a kiss that Jiang Yao wanted. He really wasn’t asking that much of him.
After a short moment of thought, he nodded.
As soon as confirmation from the other came, Jiang Yao’s playful smirk widened. He’d naturally seen through all of Luo Xiao’s inner emotions, and he knew the other would agree.
A few minutes later, the pair was outside the hotel and walking towards the center of Heavenward City, where the auction house was located.
To be more specific, Heavenward City was so large that there were a few auction houses. There were several smaller ones and a large one in the center named Thousand Gold Leaves Auction House. The smaller houses were mainly for selling relatively uncommon materials and holding small-scale auctions, whereas the central auction house was where there were weekly auctions of rare and uncommon materials sold to the highest bidder.
And, today was the day when the big weekly auction was being held at the Thousand Gold Leaves Auction House!
A large number of people walked towards the Thousand Gold Leaves Auction House’s massive building, making it seem as if the house was about to be flooded with attendees.
As Jiang Yao and Luo Xiao made their way towards the big building, the river of people seemed to split just for them thanks to Jiang Yao’s aura. He was so strong that these people couldn’t help but subconsciously want to move away from him, even if he was merely walking beside them.
As the two of them slowly approached the Thousand Gold Leaves Auction House, more of the intricate building came into view.
To Luo Xiao, it was an absolutely enormous building! At least a hundred feet tall, it was like a grand palace with its thousands of decorations and intricate patterns covering the outer walls. An enormous sign was written in gold and purple ink across the center of the building. It stated in bold letters: Thousand Gold Leaves Auction House.
The sight was completely breathtaking to the young soul cultivator. His eyes widened as he tried to comprehend the luxury he was seeing. However, to Jiang Yao this kind of lavishness was nothing.
He tightened his grip on Luo Xiao’s hand a bit and leaned over to whisper in his ear. “Don’t be awed by this… There are far grander things than this at home,” he said.
His whisper shook Luo Xiao out of his shock but only made him glare at Jiang Yao. “That doesn’t really help!” He said. He almost sounded like a complaining child, but the other’s words did help stifle his sense of awe. When Luo Xiao once more looked at the Thousand Gold Leaves Auction House, he no longer felt too overwhelmed.
“Come on, let’s go in,” Jiang Yao said with a chuckle as he led the way through the crowd toward the entrance of the auction house, with Luo Xiao following right next to him.
As soon as they entered the doorway, a beautiful girl approached the two of them. “Greetings, Masters,” she said with an enchanting smile which when coupled with her ethereal looks made her appear like an immortal.
Jiang Yao’s gaze was rather cold as he glanced at her before he took out the wooden seal from within his robes. “I want a separate booth,” he said as he flashed the insignia for a split second, barely enough for the beautiful women to recognize the symbol before it disappeared from sight.
The girl almost gasped. Her eyes turned wide as she looked closely at Jiang Yao. She’d looked at the two of them at first with her charm mainly because Jiang Yao was such a beautiful, otherworldly person. But now there was also reverence mixed in with her gaze - he wasn’t just handsome, he also had such a great status!
“Your Highness, please excuse me while I consult my seniors!” the girl said with a bow towards Jiang Yao before she rushed inside the auction house.
There were already gazes focused on the pair. They contained envy, greed, surprise, and many more emotions mixed in their eyes, all of which made Luo Xiao inch closer towards Jiang Yao in an attempt to hide.
He always felt uncomfortable under so many gazes, and it felt like those eyes were trying to threaten the two of them. After all, it wasn’t just the pair going to today’s auction, there were many other people, and most of them had no idea Jiang Yao was the Seventh Demon Prince!
A few short minutes passed before the enchanting girl was back with a deep violet jade token in her hands. “Masters, an assistant is waiting inside to lead you to your room,” she said as she bowed and handed the token over to Jiang Yao.
With his sharp eyes, Jiang Yao clearly noticed her slightly blushing face, but he chose to ignore it as he took the token. “Xiaoxiao, let’s go,” he said. His hold on Luo Xiao’s hand tightened a little as he led the way inside.
Behind them, the pretty girl looked at the pair whose figures disappeared inside the Thousand Gold Leaves Auction House. She sighed, and the blush on her face intensified a little, though she knew that it would be impossible for her to ever enter Jiang Yao’s eyes.
With a small smile on her face, she turned back and continued greeting the people entering the auction house.
Inside the auction house, the decorations were nothing short of breathtaking. Every detail was luxurious to the extreme, and even though Luo Xiao kept Jiang Yao’s earlier words in mind, he couldn’t help but look around with wide eyes.
“Greetings, Your Highness,” said a new feminine voice from one side.
“My name is Mu Bing’er, and I’ve been assigned to take care of your every need during this auction. Please follow me to your room,” she said. She was a beautiful woman with her voluptuous body barely covered by a light pink and gold outfit. Her phoenix eyes radiated calmness, and her long hair hung loose. To a normal cultivator, she would’ve been like a piece of meat hanging in front of them ready to be taken.
Unfortunately, Jiang Yao and Luo Xiao weren’t ordinary cultivators. After nodding briefly while Luo Xiao looked curiously at Mu Bing’er, Jiang Yao followed her as she led the way towards their room.
Luo Xiao had been silent this entire time, only looking in awe at their surroundings as the three of them walked through a few corridors and long staircases, all decorated with care and expensive materials.
It seemed like a lot of time passed while they navigated the corridors, but it really was just a few minutes before they arrived at a door.
“Here is the booth you requested, Your Highness. I will bring you tea and snacks,” with these words, Mu Bing’er opened the door to the room before bowing and walking away to get the promised tea.
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