Chapter 1849 - The Entire City Knows
Inside Clear Sky Auction House, the lobby was spacious and bright, with people coming and going, making for a lively scene.
As soon as Yang Kai and Hua You Meng entered, a young woman came up to greet them with a smile and respectfully said, “Greetings Honoured Guests, how may I serve you today? Are you here to enter an item into Clear Sky Auction House’s upcoming auction? Or do you have other important business to discuss?”
Yang Kai glanced at this young woman and was easily able to sense her cultivation with his powerful Divine Sense.
This young woman was a First-Order Saint King, and although her strength was not high, it also was not low. Her being placed in the lobby as a receptionist was a testament to Clear Sky Auction House’s strength.
What’s more, there were at least eighty others just like her inside the lobby.
“We’re here to enter something into the auction,” Hua You Meng calmed herself and smiled lightly. “How should we proceed?”
“So Honoured Guests are here to auction an item,” The young woman smiled sweetly. “Honoured Guests should know that our auction house does not accept items that are worth less than a million Saint Crystals. If honoured guest’s item is worth more than one million but less than five million, this servant can handle it for you. If Honoured Guests’ item is worth more than five million but less than fifty million, this servant will have to summon one of the auction house’s stewards to process it.”
“What if it exceeds fifty million?” Hua You Meng asked in a low voice.
Although Hua You Meng did not know the exact value of these thirty-odd land deeds, she was certain they well exceeded fifty million.
The young receptionist’s face changed slightly, but she soon smiled like a flower and replied, “If that is the case, the auction house’s manager will personally receive it. This way please!”
With just Hua You Meng’s words, this young woman understood that the item these two honoured guests wanted to auction could not be handled by a mere steward, so she did not hesitate to lead them into the auction house’s interior.
At the same time, this receptionist felt joyful in her heart, as she would receive a percentage of the profits from any business that she brought to the auction house. In other words, as long as these two guests successfully negotiate a deal with the auction house, she would receive a rich reward.
From beginning to end, Yang Kai did not speak and simply stood silently behind Hua You Meng like a guard. This made the young woman feel that Hua You Meng’s background was not simple, so she did not dare act negligently.
Once through the bustling lobby, the trio entered a hallway leading further into the complex and soon arrived at a secluded courtyard. Entering this courtyard was like entering a different world, the noise of the outside world completely disappearing and being replaced by the babbling of a small brook that flowed under a small, wooden bridge. There was even some light music that played in the background, adding to the refreshing atmosphere.
Walking along a winding path, the trio eventually came to an oval arch. The young woman then took a communication artifact from her Space Ring and poured her Divine Sense into it.
A short time later, there was a faint flash of light from the arch, which was obviously a sign that a barrier had been opened.
The young woman turned around and said respectfully, “Please enter inside, Honoured Guests. Someone will welcome you on the other side.”
Saying so, she turned and left.
Hua You Meng and Yang Kai exchanged a glance before stepping through the arch and entering another courtyard.
A woman who seemed to be about forty years old walked over at that moment and said elegantly, “Are Two Guests here to auction an item?”
“Indeed,” Hua You Meng nodded and replied.
“En, then please follow me!” The woman turned to lead the way, but as she did, she glanced suspiciously at Yang Kai, as if she had just received a surprise.
Yang Kai also smiled at her meaningfully, causing the woman’s expression to change slightly and her steps to become slightly unsteady.
After walking for a while, the trio came to a stone pavilion from which the fragrant scent overflowed. Inside, there was a woman in a floral dress brewing tea with elegant and refined movements.
“Young Lady, the guests have arrived,” The woman walked closer and called out before standing to the side silently.
“Manager Li?” Hua You Meng asked with some surprise. She had not expected that the person in charge of this huge auction house to be a woman, and a stunning beauty at that. Observing her face and temperament, Hua You Meng could not help feeling slightly inferior.
“Is this guest surprised?” Manager Li looked up at Hua You Meng, pursed her lips, and winked at Hua You Meng playfully, “Why, did Honoured Guest think I should be a man?”
“No no!” Hua You Meng waved her hands quickly, “I only felt slightly surprised as well some… admiration.”
“Oh?” Manager Li took a serious look at Hua You Meng before immediately seeming to understand something, nodding and saying, “It seems that this guest is also the leader of a certain force. It seems we have something in common.”
“It is only a small chamber of commerce, nothing compared to Manager Li’s formidable business,” Hua You Meng said modestly.
“The strength of the force is irrelevant. As a leader who bears the expectations of all her brothers and sisters, as well as their lives, the burden is always… heavy.”
Hua You Meng agreed with this sentiment and nodded firmly.
These two women, as soon as they met, got along well, and once they found a common topic to discuss, they immediately became immersed in conversation.
The middle-aged woman who had escorted Yang Kai and Hua You Meng here eventually could not help lightly coughing, “Young Lady, these two guests are here to auction an item!”
“Hehe,” Manager Li smiled apologetically. “My apologies, meeting someone of similar interests and position has made me forget myself. Honoured guests, please have a seat.”
Hua You Meng hesitated for a moment before taking a seat at a stone table.
Manager Li was about to speak when suddenly she looked down at a jade token on her waist and in the next moment, she raised her head again and looked at Yang Kai solemnly, “Sir, this Mistress had faulty eyes and committed an offence. I also hope Sir won’t take it to heart.”
“Oh?” Yang Kai glanced down at the jade token on Manager Li’s waist with a smile and said with some surprise, “This thing can actually sense my cultivation?”
“I’ve shown Sir something embarrassing,” Manager Li said softly, “This Mistress interacts with many people each day, and there are always some powerful masters who hide their cultivation like Sir. This Mistress is just a small Origin Realm cultivator and is not always able to see through others’ depths, so she had this item specially made to ensure she does not unintentionally offend a great master. This Mistress assures Sir she had no malicious intent.”
Yang Kai nodded gently, “I understand, but why must you act so frightened? Without even mentioning that Clear Sky Auction House is a powerful entity in Purple Star City, with the protection of this Madam here, Manager Li should have nothing to fear, yes?”
While talking, Yang Kai glanced over at the mature woman with a smile.
The mature woman’s face changed slightly as she openly said, “Your Excellency’s strength is truly profound. Not only are you able to conceal your own strength from this Mistress, but you can also see through this Mistress’s depths!”
“Thank you for the compliment,” Yang Kai smiled slightly. When he saw this mature woman earlier, he immediately realized that the other party was a First-Order Origin King, but she had clearly cultivated some kind of concealment technique that hid all signs of her being one from the outside. Only if the one she was facing had far superior cultivation would they be able to discover anything.
Yang Kai was now a Second-Order Origin King, and his Soul was extremely powerful, comparable to a Third-Order’s, so this mature woman could not hide her strength from him.
This auction house had an Origin King protecting it. It was obvious Clear Sky Auction House had a deep background.
With just a sentence or two, the atmosphere became tense.
However, Manager Li simply giggled and said, “Please don’t take these minor matters too seriously, everyone has their own circumstances, after all. En, let’s talk about business.”
With her words, the atmosphere immediately relaxed.
“En, this Mistress’s name is Li Nuo; might I ask what it is two guests had brought to auction this time?” After introducing herself, Li Nuo turned to Hua You Meng and asked.
“I’ve brought this.” As Hua You Meng spoke, she took out the box containing the land deeds and placed it in front of Li Nuo.
Li Nuo took the box curiously and began inspecting it, soon determining that, although the box itself was precious, it was not priceless treasure, so she immediately understood that what mattered was inside.
Upon opening the box, the land deeds appeared before her eyes.
Li Nuo lifted one of them and her beautiful eyes shrank as she exclaimed, “This is…”
The mature woman’s eyes also swept over, and she too was shocked, “Land deeds? Are these Purple Star City land deeds?”
“En, they’re all land deeds for Purple Star City,” Li Nuo checked carefully one by one, her expression growing more solemn by the moment, “There are so many, and they’re all for the same street?”
Hua You Meng smiled slightly, “These land deeds are for the entire Soaring Dragon Street.”
Li Nuo’s tender body trembled. Although she was accustomed to great winds and waves, seeing countless valuable treasures in her time, she still could not help feeling shocked.
Purple Star City land deeds were each incredibly valuable on their own, but these land deeds were actually for the entire Soaring Dragon Street.
Just by encompassing an entire street, these land deeds would likely double in value!
Suddenly, Li Nuo seemed to think of something and turned to look at Hua You Meng in amazement, “Is Elder Sister a member of Five Paths Chamber of Commerce?”
This time it was Hua You Meng who was stunned, “Manager Li has heard of my Five Paths Chamber of Commerce?”
She was incredibly surprised; after all, Five Paths Chamber of Commerce wasn’t some big force in Purple Star City. To be blunt, Five Paths Chamber of Commerce was among the lowest tier of businesses that struggled just to survive. If there were not ten thousand similar businesses in Purple Star City, there were at least eight thousand.
Clear Sky Auction House on the other hand was a powerhouse, so how could its Manager have even heard of Five Paths Chamber of Commerce?
“I hadn’t heard of it before, but over the past two days…” Li Nuo took a deep look at Yang Kai and said, “I heard that someone who doesn’t fear the Heavens appeared in Five Paths Chamber of Commerce and beat the city guard and Deacon Min to a pulp. However, after that rampant act, not only was that man remained safe and sound, Commander Lu Tian Feng even personally visited him to apologize and offer compensation! Once Elder Sister brought out these land deeds, Junior Sister knew they must be some form of compensation from Commander Lu, as only Commander Lu is qualified to move these things.”
“Has the news spread so quickly?” Hua You Meng frowned.
“Rather than the news having spread quickly, I think it would be better to say Manager Li’s methods and network are impressive, yes?” Yang Kai looked at Li Nuo with a smile.
Li Nuo’s pretty face turned red as she smiled shyly, “Sir surely jests; when doing business in Purple Star City, one naturally has to stay well informed. En, not many people know about this incident yet, but my Clear Sky Auction House is among those that do. However, what happened at the city gates yesterday will likely be known to everyone soon, and Five Paths Chamber of Commerce will certainly become quite famous at that time.”
“The entire city will know?” Hua You Meng paled.
Five Paths Chamber of Commerce was just a small force, but it had suddenly become the centre of attention for the entire city. Knowing this would bring more trouble than benefits, Hua You Meng could not help casting an entreating glance towards Yang Kai, to which he just smiled lightly and motioned for her not to worry. Seeing this, Hua You Meng somehow managed to calm down.
