As the words fell, the once lively hall instantly fell silent.
In the hearts of all those who had failed to obtain the item, a sudden thought flashed through.
Indeed, when it came to wealth and treasures, who could compare to the renowned Biling Pavilion?
“Pavilion Lord Qin, could it be that this exchange was your intention all along, to secure this rare elixir for yourself?”
“Yes, Pavilion Lord Qin, please give us an explanation! Throughout history, items put up for auction have never been reserved for oneself!”
At this moment, whether intentional or not, everyone subconsciously believed this point. Of course, there were some dissenting voices:
“How about this—if you want to prove that Biling Pavilion did not secretly steal it, it’s actually simple. Please, Pavilion Lord Qin, reveal the name of the lucky recipient, and we won’t doubt anymore.”
“Exactly, just say the person’s name, and we will stop making baseless accusations!”
“We won’t cause any trouble!”
They feared that once the name was revealed, that person would immediately be put on their “death list”!
Pavilion Lord Qin’s expression shifted slightly. “Sorry, I must decline!” Scanning the eager faces below, he said calmly,
“For thousands of years, Biling Pavilion has never leaked client information.”
The other person spoke again,
“Since the client’s identity is off-limits, the stakes must be revealed. We need to know where we lost, so everyone can be convinced.”
“Besides, I want to know what kind of treasure can overpower everyone and take away this century-rare elixir!”
Those familiar with treasures in the cultivation world had a rough idea. After all, how many people would let their magical treasures gather dust?
Though they claimed to be asking about the stakes, everyone knew this was just a disguised inquiry about the elixir’s owner. However, there was truth in what they said.
With auctions held over a thousand times, none ever concealed the bidding stakes; these demands were completely reasonable.
Helplessly, amidst the rising voices, after a long silence, Pavilion Lord Qin slowly uttered three words:
“Hidden Spirit Pearl!”
As expected, when the words dropped, many in the hall’s expressions darkened abruptly.
Especially those from the Xuqing Sect at this moment…
Inside a private room, a young man wearing a core disciple’s robe was stunned, covering his chin:
“Wait, Hidden Spirit Pearl? Isn’t that Elder Yun Yi’s treasure?”
However, before he could finish speaking, his anxious friend tugged on his sleeve.
Unfortunately, the gazes of those present involuntarily darkened.
Because of the large number of attendees, the second-floor private rooms were inevitably limited in space, so most were divided according to sect affiliation. At this moment, inside one private room, a man wearing an inner sect elder’s robe with a long beard suddenly spoke:
“Congratulations, junior sister. I didn’t expect your luck to be so extraordinary! I believe our Xuqing Sect will soon have another Nascent Soul cultivator!”
After he finished speaking, everyone’s expressions darkened again.
Not far away, a young female cultivator sitting upright barely lifted her eyelids and said softly,
After speaking, she no longer concealed anything and placed the jade box she had just received into her qiankun bag.
“Senior brothers, please allow me to leave first!”
Gazing at the gradually receding figure clad in cyan, the room fell so silent that one could hear a pin drop.
Soon, one by one, the elders stood up and left. Just as the disciple who had spoken earlier wanted to follow, his master waved him aside.
“Master what? Just shut up!”
Quickly stuffing the spiritual fruits from the table into his complaining companion’s mouth, the disciple watched the nearly empty room and thought of his usually kind master.
A complex emotion flashed through his eyes.
The night was still long…
Darkness was undoubtedly the perfect cover for all sins, even greed.
In the forest just tens of miles from the Xuqing Sect, huge spiritual lights flickered continuously, and the sound of swords clashing was endless, clearly not a fight between just one person...
Infusing the newly obtained Hidden Spirit Pearl onto it, through the system, An Ning quickly took in the battlefield situation.
In her sight, a tall female cultivator was constantly swinging a spirit sword. Unlike the visitor’s beautiful face, each sword strike carried the force of mountains and rivers overturning. Yet at this moment, there were no fewer than five people besieging her...
Among them was the “Elder Fufeng” An Ning had suspected before.
Only when she saw a figure rapidly approaching from afar did An Ning slowly shift her gaze away.
Unexpectedly, among these people, Sikong Jing’s figure was nowhere to be found.
But soon, An Ning understood:
Suddenly, a violent tremor came. It turned out that the flying boat An Ning was on had been intercepted without her noticing.
While An Ning was holding her sword defensively, a sharp sword intent swiftly passed by. Having “sparred” for years, An Ning immediately recognized the sword light belonged to Xiao Tan.
And for the opponent to personally make a move...
It seemed that this time, the stakes were quite high.
Battles between Nascent Soul cultivators were extraordinary. The scattered aftershocks alone made the top-grade earthly artifact beneath An Ning shake violently...
But now, An Ning clearly had no time to think about these.
Sidestepping the incoming bell-shaped artifact,
Good, at least in the original body’s last life, the enemy had been found.
As if not expecting An Ning’s preparedness, two figures slowly emerged from the darkness. An Ning saw clearly that the bell that had attacked her earlier was the handiwork of the female cultivator beside that person.
An Ning slowly drew her long sword. In the darkness, dazzling blue light quickly rose. Yet in moments, the two had already clashed countless times.
Xiao Tan had once said that her sword lacked killing intent, but now, facing this face, though she had never personally killed anyone, An Ning’s sword held not a trace of hesitation...
Decades of experience made An Ning, though not a pure sword cultivator, formidable with her swordsmanship.
Obviously, the opponent had not expected this:
“Late Golden Core... you are not!”
Unfortunately, this person had no chance to finish speaking. Accompanied by fierce winds in the darkness, every move of An Ning’s sword grew sharper and sharper.
Sikong Jing, who had been dodging vital points, now had no heart to continue.
The woman beside him wanted to step forward to help but saw a chilling fragrance slowly rise from the darkness.
In an instant, the girl’s eyes quickly clouded with confusion. Seeing this, Sikong Jing held his breath, but it was obviously too late...
One second before Xiao Tan’s return, the long sword in An Ning’s hand had already swiftly pierced through the chest of the person in front of her.