One month passed in the blink of an eye.
Early in the morning, when the sun was breaking and the first glimmer of light was peeking out, the entrance of a magnificent, semi-circular building on the east side of the central square of Jade Nether City was already bustling with noise. All kinds of Fiends were walking in and out of the gate, creating a very lively scene.
Apart from them, there were also many Fiends gathered in groups of two or three on both sides of the gate. Some were standing still, as if they were waiting for someone, some were whispering to each other, and some were looking at the bustling scene with confused expressions. Only after the explanation of the people next to them did they nod in understanding. Clearly, they were newcomers to the city.
In a corner of the bustling crowd, a seven-foot-tall man in a gray robe was looking expressionlessly at the flowing crowd. No one knew what he was thinking.
Needless to say, this man was none other than the Fiend Liu Ming had transformed into, "Yin Han".
However, at this moment, the magic power fluctuations emanating from his body were only at the early-stage Jin Dan stage.
The magnificent semi-circular building in front of him was none other than the Rui You Pavilion, where Jade Nether City's triennial auction was held. It was the largest chamber of commerce in the Nether Water Realm, with branches all over the Nether Water Realm.
It was said that the person behind it had a powerful background, and seemed to be related to the Dark King, Bi You.
Today was the first day of the auction, and many people had rushed to Jade Nether City, some even wearing straw hats. It was obvious that they had just come to Jade Nether City to participate in the auction.
After observing for a while, Liu Ming rubbed the black ring on his right thumb. Without making a sound, he blended into the crowd and slowly walked toward the door.
After paying the entrance fee of 10 Nether stones and registering his identity, he entered the building.
After walking through two spacious corridors that weren't too long, he heard a burst of noisy noises, and a hall that was hundreds of meters wide appeared in front of him.
This was the main venue of the auction. The hall was filled with rows of wooden chairs, and there were thousands of them.
However, there were still two to four hours before the auction began, so not many Fiends had taken their seats.
There was a white jade platform in front of the venue, on which there were a few chairs and a long table. It seemed to be the auction platform, but there was no one there at the moment.
Liu Ming's gaze casually swept across the auction hall. Suddenly, his gaze shifted and landed on one side of the hall. There was a slightly smaller side hall there, and there were a few guards in green armor standing at the entrance.
Every now and then, one or two Fiend cultivators would walk into the side hall, and after presenting something, they would be welcomed into the hall by the green-armored guards.
Envious looks appeared on the faces of the other Fiends in the hall as they watched the Fiends walk into the side hall.
From the whispers of the surrounding Fiends, Liu Ming quickly figured out that the cultivators who had walked in were all people who had treasures to sell at the auction.
He had already asked around, and learned that if they wanted to sell their treasures, they would have to submit them to the auction house in advance. Only after they had been examined by a professional appraiser would they be able to put them up for auction on the day of the auction.
Although Liu Ming also planned to sell something at the auction, this auction had a total of seven days. Today was only the first day, so there was no need to rush to sell. He planned to understand some of the rules before contacting the auction.
After all, even though the treasures he had in his possession were very precious, they hadn't come from the right place. This was Jade Nether City, where all kinds of forces were present. He had to be extra careful.
After taking a few glances at the auction house, Liu Ming turned around and walked out of the hall.
Outside the auction hall was a wide, open-air corridor, which was the free trade area for the auction. There were a few simple stalls on either side of the corridor.
The auction house had a strict control over the items that could be sold. Treasures that were of slightly inferior quality wouldn't be accepted.
Some Fiends who had come from afar were carrying items of low value, so they weren't qualified to be sold at the auction after being appraised. Therefore, they could only settle for the next best thing, which was to pay five Netherstones in the free trade area, set up a stall, and sell them on their own.
After all, this auction, which lasted for seven days, had attracted a large number of Fiend cultivators from the Nether Water Realm. It was a rare business opportunity.
Liu Ming glanced around and found that many Fiends had already gathered in the corridor, and it was very lively.
With a thought, Liu Ming blended into the crowd and walked forward, carefully examining the stalls one by one.
After looking at a few stalls in a row, a look of disappointment appeared in his eyes.
These scattered stalls weren't worth looking at at at all. Most of the items here were middle-grade and low-grade Yin items, which might be of some use to Fiends below the Crystal Level. As a human, Liu Ming had already reached the Middle Jin Dan Realm, so they naturally wouldn't be of much use to him.
The only thing that caught Liu Ming's attention were some Ghostly materials and ores. However, since they were placed in the free trade area, they probably wouldn't sell anything too valuable.
Therefore, he only stopped for a short moment at each stall, glanced at it, and continued to walk forward.
The corridor was designed to be very winding. After walking around for a while, Liu Ming still didn't find anything.
Fortunately, he had already sold off some of the Ghostly Beast materials and Nethertools he had obtained along the way, and obtained quite a lot of Netherstones. By now, he had a total of two hundred thousand Netherstones.
After all, this wasn't an amount that an ordinary Jin Dan Fiend could casually take out.
After walking around for a while, it was almost time for the auction to begin.
Just as Liu Ming was about to enter the main hall again, his expression suddenly flickered, and he vigilantly turned around to look in the direction behind him.
He saw a young Fiend, who appeared to be about fifteen or sixteen years old, standing over thirty meters away. As soon as his eyes met Liu Ming's, he seemed to be at a loss as to what to do. His cultivation base seemed to be only at the Liquid Level.
A cold light flashed across Liu Ming's eyes as he said in a cold voice, "Young friend, you seem to have been following me for some time. What can I do for you?"
Suppressed by the spiritual pressure released by Liu Ming, the young Fiend stammered, "Please … please don't misunderstand, Senior. I … I didn't mean to follow you. It's just that my master has asked me to meet you."
"Oh? Who's your master? I don't remember having any acquaintances in Jade Nether City. " Liu Ming's brows furrowed slightly upon hearing this, and he took a few more glances at the young Fiend before withdrawing the spiritual pressure he was releasing.
Given this green-robed young man's low cultivation base, he couldn't have been sent by someone else to follow him.
"My master asked me to tell you that he's an old friend of yours. Due to some reasons, it's inconvenient for him to meet you here. That's why he asked me to come here and invite you to meet him in the VIP pavilion." The green-robed young man's expression seemed to have calmed down a bit as he cupped his hands respectfully toward Liu Ming.
Liu Ming's eyebrows furrowed slightly upon hearing this as thoughts raced through his mind.
His current appearance was that of Yin Han. Speaking of old friends, he had only met a few Fiends in Cold Moon City. Could it be that he had run into them in Jade Nether City by chance?
Or could it be that the master this green-robed young man was referring to was Yin Han's old friend?
At the same time, he tried his best to recall the fragmented memories of Yin Han to see if he had any acquaintances in Jade Nether City.
Upon seeing this, the green-robed young man stood off to the side and waited patiently with his head bowed, not showing the slightest intention to rush him.
After a long while, Liu Ming still couldn't figure out what was going on. He took a deep look at the green-robed young man and said coldly, "Lead the way.
Lead the way. "
Since he couldn't figure out who this person was, rather than avoiding them, it would be better to see who he was. Given his current strength, he should be able to handle any unexpected situations.
Furthermore, they were in the auction hall, so there shouldn't be anyone who would try to harm him.
Overjoyed, the green-robed young man bowed toward Liu Ming again before leading the way. "Many thanks, Senior."
The two of them turned left and right, and entered an elegantly decorated three-story pavilion behind the main auction hall. They arrived in front of a secret room on the third floor.
This was a secret room provided by the Auspicious Serenity Pavilion for some of the distinguished guests to rest in.
The green-robed young man knocked on the door, and it was soon opened slightly.
"Please come in, Senior." Upon seeing this, the green-robed young man bowed his head and made an inviting gesture.
Liu Ming took a glance at the young man before pushing open the stone door of the secret room and walking in.
After he entered the secret room, the stone door behind him closed again. The green-robed young man didn't follow him in.
However, when he saw the situation inside the secret room, his expression couldn't help but change slightly.
At the center of the luxuriously decorated secret room was a stone chair covered with unknown fur, on which sat a Fiend cultivator with piercing green eyes. It was none other than Bi Yan, who had met Liu Ming several times in Cold Moon City and had escorted the tribute together with him.
Upon seeing Liu Ming, Bi Yan rose to his feet, cupped his hands, and said with a smile, "It's been more than thirty years since we last met. I didn't expect Brother Yin Han's cultivation to have made such great progress, and you've reached the early Jin Dan stage. Congratulations!"
Liu Ming returned the greeting with cupped fists, and cautiously said, "I thought it was an old friend. So it's Brother Bi Yan."
In order to not attract attention, he had already activated the Che Huan totem and adjusted the fluctuations of his magic power to the early Jin Dan stage. Otherwise, advancing two stages in a trifling period of twenty to thirty years would be too eye-catching.
"Haha, during the battle in Jueming Valley, I was hurriedly separated from Brother Yin Han, and I haven't heard from him since. I didn't expect to meet Brother Yin here. You and I are truly fated! "Bi Yan laughed heartily.
"Brother Bi Yan, you didn't invite me here to chat, did you?" Upon hearing Bi Yan's words, Liu Ming's heart skipped a beat, and the smile on his face slowly disappeared.
"Brother Yin Han, you don't need to be so cautious. I don't have any ill intentions. Please, take a seat." Bi Yan smiled slightly, and made an inviting gesture toward a nearby table.
Liu Ming narrowed his eyes, and after sizing up Bi Yan, he slowly walked to the table and sat down.
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