The three great clans of Mohe City, the Xiao Clan, the Zhang Clan, and the Tang Clan, each of them had a large amount of real estate and shops in the city. However, the most profitable place in the city was the auction house.
This was all because of the name of this auction house — Linlang Pavilion.
Linlang Pavilion was the largest auction house in the Great Qin Empire. It had branches in all of the thirty-six counties of the empire, and the master behind it was the Emperor's son-in-law, Nangong Lie. He was a relative of the emperor, in addition to the huge power of the Nangong Clan. With such a background, naturally no one would dare to offend him.
Perhaps in some of the larger prefectures or imperial capitals, there would be powers that could compete with the Nangong Clan and dare to open a second or third auction house. However, in this small Mohe City, there was no one who would dare to take advantage of them and open a second auction house.
Linlang Pavilion was the destination of Xiao Chen's trip. He could not expose his identity as an alchemist and go to the Xiao Clan to get money. Furthermore, he could not sell the Moonstones in his room. If he wanted to earn money quickly, he could only rely on the Fasting Pills he refined last night.
Tidying up the cloak on his body and looking at the beautiful signboard of Linlang Pavilion, Xiao Chen revealed a smile under the shadows as he slowly walked into Linlang Pavilion.
Due to the lack of human traffic, the Linlang Pavilion in Mohe City would only hold a small-scale auction every month. Every three months, they would hold a medium-sized auction. The large-scale auction would only be held once a year. At that time, it would be the busiest time in Mohe City.
Counting the days, it was almost the end of the month. There were many people in the hall on the first floor who came to look at the goods. These people were undoubtedly people with high statuses in Mohe City. Among them, the three great clans had the most people. Xiao Chen even saw many familiar people from the Xiao Clan, but this was not the time to greet them.
Suddenly, a dangerous aura came from behind him, followed by a palm that was about to reach down. Xiao Chen's sharp senses felt this aura, and his body flashed forward, turning around to make a move.
"Pu Chi!"
Xiao Chen clasped the man's wrist. Xiao Chen exerted a little force on the man's wrist. The man immediately showed a painful expression and shouted with a stern look, "Bastard, let me go."
This person was dressed in a blue and white robe and looked to be around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. His cultivation was in the Medial Grade Martial Disciple realm. There was a yellow flower embroidered on his collar. Xiao Chen understood that this person should be a guard of Linlang Pavilion. However, he had no intention of letting go.
He increased the strength in his hand and asked coldly, "Why did you attack me?"
That person cried out in pain again and cursed, "Bastard, hurry up and let go. Otherwise, don't even think of walking out of this Linlang Pavilion."
The voices of the two quickly attracted the attention of the surrounding people. They looked at Xiao Chen mockingly. Xiao Chen's cultivation was only at the Inferior Grade Martial Disciple realm, yet these people actually dared to come to Linlang Pavilion to cause trouble. They were simply courting death.
Very quickly, a large group of cultivators dressed in blue and white robes with a yellow flower embroidered on their collars ran over. Under the lead of a Martial Master, they surrounded Xiao Chen.
That Martial Master had thick eyebrows and big eyes. He was tall and sturdy, but the expression on his face was very cautious. He did not seem angry or irritable. He frowned slightly and glanced at Xiao Chen before shifting his gaze to the person that Xiao Chen was holding. He asked in a cold voice, "Gao Long, what's going on?"
Gao Long, whose wrist was being held by Xiao Chen, had a pained expression on his face. From Xiao Chen's hand, electric currents flowed continuously into his body. Every time the Essence that he gathered with great difficulty came into contact with this electric current, it would immediately dissipate without a trace. This caused him to be unable to break free from Xiao Chen's grasp.
"Captain, this person is dressed strangely. After he entered the hall, he looked around shiftily. I'm afraid he has some ulterior motive, so I want to capture him and question him," Gao Long said with a trembling voice.
He, a Medial Grade Martial Disciple, was being held down by an Inferior Grade Martial Disciple. Even if he was in the right this time, he had lost the face of Linlang Pavilion. He would definitely not be able to escape the Captain's punishment. When he thought of the Captain's punishment, Gao Long could not help but tremble.
When the Superior Grade Martial Disciple, who was addressed as the Captain, saw Xiao Chen's attire, he also had some doubts in his heart. Of the people who came here, which one of them did not wear bright and beautiful clothes? Who would dress so strangely like Xiao Chen? A cloak covered his entire body, making him look like he had some ulterior motive.
"This friend, I am Jiang Qi, the commander of the guards on the first floor of Linlang Pavilion. I wonder why you are here? Are you here to buy something?" Although he already had a fixed impression of Xiao Chen, Jiang Qi still asked cautiously.
"No." The shadow of the cloak covered Xiao Chen's face, making it impossible to see his expression.
When Gao Long, who was being held down, heard this, he had an expression of joy on his face. If he is not here to buy something, then naturally he is here to cause trouble. Since he is here to cause trouble, this brat will not be able to leave. He smiled sinisterly in his heart, and the pain in his hand seemed to lessen.
"In that case, do you have any friends here?" Jiang Qi continued to ask patiently. However, the killing Qi that he had been hiding was released without restraint. As long as Xiao Chen denied it again, he would immediately make a move. No matter who it was, whoever caused trouble in Linlang Pavilion would only have one outcome: death!
Jiang Qi's aura of a Superior Grade Martial Master spread out into the surroundings. The killing Qi enveloped Xiao Chen firmly. The biting cold killing Qi caused the surrounding people to tremble. When these people looked at Xiao Chen again, it was as if he was already a dead man.
The killing Qi was so dense that even the surrounding people could feel it. Actually, this was because one's cultivation realm was not high enough; it was condensed and not solid. A true expert's killing Qi could gather into a network of lines and not scatter. When it completely enveloped the target, the surrounding people would not be able to feel it at all.
Xiao Chen, who was surrounded by the killing Qi, did not show any fear. He said indifferently, "I do not have any friends here."
Jiang Qi smiled coldly, "Then I will have to offend you."
"Hu!"
The surrounding air suddenly turned cold. A cold Qi gathered on his body, and a layer of ice wrapped around his fist. With a whistling sound, he punched towards Xiao Chen.
Xiao Chen took a step back and spun Gao Long's body in the air before tossing him violently at Jiang Qi. After that, he took out the jade bottle containing the Fasting Pill unhurriedly and gently opened the bottle cap. A dense medicinal fragrance spread into the surroundings. Soon, the entire hall on the first floor was filled with this medicinal fragrance.
"What pill is this? Why is it so fragrant?"
"Could this fellow be an alchemist?"
"I think so. The actions of those alchemists are all very strange. Otherwise, he would not be so calm."
There were sounds of discussion coming from the hall. These people were people with some status who had come into contact with pills before. However, they had never seen a pill with such a dense fragrance before. For a moment, they thought that Xiao Chen was a mysterious alchemist of a very high rank.
Under the cloak, the corners of Xiao Chen's mouth curled up slightly. He smiled and said, "In such a big place like Linlang Pavilion, there is not even a person to discuss business with?"
Jiang Qi, who had just caught Gao Long, had casually tossed him to the ground. When he heard what Xiao Chen said and saw the pill in Xiao Chen's hand, he knew that he might have gotten into trouble. He hurriedly went forward and cupped his hands, "Senior, sorry for my rudeness. I hope Senior can forgive me."
Although Xiao Chen was only an Inferior Grade Martial Disciple, if he could refine a high rank pill, it was natural for him to address him as Senior.
Gao Long, who was lying on the ground, gritted his teeth and cried out in pain. When Xiao Chen had thrown him to Jiang Qi, he had used a lot of force. Furthermore, Jiang Qi had thrown him casually. Currently, there was not a single part of his body that did not hurt. When Gao Long heard Jiang Qi's words, he felt like he had fallen into an ice cave. What kind of bad luck did I have today? I actually offended an alchemist, thinking that he was a sneaky thief.
Xiao Chen did not care about the change in Jiang Qi's attitude. This was all within his expectations, so there was nothing strange about it. He continued, "Cut the crap. Bring me to your appraiser. I want to auction off this pill at the end of the month."
Jiang Qi cupped his hands and thanked him again. He led Xiao Chen to the Inner Pavilion. Along the way, he tried to find out about Xiao Chen's origins by beating around the bush. Naturally, Xiao Chen would not fall for such tricks. Thus, he gave a bunch of half-truths and half-lies.
Everyone watched as Xiao Chen left. After a long time, a commotion broke out in the quiet hall on the first floor. The sounds of discussion rose and fell.
"This alchemist is actually here to bid. Old Chen, when was the last time Linlang Pavilion auctioned a pill? Do you remember?"
"In the large-scale auction held last year, there was a Rank 3 pill."
"I think this year's large-scale auction might be brought forward. The pill that the mysterious person brought is definitely Rank 3 and above."
"Nonsense, how could a Rank 3 pill have such a strong medicinal fragrance? I have seen a Rank 4 pill before, but it did not have such a strong medicinal fragrance." Someone beside that person immediately retorted.
"How is that possible? To be able to refine a Rank 4 pill, it has to be at least a Rank 4 alchemist. There are only a few Rank 4 alchemists in the entire Luojie Prefecture. Why would he come to our small Mohe City?"
In an instant, an intense debate broke out in the hall regarding the rank of this mysterious pill.
… …
At this moment, in the Inner Pavilion, the Pill Appraiser, Old Hu, was sweating profusely. He was thinking hard about the rank of this pill. Fasting Pill. After consuming it, one would not need to eat for a month. What kind of pill was this? It was unheard of in the Great Qin Nation.
The appraisers of Glittering Jewels Pavilion naturally had good foresight. These appraisers were all nurtured by Glittering Jewels Pavilion themselves. After going through layers of tests, they would be sent down. The appraisers of Glittering Jewels Pavilion all started from the lowest level and then moved up based on their results.
Thus, even if it was the appraisers of Mohe City, if they were placed in any other auction house, they would be able to hold their own in any auction house at the level of a prefecture city.
Old Hu carefully looked at the pill in his hand. He was sure that this pill was not something that could fool people. Regardless of whether it was the pill's fragrance, glossiness, or color, it was not something that an ordinary person could refine. However, he had never heard of a pill called the Fasting Pill in this world. How was he going to set the price? He was extremely vexed.
Xiao Chen sat on the chair and gently took a sip of the tea at the side. He looked at Old Hu who was still trying to figure it out and said impatiently, "Old Hu, after studying it for so long, can you start bidding now?"
Old Hu wiped the sweat off his forehead. In the end, he still decided to play it safe. He said apologetically, "Please wait for a moment. I am unable to appraise this pill. I will go and invite the Pavilion Master over."
Xiao Chen put down his teacup and made a gesture to invite him to do as he pleased. He was quite confident that Linlang would be able to appraise the Fasting Pill.
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