Wait a minute, where is my master?

"It's Sister Yunzhao's voice!"

Little White hopped off the long bench and scurried to the small window of the private box.

The first floor of the auction.

The hall was in an uproar.

Luan Baoyi, the second son of the Luan family, stared dumbfounded at Xia Yunzhao.

Emperor Xia's youngest Nascent Soul in a thousand years, how could he not recognize her?

"Eh... Seventh Princess, I..."

The second son's face turned red and white by turns, swearing to himself that he had just uttered some fierce words so as not to lose face in front of Wu Li, but he really hadn't intended anything by it.

Isn't it very common for the young nobles in Shangjing City to talk tough?

Why did he have to be the one to hit a snag?

Luan Baoyi truly did not wish to slap his own face, but what to do if he couldn't show weakness?

His Luan family was indeed a first-rate power and clan in Shangjing City.

But the Great Xia was hers!

Although there had been constant rumors lately that Xia Xuanmin, Great Xia's pillar of Heaven made of white jade, and the purple golden beam spanning the sea, was about to die.

But he hadn't died yet.

And even if Xia Xuanmin really died, this Seventh Princess standing before him was not someone he, Luan Baoyi, could afford to offend.

Luan Baoyi's mind was racing furiously.

How to concede without losing too much face was a matter of great skill.

...

At the side of the square table, the Taoist priest tilted his head slightly, watching Xia Yunzhao who had removed her mask.

This posture looked somewhat familiar, oh, he remembered now.

Last time Xia Yunzhao took such a stand was in the backyard of the Taoist temple when she treated him as a mortal.

At the same time, he also realized why they weren't reminded to wear black robes; their identities were simply not needed here.

Because of the appearance of the Seventh Princess of Great Xia, the auction had come to a temporary halt.

Seeing this, Jin Xu prepared to remind the Miss Wu on the auction stage. Since the other party wasn't bidding, should the gavel be struck?

But the Taoist priest caught something in the corner of his eye and saw two demon servants of his standing up and removing their masks as well.

They arrogantly took their place behind Xia Yunzhao.

"???"

"She is the Seventh Princess of Great Xia, what crowd are you two joining!"

The cultivators in the hall were whispering among themselves.

"Eh, who are those two women?"

"Don't know, never seen them before."

"But judging by their demeanor and appearance, their backgrounds must be significant."

"Yes, yes, yes!"

The Taoist priest listened in silence.

Then... he rose, removed his mask, and stood together with the three women, politely asking, "Miss Wu, may we proceed with the hammer strike?"

On the auction stage, Wu Li, upon seeing Jin Xu's face, felt a surge of madness and deviance compelling her; she was so right in deciding to test the Taoist priest.

However, the Third Elder, after all the experiences, managed to maintain a composed facade, the unfortunate one here being the Kunlun Immortal Palace disciple.

So, with a sweet and soft voice, she stated, "If there are no more bids, then this item shall belong to this fellow Taoist!"

She then counted down three, two, one, and the gavel fell, awarding the Age Chicken to Jin Xu.

Later when the auction ended, he could arrange to pay and receive the item in person.

With the intervention of the Taoist priest, Xia Yunzhao did not continue to fixate on Luan Er.

She let him transmit an apology and then allowed him to slip back into the private box.

She took the initiative to step forward not because she worried about Jin Xu's safety, after all, the strength of Taoist Jin Xu was there for all in Gusu City to see.

The Seventh Princess was afraid that Luan Baoyi might leave Jin Xu with unpleasant memories from his trip to Shangjing City.

A toad squatting on the foot—a foul presence even when it doesn't bite, right?

With such an incident, the atmosphere of the subsequent auction became somewhat odd. Even though Manager Shi and Wu Li tried hard to lift the spirits, whenever a new item was introduced, everyone's gaze would invariably drift towards the table of the young Taoist.

Only after seeing no intention to bid from that table would others dare to call out their prices.

If someone at Jin Xu's table made a bid during the proceedings, most would choose to bow out, while a few stubborn ones would engage in a few rounds of bidding, but ultimately, they all fell to the young Taoist's "save where you can, spend where you must" tactic.

As time passed and the final sword pill treasure was auctioned off, the auction officially came to a close.

The cultivators who had won items in the auction were led by the fox-tailed female cultivators to complete the final transactions.

Those cultivators who had not acquired anything dispersed and left.

In the back hall, Manager Shi's face looked as if he had eaten dead flies—because the revenue of the auction was tied to the hammer prices of the items.

Due to the conflict between Luan Er, the son of the Luan family, and Xia Yunzhao, although it caused the Age Chicken's price to skyrocket, the benefits were reaped by that Loose Cultivator alone.

The hammer prices of the subsequent items were not so high, seriously affecting the auction's revenue and Old Man Shi's personal earnings as well.

That's why his expression was so unsightly.

"Manager Shi, where have you placed the Age Chicken? The Seventh Prince and his entourage have come to pick it up," Wu Li said, stepping forward with her snow-white legs into the back hall, her voice tinged with excitement.

The Shi surnamed elder looked at her in surprise. With the auction's poor earnings, the auctioneer's take would also suffer, so why was this woman so cheerful?

Could it be just because the young Taoist was good-looking?

"Tch, seeing how Xia Yunzhao came forward for him, it's possible he's just a pretty toy boy she keeps. Your excitement is pointless," Manager Shi darkly thought. Yet on the surface, he was still very amiable.

"The spiritual bird is here. Let's go over together," said the elder, turning to pick up the sealed cage containing the Age Chicken and then proceeding outside with Wu Li.

En route, the avatar of the Third Elder of the Demon Sect naturally took over the cage and attached a jade token to its base.

In the small room where the transactions were completed, all the other auction items had already been laid out on the counter, all that was left was that spiritual bird.

Jin Xu's group, bored out of their minds, waited listlessly. Two graceful female cultivators stood by, ready to attend to their needs.

After all, spending tens of thousands of high-grade Spirit Stones, one naturally expected appropriate treatment.

"Sirs, thank you for your patience. This is the Age Chicken you've won," Miss Wu intentionally strode over to the Taoist's side, leaning over, and spoke in a soft, coquettish voice.

Her eyes were blatantly filled with seduction.

In her mind, whether it was men or male cultivators, as long as they could breathe, they were all lustful creatures. That's why she was putting on such an act, intending to lure Jin Xu into her trap.

The Taoist from Kunlun Immortal Palace eventually fell beneath her pomegranate skirt anyway, didn't he?

Could this young Taoist, even with firm conviction, be stronger than a disciple meticulously chosen by Kunlun?

"Thank you," Jin Xu said calmly as he accepted the cage. His Spiritual Sense swept through it, confirming everything was correct, and he casually placed it into his storage treasure beads.

Manager Shi, who came in a step later, happened to witness this scene. His brows furrowed tightly, the guy hadn't even paid with Spirit Stones yet, and Wu Li had already handed him the item.

"Tsk, Miss Wu doesn't attract attention on normal days, but now that she sees a handsome face, she's all over him. If I were fifty years younger…"

The Shi surnamed elder sneered inwardly, but his face remained congenially welcoming.

"We apologize for the wait, honored guests. I'm really sorry. Little Ling, haven't you prepared everything for our guests yet? Calculate exactly how much it all amounts to," the elder first apologized to the group and then pretended to scold the fox-tailed female cultivator with a wave of his hand.

With such behavior, he was pointing out Wu Li's misconduct while simultaneously saving the faces of Jin Xu and his party.

However, the Third Elder's avatar paid no mind to these matters; she was busy casting flirtatious glances at the young Taoist.

If she could win over this young Taoist!

And play with him for a few days!

Then even if she had to discard this avatar, it would have been worth it!