Chapter 294, 295 - Auction Begins
After settling everything, Qin Nan and Princess Miao Miao returned to the residence.
Inside it, the Longhu Ancestor Beast wore a painful expression on his twisted face. The two lumps on his forehead expanded and contracted at times, while Houzi’s face turned incredibly pale watching him from the side.
Qin Nan was too lazy to give him a glance. He sat down with his legs crossed and began to refine his Inner Core, while waiting for the day of the auction...
...Three days were gone in the blink of an eye, marking the beginning of the auction!
At that instant, the entire Jianghuang City was more lively compared to before, as cultivators within the lower district arrived to attend the auction.
Furthermore, when the news regarding the fact that the Ancient Dragon Auction would be auctioning eleven Emperor Weapons and three Dominator Weapons was made known to the public, it even attracted the attention of some of the Martial Ancestor Realm or even Martial Dominator Realm experts.
“Humph, I’m looking forward to seeing the expressions on the faces of those a.s.sholes when the time comes!”
The Longhu Ancestor Beast transformed himself into a gorgeous middle-aged woman with a curvy physique. The red gauze he was wearing added a slight charm to his appearance, attracting the attention of countless cultivators on the street. Furthermore, he even shamelessly gave the cultivators a seductive glimpse, causing them to blush.
Princess Miao Miao took a deep breath. If it weren’t for the sake of the plan, she would have given him a big slap to his face.
“Enough, you two must be careful with your current ident.i.ties. This is extremely important, don’t reveal your tempers, and act according to my plan!”
Qin Nan transmitted a message to his companions as they arrived at the entrance to the Ancient Dragon Auction.
The entire auction covered an area of ten square li, which seemed like a huge bowl being placed upside down. The mystical glow emitted from its surroundings resulted in a spectacular sight.
Two rows of ladies stood on each side of the path to the entrance of the auction, each wearing a chi-pao[1], with a certain type of elixir applied to their skin, causing the skin to look fair and tender, as if one were able to squeeze out drops of water when pinching it.
A continuous flow of cultivators presented their invitations and entered the auction.
At that instant, a loud voice was heard, “The One-Handed Martial Dominator is here!”
The crowd became immersed in a chatter after hearing the words, as they immediately focused their attention on the voice.
The One-Handed Martial Dominator, whose cultivation had reached half-Martial Highness Realm, possessed a significant reputation in the lower district.
Qin Nan glanced toward the voice and saw an old man with a pair of dull-looking eyes and a missing left arm. When he became aware of the gazes of the crowd, he let out a harrumph, resulting in two ferocious gusts of wind blowing out from his nostrils, causing the crowd to be intimidated.
“One-Handed friend, I have the obligation to remind you that no one is allowed to unleash their aura in Jianghuang City.”
With a shoosh, a figure descended from above wearing a blossoming smile, who turned out to be the City Lord of Jianghuang City: Jianghuang!
“Jianghuang!”
The eyes of the One-Handed Martial Dominator were filled with a hint of fear, who immediately withheld his anger and forced a smile on his face, “You’re right. Everyone should obey the rules of Jianghuang City!”
After saying this, he instantly left the scene.
The crowd of cultivators felt their eyes glistening. As expected of Jianghuang, even though their cultivations were on par with each other, this One-Handed Martial Dominator did not dare to offend Jianghuang.
Jianghuang scanned the crowd and was startled when he saw Qin Nan’s figure. A hint of suspiciousness could be seen in his eyes, before he entered the venue without saying anything.
“What does that mean? Could it be that Jianghuang has discovered our real ident.i.ties?”
Qin Nan wore a doubtful expression.
Even the Six-Eared Divine Being could not see through our disguise. It’s impossible that Jianghuang was able to see through it!
Before Qin Nan could come up with an explanation, an uproar took place among the crowd.
A young man with a pale skin tone and a pair of sharp-looking eyebrows—wearing a white armor suit, while carrying a huge sword on his back—could be seen arriving accompanied by four peak Martial Emperor Realm experts, resulting in a splendid sight.
On the other side of the path was a teenage girl wearing a red s.h.i.+rt, who had an attractive appearance. In contrast with the imperious appearance of the young man, the teenage girl displayed a gentle and weak aura, causing one to feel affection for her.
It appeared as if the young man and the lady were unable to see each other, as they focused on walking toward the entrance.
“F**k! Isn’t that Leng Jianxiong, who’s ranked first on the Primary Candidates Ranking? He’s here too!”
“Tsk tsk, the other one should be the second-ranked Hong Fu, right? It was said that Hong Fu was never convinced of Leng Jianxiong acquiring the top spot. It seems like that is definitely the case here!”
“Of course, Hong Fu and Leng Jianxiong are both fourth-grade Xuan ranked geniuses; there’s no doubt that they would be reluctant to admit to one another’s talent!”
“I’m eager to know who among the geniuses will be recruited as disciples of the two Sacred Areas in the selection in one and a half months’ time!”
“……”
Hearing the chatter of the crowd, Qin Nan’s eyes showed a hint of speechlessness.
He purposely stayed at the entrance of the auction in order to witness the geniuses of Jianghuang City.
However, the outcome was slightly disappointing. Both the first ranked and second ranked candidates only possessed fourth-grade Xuan ranked Martial Spirits. That being said, Qin Nan could feel his heart boiling, as their cultivations had reached the second-layer Martial Emperor Realm. Therefore, the outcome of a battle between them could not be determined yet.
“In the Martial World, it’s unwise to judge one’s strength just by looking at the rank of Martial Spirits!”
Qin Nan reminded himself.
Although he possessed the Divine Battle Spirit, allowing him to be granted the upper hand, he should not be proud and full of himself.
At that instant, a pleasant melody of a guqin could be heard all of a sudden. Originating from a distance away, it felt like a stream of a river was flowing into the hearts of the crowd following the tone.
The crowd was utterly astonished, as everyone instinctively glanced toward the direction of the melody. Even Leng Jianxiong and Hong Fu halted in their tracks and turned around.
The crowd could only see the manager of the Ancient Gambling Store and the owner of the Qingxin Inn leading the way, followed by eight silver-plated peak Martial Emperor Realm cultivators carrying a palanquin. The entire crew walked toward the entrance at a slow pace, which resulted in an indescribable imperious sight despite the fact that not a single aura was unleashed!
The ladies standing at the sides of the entrance cheered in a loud tone.
“Welcome Saintess!”
Such an entry caused the crowd to be stunned.
“I’m the Prince of the Maple Kingdom. I never had the chance to meet the Saintess, and I’m utterly honored today to have the chance to see your glamorous appearance!” The Maple Prince, who had long since arrived at the scene, brought his fists together with a smile as his eyes stared at the palanquin with a pa.s.sionate look.
“I’ll have the chance to chat with the Prince when the auction begins.”
The white-s.h.i.+rted lady appeared from the palanquin.
“Thanks, Saintess!”
The Maple Prince’s eyes turned joyful. To him, it was a blessing to have the chance to talk with the Saintess.
The eyes of the surrounding cultivators flickered slightly, but they did not dare to express their thoughts. After all, this Saintess possessed a formidable background; it would serve as a great disaster to them if they were to say any inappropriate comments.
However, at that instant, Qin Nan suddenly raised his head and stared at the palanquin.
Despite being blocked by the palanquin, Qin Nan could sense that the person inside was staring at him!
“Mr. Qin, since when has a genius like you existed in the lower district? Would you mind having a chat inside the palanquin, and keep each other company at the auction?” The white-s.h.i.+rted lady suddenly spoke. Although her voice was pleasant, the words served as a grenade exploding in the ears of the crowd.
Qin Nan’s eyes flickered coldly upon hearing her words.
Translator: XephiZ
Editor: DOCuinn
[1] TL Note: A traditional Chinese costume, also known as cheongsam some reasons, the RAWS combined chapter 294 and 295 into one, but the length is still the same as a single chapter"s. Therefore, I"ll be treating it as a single chapter, but I"m keeping the chapter no. the same with the RAWS, so I won"t get confused.