Chapter 54: The Auction House

After the commotion settled down, the crowd dispersed.

Ye Qiu crouched down, using his thumb to wipe away the tears at the corner of Xiao Lan's eyes. "How are you feeling? Are you okay?"

"Xiao Lan is fine, just that the candied hawthorns are gone." Pouting, she looked at the candied hawthorns that fell on the ground, not forgetting about them.

"Brother bought them for you before!"

"Then I want two!" She extended her hands, making scissor gestures, and her azure eyes sparkled.

"No problem!" This time, Ye Qiu didn't dare let her run around. He simply lifted her up.

"Mwah! Brother is the best! Haha." With the sweetness of the candy on her lips, it left an imprint on Ye Qiu's mouth, a bit sticky. He couldn't help but give Xiao Lan a stern look, but it only made her burst into laughter.

In the distance, while Ye Qiu and the others were in conflict, there was a luxurious carriage passing by. It belonged to the Crown Prince Xue Qinghe.

He had just had a small gathering with his teacher, Ning Fengzhi of the Seven Treasure Glazed Glass Pagoda School.

Inside the carriage, Xue Qinghe, who was resting, furrowed his brows.

For a moment, he actually felt a fluctuation in his martial soul, as if something was attracting it.

Opening the curtain and looking towards the crowd, he ordered, "Go and see what's happening over there."

As the order was given, one of his attendants approached.

"Reporting to His Highness, there was a conflict between the eldest son of Count Thaddeus and a commoner."

As the attendant finished reporting, the crowd had already dispersed.

Xue Qinghe frowned. That feeling had disappeared in an instant. Could it be his imagination?

Looking in that direction, he saw the back of a blue-haired young man holding a little girl.

"Sigh! Let's return to the palace." Rubbing his temples, he instructed his attendants to continue moving. Maybe he was just too tired.

Ye Qiu hadn't walked far before looking back in the direction of the carriage. His attempt to use the Sharingan earlier had given him a strange sensation, as if it was scanning the surroundings, but he found nothing unusual.

"Brother, what are you looking at? Let's hurry and buy candied hawthorns!" Xiao Lan, unable to keep up with Ye Qiu's speed due to her short legs, stopped eating the candied hawthorns and was now being carried by Ye Qiu.

"Well, let's go and buy them." Prompted by the little glutton, Ye Qiu put aside his doubts and walked away quickly.

...

After buying two more strings of candied hawthorns, Ye Qiu continued to look for a place to stay with Xiao Lan. Looking at the three gold soul coins left in his bag, Ye Qiu felt he should spend the night in his Divine Realm.

"Sigh."

"Brother, what's wrong?" Xiao Lan, licking her candied hawthorn, looked at him strangely.

"Nothing. Oh!?" Ye Qiu's gaze fell on a magnificent dome-shaped building. Looking at it, the diameter of the building was estimated to be at least five hundred meters. The golden dome was dazzling and eye-catching.

"The Heaven Dou Auction House! How could I forget about this!" Ye Qiu clenched his fists, suddenly remembering that he had a soul bone produced by a four-thousand-year Feline Skyblue Snowing Wind Tiger in his Divine Might Space.

This thing should easily fetch a few million gold soul coins!

"Xiao Lan, let's go! Brother will take you to the auction house for some fun!" Holding her little hand, he headed in that direction.

"Brother, what's an auction house?" Xiao Lan's short legs couldn't keep up with Ye Qiu's speed, and she even stopped eating her candied hawthorn. She was now being carried by Ye Qiu.

"Well, it's a place where things are sold. Once brother sells things, I'll buy you lots of delicious food!"

"That's great! Hoo~ But brother, can you not walk so fast? Xiao Lan is tired~"

"Oops." Ye Qiu paused; only then did he notice that her face was flushed, and her breath was a bit irregular.

"Haha, sorry, brother's mistake." Ye Qiu directly lifted her up.

Arriving at the entrance of the auction house, the grand facade made Ye Qiu feel a bit emotional. To have such a large piece of land in a valuable place like the imperial city, it truly demonstrated extravagance. Even the marble door frame was embedded with gemstones.

"It's so beautiful here!" The little girl was irresistibly drawn to shiny things. Not caring about the candied hawthorns in her hands, Xiao Lan couldn't take her eyes off the welcoming staff at the entrance.

"Brother, the ladies at the entrance are so pretty!"

Looking in the direction she pointed, at the entrance stood several welcoming staff members. They seemed to be around twenty years old, all of similar height, with beautiful faces, slender figures, and wearing white floor-length skirts adorned with silver thread, giving them an air of elegance. Their faces wore professional and gentle smiles.

At this moment, Ye Qiu stood at the entrance not far away, and Xiao Lan's voice, without a doubt, was heard by someone.

"The little girl has such a sweet mouth. However, not just anyone can enter here!" The closest girl, with a more genuine smile on her face, seemed genuinely happy.

"I wonder what conditions need to be met to enter. Excuse me, may I ask?" Ye Qiu approached, smiling.

She finally noticed that the man in front of her was incredibly handsome.

She finally noticed that the man in front of her was so handsome, and his extraordinary temperament made a blush appear on her face. Without any neglect, she placed her hands in front of her and slightly bent her waist.

"Esteemed sir, there are two ways to enter here. Firstly, you need to pass the auction qualification certification. The qualifications are divided into different levels, with the lowest threshold being the possession of assets worth ten thousand gold soul coins."

Glancing upwards, she added, "The second way is for you to consign an item for auction in our auction house. After our appraiser evaluates the item, if its value exceeds one thousand gold soul coins, you will qualify to participate in the auction. If the auction is successful, we will deduct a layer of the transaction price as a handling fee."

"Oh, I see. Could you recommend one of your esteemed appraisers? I have an item that needs to be auctioned."

"Ah? Of course, no problem. Follow me~" She gestured with an inviting hand, swaying her willowy waist and taking small steps as she walked towards the interior.

Ye Qiu followed with Xiao Lan. As they passed by, the girls on both sides couldn't help stealing a few more glances at him.

"Brother, the young ladies are peeking at you!" Xiao Lan's voice, though not loud, was enough for others to hear. Not only did they awkwardly lower their heads, but Ye Qiu also felt a bit embarrassed.

"They're looking at you; after all, you're so cute~" He pinched her cheek and nodded apologetically to the girls on both sides.

"Look, their faces are all red... Mmm!"

Ye Qiu directly covered her mouth, giving her a stern look, preventing her from saying more.

Following the girls, they walked through a long corridor. On both sides, marble was carved with dragons and phoenixes, and there were reliefs of various spirit beasts. Every few steps, there were glass cabinets displaying various rare treasures, grand and imposing.

"Hehe." Laughter came from the leading girl ahead. "The little miss is truly too cute!"

"Thank you, miss. You're also very beautiful. But isn't it tiring to walk like this, swaying your hips?"

Hearing Xiao Lan's words, the girl's steps paused, her face turning embarrassed and red. Her walk lost its previous rhythm, and her posture became somewhat awkward, losing the earlier elegance.

"Oh!"

"Hehe, children speak without restraint, children speak without restraint, hahaha!" Ye Qiu chuckled dryly and directly knocked on Xiao Lan's head.

"If you speak nonsense, brother will sell you!"

"Ah! No, no! Xiao Lan won't speak anymore!" Biting her lip, she clung to Ye Qiu's neck, acting coquettishly for a while before settling down.

Ye Qiu was led into a hall, where seven old men sat across from him, each wearing a single-lens eyeglass. Their cloudy eyes flickered with shrewdness.

"I wonder what the young brother needs to auction?" Among them, the older gentleman gestured for Ye Qiu to sit.

Ye Qiu produced a small brocade box from his hands.

"This is a headbone from a soul beast, the Four-Thousand-Year Feline Skyblue Snowing Wind Tiger!"

Bam! Placing the box in the center, he pushed it towards the opposite side.

"Soul bone!" Several people stood up hastily; after all, a soul bone was a rare thing.

The leading person carefully opened the brocade box, and a green light reflected on his face. "Wow, it really is a soul bone, and a precious headbone at that!"

Apart from externally attached soul bones, the most valuable pieces in a set of six soul bones were the torso bone and the head bone.

Carefully cradling it, he observed it with a single-eyed gaze.

"How is it?" When they put it down, Ye Qiu looked at them.

"Young sir, or esteemed guest, we are prepared to start the bidding at one million gold soul coins. Is that acceptable?" The leading appraiser, after bowing to Ye Qiu, conveyed their opinion.

"Wow! One million, brother!" Xiao Lan exclaimed excitedly, shaking Ye Qiu's head.

"Of course, no problem!" Such a huge sum of money did make Ye Qiu's heart flutter a bit.

"Very well, take this young sir to the red VIP area!"

"Alright! Sir, please follow me! I will take both of you to complete the relevant procedures." Under the old man's instructions, the same girl led Ye Qiu.

She didn't expect that the young man she brought in would have such wealth. It seemed her commission for this month was definitely not going to be meager!

(End of this chapter)