Chapter 54
Chapter 54 Auction
The midday sun shined down upon the Huayun Pavilion, making it appear even more majestic and grand than usual . Even thought it was scorching hot, countless people still flocked over .
At the front of the Huayun Pavilion was a huge auction hall that was already completely full . The people that were capable of being invited over were all extremely rich, had high statuses, or were true experts .
“Haha, this is my first time attending the Huayun Pavilion’s auction . It really is exciting . ” Shou Hou was in a private room looking out towards the outside eagerly .
Shi Feng, Fatty Yu and the others weren’t much better than Shou Hou at controlling their excitement . They could see out of their glass room, allowing them to clearly see every single thing that was happening outside, but no one was able to see into their glass room .
They could see all the famous and powerful people within the capital . Normally those were people they could only look up at, but now those people could only sit amongst the crowd while they sat in private rooms above them .
“We only got here because of Long Chen’s fame . Otherwise we probably would never get to have this kind of treatment in our entire lifetime . ” Shi Feng sighed .
The current Shi Feng had already made a complete recovery . But despite that, Shi Feng had still never received such a hard blow .
After that loss last time, Shi Feng had worked hard to recover and managed to profit . His determination had become even stronger and he had broken through repeatedly, advancing to the third Heavenstage of Blood Condensation . He was only one step from entering the mid Blood Condensation realm .
Even Shi Feng’s father was merely at the mid Blood Condensation realm . He had placed great expectations on Shi Feng .
Actually the reason Shi Feng was able to advance so quickly was both because of his own effort and also because of Long Chen’s medicinal pills .
Shi Feng’s defeat and suffering had been due to his relationship with Long Chen . That had caused Long Chen to feel a bit ashamed and he had secretly given Shi Feng a Foundation Strengthening Pill .
That had allowed him to completely stabilize and steady his foundation . The powerful medicinal effect had allowed him to easily break through his shackles, allowing him to repeatedly advance .
“Right, why would the Huayun Pavilion treat you so importantly brother Long? Why would they give you such a luxurious room?” Shi Feng was a bit puzzled .
The auction hall could fit tens of thousands of people, but there were only just over ten private rooms . Those were reserved for exceedingly important guests . It was reasonable to say that Long Chen had yet to reach the position where he was qualified for a private room .
“You think they gave us a private room for nothing? Once the auction starts we’ll have to start spending some crazy money,” laughed Long Chen .
“That’s not possible! Everything at this yearly auction is incredibly valuable . Even if we sold ourselves, we still wouldn’t be able to buy anything,” said Shi Feng .
“Hmph, we couldn’t auction off you even if we wanted to . With your figure, it’d be better to sell you in pieces,” joked Fatty Yu . “We’re with brother Long! What are you worried about?”
Long Chen laughed, “Don’t worry . No one’s going to come to kick us out . Oh? Even he’s come . ”
What surprised Long Chen was that he suddenly saw a familiar figure – Xia Changfeng .
Long Chen ground his teeth . That bastard still hadn’t left! The current Xia Changfeng had already returned to his free and easy manner . He was currently laughing and talking with crown prince Chu Yang .
Behind them was also a graceful woman – the one Long Chen had defeated in a pill battle, Xia Baichi .
There were also several guards around them . Those guards were all young and under their thirties, but despite that, they were all Blood Condensation experts .
But when Long Chen’s gaze fell on one of those men, he felt a familiar spiritual fluctuation .
That fluctuation caused him to think back to the beginning when he had defeated Li Hao . A man in a bamboo hat had used a secret weapon to kill Li Hao to prevent him from leaking any secrets .
He had been wearing a hat that had covered his face and had moved extremely quickly, but as an alchemist, Long Chen’s Spiritual Strength was extremely great .
He didn’t need to see that person’s face . He could rely solely on just that spiritual fluctuation to identify that person . That was because each person’s spiritual fluctuation was different . This was a special ability of alchemists, similar to a scent dog’s nose . He could not be mistaken .
“So he’s actually one of the crown prince’s people . ”
Long Chen’s eyes narrowed . Could Chu Yang be the mastermind behind all this? But even as he came up with this thought, the crown prince had already brought Xia Changfeng into another private room .
“Look, the fourth prince has come too!” said Shou Hou .
Looking through the glass walls, Long Chen saw that the fourth prince had also come with another group of princes . However, he didn’t see Chu Feng . Most likely he was holed up cultivating .
The fourth prince and the other princes also entered a private room, however it was a different private room than the one the crown prince and Xia Changfeng had entered .
“Hehe, today we get to feel how the princes feel every day,” joked Shou Hou . For them to be able to also sit in a private room just like people on the level of the princes was a very great honor .
They all knew that the reason the princes could enter a private room was because of their high statuses and how much money they possessed .
At this moment, a slender man walked into the auction hall . He had a fair complexion, and despite being already in his forties, he still appeared very handsome .
But that handsomeness seemed rather feminine . For this kind of femininity to appear on a man caused Long Chen to feel a bit cold .
As soon as that person entered, the noisy hall immediately became much more suppressed . Many people completely shut their mouths .
“That person is one of the most powerful experts in the Phoenix Cry Empire . Ying Zhao the Hero Marquis,” said Shi Feng with some difficulty .
The Hero Marquis Ying Zhao, the Martial Marquis Wu Yi, and the Border Suppression Marquis Long Tianxiao were the three top experts in the Phoenix Cry Empire . They were known as Ying Hou, Wu Hou and Zhenyuan Hou .
Long Chen’s heart shook and he turned to get a better look at that feminine man . That person was just as famous as his own father .
At the same time he recalled what Chu Yao had told him about Ying Hou being in charge of their training . He didn’t know if it was he who had given Long Chen his own affliction .
As Long Chen was examining Ying Hou, Ying Hou suddenly raised his head to look over at his direction . A ray of light shot out of his narrow eyes and his gaze seemed to penetrate straight through the wall .
Long Chen’s heart jumped . His perception truly was sharp, worthy of being one of the top experts in the Phoenix Cry Empire . Although he wasn’t a Pill Cultivator, his sensitivity and perception were shocking .
After glancing over at their private room, Ying Hou acted as if nothing had happened and slowly walked into another private room .
A couple more shocking people also arrived one after another and were allowed to enter a private room . According to Shi Feng, those people included a rich merchant as well as some authorities .
Long Chen nodded . The Huayun Pavilion’s business required them to auction off their wares at high prices . Having such high-end customers was completely normal for them .
“Welcome everyone to our Huayun Pavilion’s yearly meeting . I am the chief auctioneer of the Huayun Pavilion . ”
A flowery voice rang out and drew the attention of the hall . The curtain on the stage was slowly pulled apart, revealing a gorgeous lady .
That lady immediately drew out the crowds startled cries . Her beauty was absolutely shocking .
She appeared around twenty-five years old . Her elegant narrow eyes and exquisite face were extremely seductive .
The most extreme thing about her was that the skintight clothes she was wearing were rather open, allowing people to see the pale tender skin beneath .
Perhaps if that had been all it would have been fine, but most frightening of all was her deep cleavage that seemed to invite people to jump in .
But since she was standing on the stage, it was impossible to get a good view . Quite a few people stealthily stood up to their tiptoes before helplessly sitting back down depressed . They looked up at the private boxes that had a high vantage point and couldn’t help being jealous .
The eyes of Fatty Yu, Shou Hou and the others almost jumped out . Even Shi Feng’s gaze turned a bit lifeless . They few of them were completely plastered to the clear wall . Long Chen was even a bit worried they might press too hard against the wall and tumble down .
But Long Chen also acknowledged that this woman was extremely beautiful . Although she didn’t compare to Meng Qi, she might even be a bit more attractive than Chu Yao .
Of course, while part of this was due to her innate charm, another part was due to her mastery of dressing herself up to accentuate her advantages . With this skintight clothing that basically hid nothing, her beauty was practically destructive, elevating her from just sixty percent beauty to over a hundred percent .
Long Chen patted Fatty Yu’s shoulders and scolded, “Can you guys grow up a bit?”
Shi Feng and the others all recovered themselves and quickly stepped back . Fatty Yu lightly said, “Brother Long, don’t worry . The wall’s very sturdy . ”
“I’m not worried about the wall, I’m worried that if you keep looking then drool might cover the floors . ” Long Chen pointed to a pool of saliva .
Their faces all turned red and they hastily returned to their seats . They also couldn’t help admiring Long Chen’s self-control .
That woman was clearly already used to the crowd’s reaction and didn’t seem uncomfortable at all .
Instead, she actually announced grandly, “I am Yao Niqian and you can call me Niqian . I hope all of you will look after me as I take charge of this time’s auction . ”
After saying this, Yao Niqian gracefully curtsied slightly, and the landscape that originally could only be seen from the private boxes was revealed to all .
A huge uproar immediately exploded from the crowd below . But unfortunately for them, Yao Niqian’s movements were extremely quick . Before everyone could even completely react, she had already returned to her dignified standing position .
Long Chen’s admiration of the Huayun Pavilion only continued to grow . From Fu Gui, to Qian Fu, to the current head auctioneer, each of them were completely focused on making more money . It would be more direct to just call their auction the ‘Give Me Your Money Auction’ .
But Long Chen had to admit that this Yao Niqian truly was skillful . She was already completely able to control men’s hearts .
Her enticing movements, her quick reveal before hiding it again . . . such a visual evoked all the men’s desire .
The auction hadn’t even begun, but many of the younger people were already starting to breath heavily .
Now Long Chen remembered what Fu Gui had told him at the beginning: through their auction’s embellishments, all their wares would be sold at an incredibly high price . Long Chen now believed it .
Looking at the scene, everyone was following along to Yao Niqian’s pace . She smiled and waved her hand; the center of the stage slowly opened, and a stone platform rose up .