Chapter 597
Ying Bing woke up in her room at Ziyang Mansion, her lips pursed as she twisted the head of a large doll and retrieved a few pieces of clothing she dared not wash.
Taking advantage of the fact that her family was still asleep, she made her way to the water tank.
Gu Xueqin had just risen early, carrying a basket full of clothes ready to wash, when she spotted a busy figure by the water tank.
“Xiao Bing, just in time! I need to wash some clothes too, so hand them over to me.”
“Aunt Gu, I can manage on my own, and I’m almost done,” Ying Bing replied, her expression calm and gentle.
But upon closer inspection, one could see her eyelashes fluttering and her ears turning red, clearly hesitant to give anything away.
The saliva from Han Xianzi had dripped onto her clothes, a matter she wouldn’t dare let Li Mo know about.
“Xiao Bing, don’t be too virtuous... be careful that brat doesn’t get too full of himself,” Gu Xueqin sighed.
“He... he is a bit...” Ying Bing didn’t need to guess; she already knew what kind of undergarment Li Mo was referring to.
If one were to wear that while soaking in a bath...
The system’s ranking hadn’t arrived yet; perhaps the punishment would have to be completed ahead of time...
---
Meanwhile, on the other side.
As the sky gradually brightened, the massive pearl atop the building released the morning light first.
Today was the day of the Dongzhu auction, marking the peak of the Qizhen Haishi event. The southwest corner of Dongzhu Tower was chained up and pulled open by a sea beast, resembling a music box that had just been opened, revealing its heart to the sea.
The first floor displayed the auction items, a place for people to gather and watch, while the second and third floors housed private rooms.
Qiao Ziyu arrived with a group, his face weary.
“Master, the dogs of the entire market now think we’re the real dogs; we can’t find anything,” he said.
“Enough! Let’s not speak of this again!” Qiao Ziyu clenched his fists, his face darkening with a cold snort.
Even a pig would have noticed something was off.
The bones of the Tongwei were extraordinarily strange; how could they have been taken away by a dog and still not found? Clearly, there was something wrong from the start!
But he didn’t dare say it outright.
He had spent two hundred Xuanjing on a pig’s trotter, and it had even been gnawed on by someone else. The Xuanjing was secondary; it was the loss of face that he couldn’t afford!
“From the moment I took that first cut, I should have realized something was wrong. I was careless!”
As Qiao Ziyu fumed, three figures approached.
The leader was tall and handsome, exuding a regal aura as he moved.
The moment Qiao Ziyu saw him, it felt as if his mind had exploded; he seemed to have found the answer.
It was him!
From the first cut, he had fallen into the other’s trap!
“Li Shaoxia, you have quite the skill,” Qiao Ziyu suppressed his anger, forcing a somewhat sinister smile.
“Hmm? Have we met?” Li Mo looked puzzled, then seemed to recognize him: “Ah, you’re the young master of Lingxi Sect. Have you found anything you fancy at the auction?”
Like something worth two hundred Xuanjing...
“...”
Qiao Ziyu could barely hold himself together, forcing a smile: “Hehe... the things I set my sights on usually end up in my hands. If we happen to both desire the same item, I hope you won’t take offense.”
“At an auction, if it’s not something everyone loves, it wouldn’t be put up for bid. It’s all about skill,” Li Mo replied with a smile, seemingly unfazed by the barbs in Qiao Ziyu’s words.
“Ahem...” The elder steward squinted and coughed lightly: “Rules are rules. Our sect is in the same domain, so we’re practically neighbors. Let’s not ruin the atmosphere.”
Elder Qian nodded: “That’s a fair point. Haven’t had breakfast yet, have you? Please, allow me to treat you.”
Elder Qian was quite polite, even offering to treat the other party to a meal.
“No need, you go ahead first.”
The two exchanged pleasantries, and in the end, it was the Lingxi Sect group that entered the venue first.
As Qiao Ziyu glanced back, he muttered angrily:
“Too much! That fraud of his could even fool Dongzhu Tower.”
Unfortunately, he had no evidence, and confronting the person in charge of Dongzhu Tower would be futile.
Chomp, chomp...
“Stop eating, for heaven’s sake!”
When Qiao Ziyu turned around, he saw the elder steward still munching away.
---
Chapter 692: What Li Mo Wants
“Master, you still need to eat. Getting angry will only harm yourself and won’t change anything,” the elder steward said, tossing aside the pig’s trotter with a light laugh. “If we’ve suffered a loss, we’ll just have to find a way to get it back.”
“I wonder what Li Mo is here for at the auction...” Qiao Ziyu mused, feeling the Xumi object in his pocket.
Inside were eight hundred Xuanjing, a long-term accumulation from the sect.
“Master, take a look at this,” the elder steward said, pulling out a semi-transparent glass vial containing a Gu worm.
“When did you get a Shiyun worm?”
This was a peculiar Gu worm, harmless yet difficult to guard against. It could sense emotions and change color based on the intensity of those emotions, much like the high-grade sea silk it was fed.
“With this, we’ll know what Li Mo truly desires,” the elder steward smiled.
“Great! With this, we can drive up the price of whatever he’s set his sights on! I’ll make sure to avenge that two hundred Xuanjing today!”
---
“What’s the first auction item?”
Li Mo had also entered the venue, sitting in the front row alongside Elder Qian.
The place was packed, with at least six or seven thousand people. In reality, far more were interested in the auction, but only a few met the entry requirements.
Each person received a small jade-colored token upon entry, which they could raise to bid on items they fancied.
“Welcome to the Dongzhu Tower auction! This year, we’ve uncovered several relics from the seabed, and there are many rare treasures that are sure to satisfy everyone,” announced Lan Tian, dressed in a light blue sea silk gown, her blue hair styled in a bun.
“Isn’t this girl usually shy about showing herself in crowds?” Elder Qian wondered.
This mermaid princess was not one for large gatherings; she had been quite nervous during the ‘Golden Mountain Subsidy’ event.
“I thought she was just afraid of crowds at first, but I later realized it’s not quite that,” Li Mo shook his head, exasperated. “She... actually has a phobia of crowded places, especially when there are too many people.”
Elder Qian: “?”
What kind of ailment was that?
Though he hadn’t heard of it, it wasn’t hard to understand...
“How did you manage to help her?”
“Oh, I showed her my Xumi object.”
“Does that really work?”
“It’s filled to the brim with gold.”
“...You’re a miracle worker, Xiao Mo.”
Elder Qian glanced at Lan Tian, who appeared much more confident on stage now, and suddenly found this treatment method quite reasonable.
“The first auction item is a fish pearl from the fifth realm deep-sea mastiff fish. Wearing it is beneficial for tempering the body; it’s a holy item for physical cultivation. It can also be crushed to significantly enhance one’s physique for a short period!”
“The starting bid is eight Xuanjing.”
Lan Tian unveiled the red cloth and earnestly introduced the item.
This caught the attention of many.
Everyone hoped to strengthen their bodies, but physical cultivation was one of the most grueling forms of martial arts. Even if this item wasn’t cheap, it stirred the hearts of many.
“What do you think? Does he want this item?” Qiao Ziyu asked the elder steward, sitting at the end of the front row.
“The Shiyun worm hasn’t changed color...” the elder steward replied, puzzled. “I heard Li Mo isn’t physically strong and primarily focuses on body cultivation, right?”
But the Shiyun worm was still white, indicating Li Mo had no interest at all...
“Li Shaoxia bids first! Eight Xuanjing.”
At that moment, Lan Tian’s voice rang out again.
“If he’s not interested, why is he bidding?” Qiao Ziyu and the elder steward exchanged confused glances. Could it be that the Shiyun worm was malfunctioning?
Though they didn’t know why, since Li Mo wanted it, Qiao Ziyu had no intention of letting him have it easily.
“Lingxi Sect’s young master bids nine!”
“Li Shaoxia bids...”
“Lingxi Sect’s young master bids...”
Initially, many participated, but gradually it became just the two of them bidding against each other.
In the end, after some thought, Li Mo decided to give up.
This item was of no use to him; his physique was already strong enough. Buying it would only mean storing it in the Qingyuan Sect’s warehouse.
“Looks like Qiao Ziyu is deliberately driving up the price,” Elder Qian remarked.
“Don’t mind him,” Li Mo had anticipated this.
“Hmph, a small victory for me,” Qiao Ziyu felt a sense of satisfaction.
“Master, this thing is worth at most fifteen Xuanjing, and you just... spent thirty!”
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