"Insulting Shrek Academy? Me? Never!"
Xiao Hongchen blinked innocently and shook his head. "Wasn't I just giving you guys some friendly advice? With what happened between Dai Huabin and Yuhao, you clearly lost but refused to admit it. Isn't that the proud tradition of Shrek Academy? I'm helping promote your school's spirit—you should be thanking me!"
Jiang Shengyu and Jiang Qingtong both turned to look at the now endlessly chatty Xiao Hongchen.
How had they never noticed before that this guy could talk so much?
People were beginning to gather around. Although neither group was wearing school uniforms or anything else that would identify them, Wang Yan knew full well that this wasn't a place to linger.
Especially now that Xiao Hongchen had openly mentioned the name Shrek Academy.
Wang Yan took a deep breath, suppressing the anger boiling in his chest, and said to Xiao Hongchen, "Xiao Hongchen! Regarding what happened to Huabin, we'll let it go. And we do appreciate your assistance in the Ming Dou Mountain Range. We have other matters to attend to, so we'll take our leave."
With that, he turned back and signaled to Bei Bei and the others. Without engaging further, they bypassed Jiang Shengyu and Xiao Hongchen and quickly walked off. The group rounded the corner at the end of the street and vanished into the crowd.
Once the Shrek team left, the curious onlookers gradually began to disperse as well.
Xiao Hongchen clapped Jiang Shengyu on the shoulder and grinned. "So, how was my acting?"
Jiang Shengyu gave a heartfelt sigh. "You could star in a drama series. A real celebrity in the making."
"What's a 'drama series'?" Xiao Hongchen blinked, clearly confused.
"You'll find out someday." Jiang Shengyu patted him on the shoulder, then said to him and Huo Yuhao, "Let's go."
"Go where?" Xiao Hongchen asked.
"Wherever the Shrek people went, we'll go too," Jiang Shengyu replied.
"But do you know where they went? They've already disappeared—how are we supposed to catch up with them?" Xiao Hongchen pressed.
"I know. Just follow me," Jiang Shengyu said with a wave.
The three of them walked in the direction the Shrek team had gone. After turning through several blocks, they stopped in front of a grand and opulent building.
"An auction house?" Xiao Hongchen looked up at the large sign above the door. "They went in here?"
"Mm." Jiang Shengyu nodded.
"Do you have a second martial soul that's a dog or something? How else are you tracking them so accurately?" Xiao Hongchen asked, looking at him suspiciously.
Jiang Shengyu: "…"
Under Jiang Shengyu's lead, the three entered the auction house. The venue required asset verification upon entry, but for someone of Jiang Shengyu's wealth, this was a non-issue.
The massive auction hall was packed wall to wall with people, yet Jiang Shengyu still managed to locate the Shrek Academy group and led his companions to sit nearby.
Wang Yan was visibly startled to see them again so soon.
Jiang Shengyu greeted him with a smile, "What a coincidence! Fancy seeing you here, Teacher Wang, and everyone from Shrek Academy."
"What are you doing here?" Wang Yan asked, frowning. He subconsciously glanced over at Jiang Qingtong. If she hadn't been with him the entire time, he might've suspected she was secretly feeding information to her brother.
Of course, no one could've imagined that Jiang Qingtong and Jiang Shengyu were, on a soul-deep level, essentially one and the same.
Jiang Shengyu chuckled and said, "Teacher Wang, that's an odd question. This is a public auction, not Shrek Academy's restricted grounds. Why shouldn't we be here?"
Wang Yan stared at Jiang Shengyu's smiling face but didn't press the issue further.
The auction was about to begin, and this wasn't the time for unnecessary trouble. He was here to broaden the students' horizons, not to start a confrontation with the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy.
Since Wang Yan didn't respond, Jiang Shengyu didn't push either. Instead, he turned to Huo Yuhao and said, "Yuhao, if you see anything you want later, just bid for it. We're not short on money."
As the junior disciple of the Hall Master of Mingde Hall—the largest soul tool merchant organization on the continent—and the "Godfather" of civilian-use soul tools, Jiang Shengyu's personal wealth was at the pinnacle of the pyramid. Forget bidding on a single item—he could probably buy out the entire auction if he wanted.
The auctioneer began showcasing the day's items: soul bones, soul tools, and various heavenly treasures. Though each drew gasps from the crowd, they didn't spark much interest from Jiang Shengyu and his companions.
As prodigies backed by the full might of the Sun Moon Empire, they'd long been used to rare resources. Soul tools held no appeal, soul bones were worth a glance, and heavenly herbs—they'd seen better.
Until the auctioneer brought out the final item—a Soul-Devouring Blade, announcing it as the highlight of the event.
Only then did Xiao Hongchen and Huo Yuhao stir with interest.
Coming from the Sun Moon Empire, they knew full well how tempting a List-Ranked Engraving Knife was to a soul engineer. These knives were essential for carving the core formation arrays in soul tools.
But Huo Yuhao's interest wasn't just about the tool itself. In his spiritual sea, Electrolux had spoken.
He said only one sentence: "Yuhao, win that blade."
"I must have that carving knife," Huo Yuhao declared to Jiang Shengyu and Xiao Hongchen.
Listening to the auctioneer describe the Soul-Devouring Blade, Xiao Hongchen frowned. "Yuhao, this thing sounds dangerous. Why don't you pick something else? If it's just a carving knife you want, we can ask Lord Silvermoon or my grandfather to get you a better one."
Huo Yuhao shook his head and said in a low voice, "I have a way to deal with the blade. Trust me, Senior Hongchen."
Hearing that, Xiao Hongchen studied him for a moment—then raised his hand and called out:
"One hundred thousand gold soul coins!"
The crowd had gone quiet moments earlier, spooked by the blade's infamous reputation. Even the auctioneer had started to suspect the item would go unsold.
Xiao Hongchen's sudden bid was like a stone dropped into a still lake, sending ripples throughout the entire hall.
All eyes turned toward him.
The auctioneer's excitement surged—after all, the higher the final bid, the greater her commission.
"This gentleman has bid one hundred thousand gold soul coins! Any other offers?" she announced, voice trembling slightly with glee.
The audience looked around at one another. No one made another bid.
Just as the auctioneer began her countdown, a new voice rang out—
"Two hundred thousand gold soul coins!"
The bidder was Jiang Qingtong.
Her action shocked everyone: the Shrek Academy group, Xiao Hongchen, even Huo Yuhao.
Xiao Hongchen turned around and looked at Jiang Shengyu. In a low voice only they could hear, he asked, "What's going on? Is this part of the act too?"
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