32: Chapter 32 Puppet

Wang Shouren frowned slightly, his gaze falling upon the emblem hanging at the entrance of that private room on the second floor.

With dark iron as the base and scarlet fire as the patterns, it was the insignia of the Ning Artifact Refining Shop.

Others might not know, but he was crystal clear that this was the property of the Ning Family in Xiaoshan County.

Shortly after, someone else bid six hundred Spirit Stones, right when Zhiyao thought this lot would finally avoid failing to sell.

"Six hundred and ten Spirit Stones, and I hope everyone will give the Ning Family of Xiaoshan County some Face."

Zhiyao frowned, suppressing her inner displeasure, and said gently, "This Fellow Daoist, each bid increase cannot be less than one hundred Spirit Stones."

The owner of that shrill voice was silent for a moment, but instead of raising the bid, he repeated it.

"I said, six hundred and ten Spirit Stones. If this item isn't sold to me, you won't be able to sell it at all."

Zhiyao's expression sank slightly.

This was an auction, not a roadside stall. Speaking like this was clearly showing no Face to her Wanbao Pavilion.

Furthermore, the people sitting in that private room were most likely from the Ning Family.

The Ning Family and the Wang Family were at odds with each other, and in the market of Wanshan County, they had never taken Wanbao Pavilion seriously. Today's act was practically a blatant slap to Zhiyao's Face.

"This Fellow Daoist, the auction rules—"

A clear voice drifted down from the third floor, interrupting her words.

"Seven hundred Spirit Stones."

The entire venue fell silent.

Wang Shouren leaned against the railing, toying with an empty spiritual teacup in his hand. His gaze swept indifferently past the private room on the second floor, his voice not loud, yet it clearly transmitted into the ears of every single person present.

"If the Ning Family doesn't have that many Spirit Stones, don't come out and make a fool of yourselves."

Zhiyao suddenly raised her head to look toward the third floor, locking eyes with the gaze cast down by Wang Shouren.

That young man nodded slightly, giving her a reassuring look.

Her chest grew warm, and she almost shed tears.

The meaning of these words couldn't be clearer: you give me Face, and naturally I will give you Face.

Those items won at reserve prices just now were favors she owed him; stepping up to back her up at this moment was repaying this sentiment.

After a silence of several breaths in that second-floor private room, that shrill voice rang out again, this time raising the bid properly.

"Eight hundred Spirit Stones."

"Nine hundred." Wang Shouren pursued closely.

"One thousand." The other party did not back down at all.

"Eleven hundred." Wang Shouren reported almost immediately following.

The two went back and forth, and the price climbed step by step.

The Loose Cultivators in the main hall had long since been dumbfounded, their heads tilting back and forth between the third floor and the second floor's private room until their necks were almost wrenched off.

The speed of this bidding looked like they were competing against each other.

"Thirteen hundred!" The other party's voice finally carried a hint of gnashing teeth.

Wang Shouren did not continue to follow up.

He leaned against the railing, gently spinning the teacup in his hand, his gaze crossing over the railing to land on the tightly shut pearl curtains of that second-floor private room.

After a long while, he muttered softly to himself.

"This person doesn't look like they are bidding just to contend for Face; rather, it looks like they are determined to get this hanshui earth fiend."

"Thirteen hundred Spirit Stones once, thirteen hundred Spirit Stones twice."

Wang Shouren sneered, placing the teacup in his hand onto the railing, and shifted his gaze toward the auction stage.

"Fairy Zhiyao, I wonder if what you said earlier still counts?"

Zhiyao was stunned for a moment, but quickly realized he was talking about that compensation item.

Her heart skipped a beat, but her expression remained calm as she smiled and nodded toward the third floor: "Naturally, it counts."

"Good!" Wang Shouren said in a clear voice, "Two thousand Spirit Stones!"

The entire venue erupted in an uproar.

The Loose Cultivators in the first-floor hall all simultaneously drew in a breath of cold air, then immediately boiled over like a bursting pot.

An old gray-robed Daoist pulled on his beard and shook his head repeatedly.

"Buying a strand of Earth Fiend Qi for two thousand Spirit Stones? Is this Young Lord of the Wang Family crazy, or does he have so many Spirit Stones that they're burning his hands?"

Someone nearby immediately let out a scoff.

"What do you know? His true intent doesn't lie in the wine. With the Ning Family being so arrogant just now, the Wang Family Young Lord is smashing Faces with Spirit Stones. Can't you tell?"

The fat Cultivator from earlier shrank into a corner, wiping cold sweat as he muttered in a low voice.

"Two thousand Spirit Stones... I laughed at him earlier for not being able to afford fifty. I must have been truly blind..."

The tall, thin man beside him had long since turned ashen-faced, unable to say a single word.

"Two thousand Spirit Stones once, two thousand Spirit Stones twice."

Zhiyao's gaze swept back and forth swiftly between the second-floor private room and the third-floor railing.

After a long silence in the second-floor private room, that shrill voice finally squeezed out a sentence through gnashing teeth: "Good, Wang Shouren, I, Ning Xishan, will remember you. The Ning Family is not finished with you."

Hearing the three characters Ning Xishan, Wang Shouren finally remembered why this voice sounded so strange.

Leaning against the railing, the corners of his mouth curled into a mocking arc.

"Oh, I was wondering who it was with such a shrill voice. So it's eunuch Ning whose testicles were kicked to pieces by my third younger brother."

The entire venue fell dead silent for an instant, and then burst into an irrepressible roar of laughter.

This matter had spread around Wanshan County for several years, yet no one had ever dared to speak it out loud in public.

Back when the two families had a conflict and the juniors sparred, the direct descendant of the Ning Family, Ning Xishan, secretly used a foul trick, only to have his lower body kicked and exploded on the spot by Wang Yaowu's son, Wang Shouyi.

Afterwards, the Ning Family kept the news tightly under wraps, claiming publicly only that Ning Xishan had suffered a deviation while practicing cultivation.

At this moment, Wang Shouren spilled this matter out in front of half of Wanshan County's prominent Cultivators. The Ning Family's Face was practically thrown all the way to grandmother's house.

The pearl curtains of the second-floor private room trembled violently, and that shrill voice became so piercing it almost changed tone.

"Wang Shouren, very well! You bought this one, let's see what you'll use to contend with me for the next treasure!"

Wang Shouren let out a scornful scoff: "A scoundrel of petty and despicable means, you think you're worthy of contending with me? My Wang Family is certainly not as trashy as your Ning Family."

"Two thousand Spirit Stones thrice—sold!"

Zhiyao's auction mallet fell heavily, her voice carrying a trace of undisguised gratification.

She raised her head to look toward the third floor, cupping her hands with a beaming smile, "Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Wang. This hanshui earth fiend belongs to you."

"Not at all, many thanks to Fairy Zhiyao."

Wang Shouren smiled faintly, not taking out any Spirit Stones.

Both of them understood in their hearts that this auction lot was the compensation previously agreed upon. The so-called two thousand Spirit Stones was merely a price tag called out for outsiders to hear. Since it was free of charge anyway, quoting it higher would only make the Ning Family look a bit more unsightly.

Zhiyao was more than happy for this. The hanshui earth fiend was originally difficult to sell and would likely have failed to sell if placed in the auction. Using it as a favor to exchange for the Wang Family's goodwill was a hundred times better than having it smash into her hands.

Both parties were extremely happy.

Zhiyao put away the auction mallet, her gaze inadvertently sweeping past the Ning Family's private room on the second floor, before quietly transmitting a voice message directly into Wang Shouren's ear.

"Fellow Daoist Wang, you must pay attention to the next auction lot. The Ning Family usually doesn't come to Wanshan County to participate in auctions; making a special trip here this time should be precisely for this very last item."

Wang Shouren's brow twitched slightly.

He had just been busy calculating matters concerning the hanshui earth fiend and indeed hadn't paid attention to what other auction lots followed.

Reminded by Zhiyao, he couldn't help but straighten his body, his gaze falling upon the side door of the auction stage.

Several strong men were jointly moving a colossal object covered by a red cloth onto the stage.

That thing was extremely heavy. Four Body Refining Middle Stage strong men carried it as they walked up the stairs, every step causing the stage boards to creak loudly.

Beneath the red cloth, the cold light of metal faintly leaked through, and its outline resembled a crouching giant wolf standing as tall as a person.

"This is the grand finale lot of this auction."

Zhiyao's voice rang out on the stage, and she personally lifted the red cloth, "qijia wolf puppet."

Below the stage, there was a moment of silence before it exploded with a loud buzz.

"qijia wolf puppet? What is that?"

"You didn't do your homework! This is a Puppet beast!" A goat-bearded Cultivator stood up in excitement, "Wanbao Pavilion actually managed to get their hands on such a good thing!"

"This thing is priceless and hard to find; I've roamed the market for twenty years and have never seen a real one even once..."