Chapter 353: Chapter 352: How to Settle This?
"Shen Haoran? Who’s that? Is he with the Celestial Martial Auction House?" Hearing Hua Zhiming’s shout, the surrounding crowd began to murmur.
"I’ve never heard of anyone by that name in Divine Martial City. Did he offend someone from the Hua Family? He must have a death wish!"
"Who dares cause a ruckus in front of my Celestial Martial Auction House!" Just as the crowd was whispering among themselves, a gruff voice boomed from within the auction house, drowning out Hua Zhiming’s shouts. A group of Martial Artists then surged out, with a middle-aged man at their center.
"Second Young Master Hua, this is the Celestial Martial Auction House. Are you here to cause trouble?" The man who came out was the manager of the auction house, and he was glaring angrily at Hua Zhiming.
Seeing the man, Hua Zhiming cupped his fist and said, "Manager Luo, I’m not here to cause trouble. It’s just that some blind fool offended my Hua Family and is now hiding in your esteemed establishment. I just want to call him out. I trust Manager Luo won’t poke his nose where it doesn’t belong!"
"Hmph, the Celestial Martial Auction House has never involved itself in these kinds of messes," Manager Luo snorted. "However, you will not act so brazenly before our gates. If you’re looking for someone, wait for him to come out. I will not permit you to stand here shouting!"
Hearing this, Hua Zhiming slowly straightened up. He gave Manager Luo a cool glance and said coldly, "I’m sorry, Manager Luo, but I am getting my hands on him today!"
With that, Hua Zhiming took another deep breath and bellowed into the Celestial Martial Auction House, "Shen Haoran, get your ass out here!"
Seeing Hua Zhiming completely ignore his warning, Manager Luo’s expression darkened. Just as he was about to forcibly remove him, a calm voice drifted out from inside the auction house. "Whose dog is that? Did someone forget to put it on a leash? It’s barking its head off out here, disturbing the peace."
At the sound of this voice, everyone turned to look inside the Celestial Martial Auction House. Several figures slowly emerged from the shadows. Leading them was a young man in black martial attire, followed by three devastatingly beautiful women. In an instant, all eyes were fixed on them.
Hua Zhiming’s face had darkened the moment he heard Shen Haoran’s taunt, but when he saw the three beauties behind him, his eyes immediately lit up with a greedy glint.
As an Inner Sect Disciple of the Hehuan Sect, he naturally practiced a dual Cultivation Technique. The more beautiful a woman, the more alluring she was to him. The three women behind Shen Haoran were each unique, and two of them were clearly powerful. To Hua Zhiming, such powerful and beautiful women were a fatal temptation.
"Hey! Where are you pointing those dog eyes!" Murong Wanqing snapped, her face dark with displeasure as she saw Hua Zhiming’s lewd gaze darting between her, Luo Xiaowen, and Xianxian.
Startled by Murong Wanqing’s shout, Hua Zhiming came back to his senses. He then looked at Shen Haoran, a trace of disdain appearing on his pale face. "So, you’re the one who hit my third brother?"
"Oh, you mean that Fatty? Yup, I’m the one who hit him. And I have to say, it felt pretty good," Shen Haoran said, giving Hua Zhiming a casual glance while rubbing his palm.
Hearing Shen Haoran’s admission, the surrounding Martial Artists exploded into an uproar. "This kid is so arrogant! A mere Tier Two Spirit Marquis daring to provoke the Hua Family!"
"Yeah, and he even dared to admit it to Hua Zhiming’s face. Is he an idiot? Doesn’t he know how much Hua Zhiming dotes on his little brother?"
"He’s done for. That kid is a dead man today."
As the crowd’s murmurs grew, Hua Zhiming’s expression became increasingly grim. A faint black aura began to rise from his body.
Just then, Luo Cheng was also drawn out by the commotion in front of the Celestial Martial Auction House.
"What’s going on? Who’s that?" Luo Cheng asked the guard beside him, frowning as he looked at Hua Zhiming radiating a powerful aura at the entrance.
"Young Master, that’s Hua Zhiming, second son of the City Lord of Divine Martial City," the guard replied respectfully, cupping his fist. "He’s also an Inner Sect Disciple of the Hehuan Sect—a second-rate power near the city. His strength has already reached the level of a Tier Eight Spirit Marquis."
"Hmph, a mere City Lord’s son dares to cause trouble in front of my Celestial Martial Auction House?" Luo Cheng snorted.
"Young Master, you’ve misunderstood. Hua Zhiming isn’t here for the Celestial Martial Auction House. He’s looking for that young man, Shen Haoran. From what we overheard, it seems Shen Haoran beat up Hua Zhiming’s younger brother, and now he’s here to settle the score," the guard explained.
’Oh, so he’s after that kid?’ Luo Cheng’s eyes narrowed, his gaze falling on Shen Haoran, who stood in front of Luo Xiaowen. A cold sneer touched his lips. ’Hmph, that good-for-nothing is quite the troublemaker. A Tier Eight Spirit Marquis... Let’s see how he handles this! This even saves me the trouble of doing it myself!’
At this moment, the air was thick with tension. Hua Zhiming’s aura grew colder by the second, and a faint killing intent began to emanate from him.
"Hua Zhiming, what do you think you’re doing? Are you actually planning to attack someone in front of the Celestial Martial Auction House?" Sensing his killing intent, Luo Xiaowen snorted and stepped in front of Shen Haoran. Hua Zhiming was a Tier Eight Spirit Marquis, while Shen Haoran was only Tier Two; she was afraid Hua Zhiming would injure him.
A wry smile touched Shen Haoran’s lips as he watched Luo Xiaowen shield him. ’Do I really look that weak?’ he thought helplessly.
"Hmph! That bastard hit my brother. You expect him to just swallow this insult? Impossible! This kid is coming with me today. Anyone who gets in my way is making an enemy of the Hua Family!" Hua Zhiming snarled.
"Besides, doesn’t the Celestial Martial Auction House make a point of not meddling in others’ affairs? What, are you going to break your own rules to protect this little bastard today? Aren’t you afraid of your reputation being dragged through the mud?" Hua Zhiming sneered, using the auction house’s own principles against them.
"You..." Luo Xiaowen began to retort, but another voice cut her off.
"Young Master Hua, I presume? This matter has nothing to do with the Celestial Martial Auction House. Please, handle it as you see fit. We will absolutely not interfere." As the voice faded, Luo Cheng emerged from the auction house. He smiled and nodded at Hua Zhiming.
"Luo Cheng, Shen Haoran is my friend, and he’s also a valued guest of the Celestial Martial Auction House! How is this none of our business!" Luo Xiaowen retorted.
"Third Sister, the Celestial Martial Auction House has never involved itself in others’ affairs. You wouldn’t want to be the one to break the rules set down by our ancestors, would you?" Luo Cheng said calmly, lightly waving a paper fan.
"You..." By invoking their ancestors’ rules, Luo Cheng left Luo Xiaowen speechless.
At this, Shen Haoran gently patted Luo Xiaowen’s shoulder, signaling her not to worry. He then stepped past her and stood before Hua Zhiming.
"So, how do you want to settle this? Shall we have a life-and-death battle? Or a life-and-death battle? Or... how about a life-and-death battle?" Shen Haoran said nonchalantly. The instant his last word fell, a ferocious aura erupted from his body, stunning the crowd...
