The Imperial Martial Pill Venerable

Chapter 287: Chapter 286: The Aura of a Half-Step Celestial Being

"Heh, there are quite a few treasures at this auction."

"Yeah, Ninth-Grade Profound Soldiers and rare treasures, things you’d barely ever see, are just the lowest-tier items here. I heard there are a few showstopper items for the finale."

"The finale items aren’t on the list. Even the Clan Leaders of the major Noble Families haven’t received any word. It’s all incredibly mysterious. I wonder what kind of Divine Objects they could be."

"Maybe it’s a Spiritual Artifact."

"Haha, you’ve got a wild imagination. Spiritual Artifacts are exceedingly rare. Not even the Shangguan Family here in Lieyang City necessarily has one. Besides, even if one existed, the Worldwide Business Association would have claimed it for themselves long ago. There’s no way they’d put it up for auction."

Inside the Four Seas Auction, a group of young masters gathered in an Elegant Pavilion, chatting and laughing freely. Most were outstanding disciples from various Noble Families, brought here by their elders to broaden their horizons.

Just then, one of the youths pointed to the highest, open-air Elegant Pavilion in the auction hall and said in surprise, "Everyone, look. There’s something odd about that pavilion..."

The group looked in the direction he was pointing. At the very top of the auction hall stood a purple pavilion, exceptionally luxurious. A gentle, jade-like white light shone from within, and several Extraordinary cultivators stood guard around it.

This Elegant Pavilion, whether in appearance or style, far surpassed all the others. The difference was like that between an Emperor and his subjects...

"That Elegant Pavilion... is so imposing."

"To have Extraordinary cultivators standing guard is truly astonishing."

"Tsk tsk. In comparison, this Elegant Pavilion we’re in feels utterly crude and shabby. I don’t know what this auction house is thinking."

"That’s not right. I’ve been here before, and I’ve never seen that Elegant Pavilion."

At that moment, the youth leading the group glanced at the pavilion, his expression turning serious. "That Elegant Pavilion is no ordinary place."

Hearing this, the others looked at the youth with curiosity. Seeing their expressions, a hint of smugness appeared on his face. "That’s the Qingxin Pavilion. It was built after the Four Seas Auction was acquired by the Worldwide Business Association."

"It exists only for the Worldwide Business Association’s most honored guests. Normally, no one else is allowed inside. But as far as I know, no one in all of Lieyang City has ever been able to enter the Qingxin Pavilion. I wonder which great figure has arrived today. This is exciting," the youth said, shaking his head with a sigh of emotion.

Upon hearing this, the others came to a sudden realization.

"Brother Shangguan’s knowledge is truly impressive."

"Indeed." The crowd heaped on more praise.

A self-satisfied smile immediately spread across the face of the youth—Shangguan Lie, the third young master of the Shangguan Family. But as he looked at the pavilion, his eyes filled with deep confusion. ’After all, not even my father, the Patriarch of the Shangguan Family, is qualified to enter the Qingxin Pavilion. Just what kind of person could have come this time...?’

"Sigh, if I could just enter it once, I’d have no regrets in this life."

Shangguan Lie muttered to himself, his face burning with ambition. It was as if he could see himself becoming a peerless expert, standing above millions. He imagined himself entering the Qingxin Pavilion full of pride, chest puffed out, looking down on the world as everyone praised him.

’To truly reach that level... life would be absolutely magnificent.’

Suddenly, he thought of Qin Ya, who had recently caused him great embarrassment. His teeth ground together with a KRRR-TCH sound. He snorted coldly and thought, ’I have the resources of the Shangguan Family behind me. One day, I’ll become a Martial Arts Strong Person who stands above millions. That brat is just a Loose Cultivator. I will surpass him eventually!’

At this moment, his gaze swept idly over the auction entrance. He suddenly saw a young man in white clothes approaching slowly, his expression calm. Shangguan Lie’s pupils constricted, and the rage he had just suppressed surged back even stronger.

"It’s him, Qin Ya!!" Shangguan Lie’s fists clenched, hatred raging in his eyes. He wished he could rush down right now and tear Qin Ya to shreds. It was Qin Ya who had made him a laughingstock in public. It was Qin Ya who had caused his father to punish him, forcing him into the family’s ancestral hall to suffer the torment of Illusions.

"Whew... Calm down! Calm down!"

Shangguan Lie took two deep breaths and suppressed his anger.

It wasn’t just Shangguan Lie. In another Elegant Pavilion, the Shangguan Family Patriarch, Shangguan Bei, and Shangguan Hao also saw Qin Ya and were quite surprised.

"It’s him. He came to the auction too."

Shangguan Hao said softly.

"Hao’er," Shangguan Bei said, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. "Last time you came back, you told me you were going to contact the Blood Nether Association to get rid of this menace. How did that go?"

"Replying to Father, the Blood Nether Association has already agreed. Their price was one million catties of Primordial Stones. I took the liberty of accepting," Shangguan Hao said.

"Mm, you did well. The Blood Nether Association’s prices have always been reasonable. One million catties of Primordial Stones might seem too much for the life of a Sky-Controlling Martial Artist, but for a Martial Artist with limitless potential like Qin Ya, it’s a bargain."

Shangguan Bei said coldly, looking at Qin Ya as if he were already a dead man. Suddenly, he noticed the old man beside Qin Ya, and his gaze grew grave. "The Heaven-Reaching Tower’s Tower Master, Lin Liyu. It seems what the Fourth Elder said was true. That old fellow’s Cultivation has indeed improved. This is troublesome."

Led by Lin Liyu, Qin Ya entered the auction house.

The moment he entered, he felt countless gazes converging on him—some hostile, some probing, some curious. Some people even tried to use their Divine Thought to investigate his Cultivation. He frowned slightly, snorted coldly, and swept his gaze over the rows of Elegant Pavilions before him. "Everyone," he said icily, "please restrain your curiosity!"

But how could a mere Sky-Controlling Martial Artist intimidate so many Extraordinary cultivators? Indeed, some not only didn’t back down but became even more brazen. Streams of Divine Thought swept over him repeatedly, as if trying to see right through him.

"I can’t see through his Cultivation. It seems he has a technique to conceal it."

"Heh, the rumors were true. He really is only sixteen or seventeen years old."

"His Talent is astonishing, but he’s too arrogant. Does he really think he can scare us off with his potential alone? How naive. Potential is not the same as actual strength!"

Seeing this, Lin Liyu, who was behind Qin Ya, looked grim. He was about to step forward but was stopped by Qin Ya. He was a bit confused, but after a moment’s thought, he respected Qin Ya’s decision, his sharp, eagle-like eyes simply glaring at the crowd.

Faced with the crowd’s provocations, Qin Ya gave a cold smile and took a step forward. An aura infused with the Thunder Mysteries erupted from him, soaring to the heavens. At the same time, he slowly drew the Ting Xiao Sword at his waist an inch from its scabbard, and a sharp Sword Qi instantly swept through the entire Four Seas Auction hall.

BANG, BANG, BANG...

Several muffled groans came from a few different Elegant Pavilions. It was the Martial Artists who had tried to probe Qin Ya’s Cultivation with their Divine Thought. They had been injured by the Sword Qi from Ting Xiao, which was imbued with a powerful Divine Thought of its own. They were now likely suffering from splitting headaches...

Qin Ya’s aura flared and vanished in an instant, but that momentary display was enough to shock most of the people present. An aura like that was simply not something a Sky-Controlling cultivator could possess. If one had to describe it... a Half-Step Celestial Being!

Heavens, a mere teenager actually possessed the aura of a Half-Step Celestial Being!