Proud Sword Soaring Clouds

"My young friend, this card contains 586,000 Gold Coins after deducting the auction house’s service fee and the cost of the medicinal herb you purchased. Please keep it safe!" Huangpu Cangsong’s eyes showed a hint of exhaustion despite the smile on his face. After all, he had just presided over such a thrilling auction, running on adrenaline the entire time, and it was difficult to wind down so quickly afterward. But Huangpu Cangsong had no complaints. If another such opportunity arose, he surely wouldn’t let it pass. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"I hope that the next time you have similar business, you’ll think of us first!" Huangpu Cangsong said with a sincere smile, looking at Ling Xiao. His expression was like that of someone seeing a long-lost friend, giving off an extremely amiable feeling.

Ling Xiao also smiled and nodded. "The Huangpu Clan has an excellent reputation. If the opportunity arises, I would of course hope to cooperate with you more in the future. Thank you for everything. I’ll take my leave now."

Huangpu Cangsong nodded, then spoke as if he had just remembered something. "Oh, right. The buyer who just won the White Jade Red-eyed Python is a member of the Royal Family, and they were very interested in you..." Seeing Ling Xiao’s brow furrow slightly, Huangpu Cangsong quickly added, "But I turned them down. The Huangpu Clan’s reputation is something that not even the Royal Family... is allowed to tarnish!"

Only then did Ling Xiao nod, giving Huangpu Cangsong a deep look. "My thanks, then." With that, he turned and left with Ye Wen Ni. Outside, the starry sky was clear, but there was no moonlight. The twinkling stars created a dreamy, mesmerizing beauty.

By the time Ling Xiao and Ye Wen Ni came out, most of the people in the auction house had already left. A few lingered, not quite ready for the night to end, but none of them paid any particular attention to the two ordinary-looking people.

Huangpu Cangsong stood in the shadows at the entrance of the special passage, not seeing them out, as that would draw unwanted attention to Ling Xiao. He watched the young man and woman depart, and only then did a soft, beautiful voice sound from behind him. "Uncle Cangsong, that young man’s strength may be average, but his demeanor seems even more composed than the High-level Great Sword Master woman beside him. Do you think they’ll come back?"

Huangpu Cangsong’s old face was as placid as an ancient well. He smiled faintly. "What’s this? Has Miss Yue taken an interest?"

Behind him, Huangpu Yue’s face flushed with bashfulness. She chided softly, "Uncle Cangsong, you’re teasing me again. He’s just some dark-skinned boy, and an ugly one at that. Why would I be interested in him? I’m just a little curious. He seems so shrewd, so why would he spend so much on something like that?" ’And he even knew about a common herb like Stone Bamboo Grass...’ Her face held a complex, unreadable expression.

Huangpu Cangsong chuckled but said nothing more. This young Adventurer was the first man to pique the young miss’s curiosity. As such, some things didn’t need to be said. A man of his age had seen too much of the world; he could often brush aside the surface and see straight to the heart of the matter.

Ye Wen Ni and Ling Xiao didn’t take one of the many carriages waiting outside the auction house. The inn wasn’t far, so they could just walk back.

Ye Wen Ni had been completely and utterly shaken today. When she saw Ling Xiao accept the card representing immense wealth with a seemingly emotionless expression, she even felt the urge to snatch it away from him. Of course, it was just an impulse, but it represented a fundamental human instinct when faced with riches.

Thinking back on her hard life as a Golden Finger, always living in fear, she had stolen at most a few dozen, maybe a hundred, Gold Coins a day. Stealing over a thousand Gold Coins from Ling Xiao that one time had been the crowning achievement of her thieving career, yet here she was, having somehow ended up following the guy around.

At this thought, Ye Wen Ni felt her pretty face grow hot. Her star-like eyes blinked as she said to Ling Xiao, "Can we make a deal?"

"Gold Coins?" Ling Xiao shook his head so fast it was a blur. "Don’t even think about it!"

"You cheapskate!" Ye Wen Ni was so angry she rolled her eyes. She suddenly realized Ling Xiao wasn’t on the path back to the inn and reminded him, "You’re going the wrong way!"

Ling Xiao said in a low voice, "We’re not going back to that inn. Just follow me and keep quiet."

Ye Wen Ni froze. She knew that as infuriating as this guy was, his sense for danger was almost instinctual, and frighteningly accurate. She had seen it for herself when they were hiding from those powerful Magical Beasts in the snowy mountains. She said nothing more and followed behind Ling Xiao.

...

On the smooth street, an extremely luxurious four-wheeled carriage rolled along at a steady, unhurried pace. Even on this moonless night, its gilded body shimmered with a magnificent golden light. A conspicuous crest of a Tier Eight Magical Beast, the Blast Flame Lion King, above the left side of the carriage, announced to all that this vehicle belonged to the Royal Family!

Four high-level guards sat on the exterior of the carriage, their expressions cold and their gazes alert. In the quiet of the night, they were even more diligent in their duty to protect their master’s safety.

In the surrounding darkness, dozens more men moved through the shadows. Their movements were swift and their gazes sharp; one look was enough to tell they were no ordinary guards.

Inside the carriage sat the very same middle-aged man who had just won the White Jade Red-eyed Python at the auction, along with his son. The two sat facing each other. The middle-aged man’s eyes were calm, but the young man’s eyes held a touch of excitement.

To the Royal Family, Gold Coins were nothing. This amount of money was less than what he would spend building a single manor. But the significance of this Magical Beast to him and his father was immense.

At some point in the past, a new profession had emerged on the continent—the Pharmacist!

Strictly speaking, the profession of Pharmacist had existed since ancient times. But ever since the appearance of an astoundingly talented Grandmaster-level Pharmacist named Mo Zhe several hundred years ago, this once-lowly profession had been elevated to a status that even High-level Martial Artists like Demon Sword Masters dared not offend!

The fundamental reason was his invention of a method to refine high-level Magical Beasts and advanced medicinal ingredients into various Elixirs! These Elixirs were of immense benefit to a Martial Artist’s cultivation! It was even rumored that some high-grade Elixirs could raise the level of a Low-level Martial Artist, an effect as miraculous as that of the Vantia Holy Fruit!

These Elixirs were of little significance to ordinary people, because even the best of them could only elevate someone from a Great Sword Master to a Mad Sword Master. Moreover, the cost of creating such an Elixir was exorbitant, far beyond what an ordinary family could afford.

Most Elixirs could only raise a person from a Tier Two Sword Master to a Tier Three Sword Master, or from a Tier Six Sword Master to a Tier One Great Sword Master—and those were already considered Top-Grade Elixirs! They were expensive and rarely ever appeared on the market.

But for the Royal Family, if they could master this miraculous formula and use it to cultivate a large number of soldiers, the results would be terrifying! Unless one was a Demon Sword Master or stronger, even a Mad Sword Master would find it questionable whether they could escape an attack from a hundred Great Sword Masters who fought without fear of death!

The middle-aged man, however, was not as excited as his son. The White Jade Red-Eyed Python Essence Blood, which could be refined into the best Elixirs, had to be presented to His Majesty the Emperor. Thinking of his father, who was ancient yet still clung to the throne, the middle-aged man’s hand inside his sleeve... clenched into a tight fist! However, if he knew that the most vital part of the blood had already been drunk by Ling Xiao, he would probably feel a lot more relieved.

Even the coachman of this luxurious Royal Family carriage possessed the cultivation of a Tier Six Great Sword Master. Amidst the dim yellow streetlights, though one couldn’t see far, it was impossible not to see a person standing ten meters away!

Not until the other four guards on the carriage shouted a warning did the coachman suddenly see him: a man in black, exuding a bizarre aura, stood in the middle of the road ahead. He wore a black conical hat and seemed as if he had been standing there all along!

The coachman broke out in a cold sweat. He yanked hard on the reins of the two royal steeds, causing their front hooves to rear high into the air. Their bodies were nearly vertical as they came to a sharp halt just before the man in black!