Auction (III)

Huan'er's face flushed red to her ears instantly, and she hurriedly hid behind Xiao Mingshu, saying coquettishly, "Miss, you..."

"Oh no, that won't do."

Shen Jingchuan was both amused and exasperated, and quickly tried to defuse the situation:

"If she were given to me, who would serve you?"

"That's easy."

Xiao Mingshu's beautiful big eyes rolled:

"How about I marry you and she becomes your concubine? It's a buy-one-get-one-free deal, okay?"

Shen Jingchuan glared at her helplessly:

"Sis, please stop teasing me like that, okay? It's so insincere. If you really wanted to thank me, you didn't need to. What's with all this teasing?"

Xiao Mingshu was speechless for a moment, but the image flashed uncontrollably through her mind, and her face turned red first.

She sighed softly to herself—she really had no other choice. She owed this kid more and more, so much that she didn't know how to repay him. She could only use this half-joking, half-serious tone to cover up her heavy guilt.

If this continues, one day I might really have no choice but to repay the debt by marrying him.

She glanced at Shen Jingchuan again, this handsome but silly boy had unknowingly Qi Refinement Fifth Layer.

She hadn't thought much of it at first, but the more she thought about it, the more she felt... it might not be a bad idea after all.

Thinking about it this way, she became even more embarrassed, gently turned her face away, and whispered:

"Well... thank you then."

"Tch." Shen Jingchuan leaned closer to tease her, "You just said you wanted to marry me, and now all you're doing is a verbal thank you?"

"What else do you want?"

Xiao Mingshu suddenly turned hostile and glared at him:

"You really want to have your eye on me, huh? Can't you tell? I have two beautiful wives at home, and several little vixens who are neither sisters nor maids, and you're still not satisfied? You little lecher!"

Just then, there was a knock on the door, followed by a crack in the door. An auctioneer walked in carrying a tray with both hands, on which was the Jade Water Heart-Protecting Pendant.

Shen Jingchuan stopped teasing her, stood up to hand over the Spirit Stones, picked up the jade pendant from the tray, and handed it to Xiao Mingshu:

"Sister, try it on and see if it's okay."

Xiao Mingshu took it, hung it on her waist, and activated her Spiritual Power.

The Jade Water Heart-Protecting Pendant lit up in response to the command, and a faint azure light rippled out from the pendant, swirling around Xiao Mingshu and transforming into an almost invisible water curtain. After a flash, it returned to the pendant, leaving only a faint layer of warm Spiritual Power on her body.

"That's good." Xiao Mingshu's eyes crinkled as she reached out and stroked the jade pendant at her waist. "I immediately felt at ease, filled with a sense of security."

"I'm glad you like it, sister." Shen Jingchuan said with a smile.

Just then, a familiar voice suddenly rang in his mind, tinged with surprise:

"Hey, kid, you've come to the auction?"

It's Xian'er.

Shen Jingchuan subconsciously replied with his mind:

"Ah, yes, Sister Xian'er."

He only realized what he had said after it left his mouth, and paused for a moment:

"Huh? Sister Xian'er, can you sense what's outside?"

"Yes," Xian'er's voice carried a hint of languor.

"I absorbed those Spirit Stones yesterday and recovered some of my strength. Now my consciousness can extend outside the Ring. I just came out to get some fresh air and saw this lively scene."

She paused, a smile playing on her lips:

"What's up? That gorgeous girl from earlier wants to marry you?"

"No way, she was just teasing me." Shen Jingchuan said, a little helplessly.

"In my experience, it doesn't seem like it," Xian'er said slowly. "I think she really wants to marry you. Who knew you, you rascal, would have so many lucky ladies."

"Oh, sister, you're joking. It's really just a joke."

"Alright, I'm not teasing you anymore." Xian'er yawned. "I'll take a look at this auction too. Don't worry about me, you watch."

"Okay."

Shen Jingchuan had just agreed when a thought suddenly flashed through his mind, making him feel uneasy. He quickly asked again using his consciousness:

"No, wait a minute... Sister Xian'er, if you can see outside, doesn't that mean you'll be able to see me when I... you know...?"

There was a moment of silence on Xian'er's end, followed by an undisguised sneer.

"Tch." That tone was full of disdain.

"You little brat, trying to act shy with your grandma? I've lived this long, what haven't I seen? In my eyes, you're just a little kid who hasn't even grown his first hair, and you're trying to pull this on me."

Shen Jingchuan was so embarrassed that his face turned red.

He thought to himself sullenly, "Tch, watch if you want, as long as you're happy."

Xian'er replied, "I'm happy..."

"..."

Several more items were then put up for auction. Xian'er looked at the Ring for a while and then looked down on it.

"What kind of garbage is this? It's meaningless."

Shen Jingchuan wasn't interested in anything and was getting a little bored when the auction items changed again.

The alluring young woman walked up carrying a large tray. This time, however, she was no longer as light as before. She held the tray with both hands, and her steps became heavier, as if the contents of the tray were extremely heavy. Keep in mind that she was also a cultivator at the Qi Refining Third Layer. For her to carry the tray with such difficulty, it was clear that the weight was not light.

The red silk was lifted, revealing five rings lying quietly on the tray, one inside the other, but covered in dark red rust. They were clumsy, Big Black, and rough, lacking any spiritual power whatsoever, and didn't even resemble a magic Law Artifact; they looked like a few pieces of scrap iron.

A murmur immediately arose from the audience.

"What is this thing?"

"It's all rusted up like this, it has no Spiritual Qi at all, it's useless, isn't it?"

"Five broken iron rings are being auctioned off?"

The auctioneer wasn't embarrassed at all, and started speaking with a smile:

"As you all have seen, these five rings were brought out by an expedition team from a High Antiquity ruin. To be honest, their Spiritual Qi has indeed been depleted, and they're now practically worthless, like ordinary iron. However—"

He changed the subject:

"This is, after all, something from High Antiquity ruin. If any weapon refiner is interested, they can certainly take it back and study it, perhaps even learning from the High Antiquity weapon-refining techniques."

Someone in the audience immediately asked, "Can this thing be repaired?"

The auctioneer's smile froze for a moment, then he chuckled awkwardly.

"Well... if it's a highly skilled and powerful being, there might be a way."

This was as good as saying nothing, and the audience burst into laughter again.

Shen Jingchuan hadn't paid much attention at first, but Xian'er inside the Ring seemed to be intently sensing something. After a few moments, her voice rang in Shen Jingchuan's mind, carrying a rare hint of solemnity:

"Hey kid, take a picture of it, your fortuitous opportunity has come!"