Xiao Yao wore a black robe fastened with a white jade belt.
Though still a youth, he stood tall and straight, giving off an impression of soaring vigor.
He had black hair, golden eyes, and handsome features that easily inspired a sense of familiarity.
As Xiao Yao walked down the street, the passing crowds unconsciously made way for him.
After all, judging by Xiao Yao's clothes, looks, and bearing, he was unmistakably a young master from a clan. No one would casually provoke him.
Xiao Yao made his way to the Mittel Auction House, where two guards with impressive presences stood at the entrance. They hurriedly smiled when they saw him.
"Guest Elder Xiao, you're here. Please, come in."
Xiao Yao smiled and nodded, then strode leisurely inside, as though he were coming home.
Some of the people nearby were puzzled and asked those around them about Xiao Yao's background.
"Xiao Yao is said to be a member of the Xiao Clan, the foremost of Wutan City's three great clans. He's highly skilled when it comes to collections of scrolls and cultivation techniques, so the Mittel Auction House hired him as a guest elder appraiser."
Someone nearby was still puzzled.
"Even so, would that make the people at the Mittel Auction House welcome him with such smiles? He may be from Wutan City's Xiao Clan, but doesn't the Mittel Auction House have an even greater background?"
"What do you know? Not only does he have an impressive background himself, but he's also close to Ya Fei, the Mittel Auction House's chief auctioneer."
As the man spoke, his voice was thick with envy and jealousy.
The people nearby who had quietly pricked up their ears to listen immediately understood. At the same time, they all felt envy and jealousy toward Xiao Yao.
They didn't know Xiao Yao, but the Mittel Auction House's chief auctioneer was no stranger to them.
Her mature, voluptuous figure, lovely face, and enchanting bearing all tugged at men's hearts, leaving them unable to resist wanting a taste of her charms.
Unfortunately, as chief auctioneer, Ya Fei possessed astonishing skills and knew just when to advance or retreat in her dealings with others.
With the Mittel Auction House behind her as well, people could only admire her from afar; truly getting close to her was difficult.
Who would have thought that the boy who had just gone in was so lucky with women?
Amid the envy and jealousy of the crowd, Xiao Yao made his way with practiced ease to a room deep inside the Mittel Auction House and knocked gently.
"Who is it?" A pleasant female voice came from inside the room.
Xiao Yao deliberately said nothing. After a short wait, a voice came from inside the room, sounding annoyed.
"Little Brother Xiao Yao, come in."
Xiao Yao pushed the door open and entered. Before him was a room with a simple, elegant charm and exquisite decorations, while a faint fragrance lingered at the tip of his nose.
The enchanting figure seated at the desk lent the whole room even more color.
Ya Fei wore a form-fitting dress resembling a qipao. Even sitting down, she perfectly displayed her mature, voluptuous figure.
If Xiao Xun'er was a tender flower bud waiting to bloom, then Ya Fei was a flower that had fully blossomed, revealing her own charms.
She picked up a green fruit from the fruit platter on the desk. It looked crisp and juicy, and gave off a tempting fragrance.
Ya Fei took a small bite, looked at Xiao Yao as he approached, and held the green fruit out to him.
"Little Brother Xiao Yao, would you like a taste?"
Xiao Yao took the green fruit and, without the slightest hesitation, bit into it heartily.
"I'm honored. Thank you for your kindness, Sister Ya Fei. It tastes quite good."
Ya Fei rolled her enchanting eyes at Xiao Yao, then patted the chair beside her, telling him to sit down.
She then took out a Storage Ring and pushed it in front of Xiao Yao.
"These are the books and scrolls I need you to appraise."
Xiao Yao nodded, picked up the Storage Ring, and took out its contents one by one.
As the saying went, a long illness made a doctor of the patient. Xiao Yao had spent these past years reading the Xiao Clan's collection of books like a madman and had attained considerable skill in this area.
Serving as a guest elder appraiser for the Mittel Auction House was well within his abilities.
Of course, being skilled enough didn't necessarily mean others would hire him.
Xiao Yao had become a guest elder appraiser thanks to his connection with Ya Fei.
After Xiao Yao began cultivating, his mastery of Sun Power had grown ever more profound as his progress in Solar Analysis increased.
Before long, the idea of creating an Extreme Yang Land to cultivate Fire Attribute medicinal herbs had occurred to him.
Although there had been quite a few setbacks at first, things had gradually stabilized.
Afterward, the Xiao Clan had sought out the Mittel Auction House as a partner, selling these Fire Attribute medicinal herbs in exchange for the resources the clan needed.
Xiao Yao possessed talent and was also the creator of the Extreme Yang Land. After establishing a relationship with the Mittel Auction House, he had gradually become involved in these matters as well.
He had even frequently acted as the representative in charge of handing over goods to the Mittel Auction House.
The Xiao Clan had also feared that selling large quantities of Fire Attribute medicinal herbs would attract covetous eyes, so its dealings with the Mittel Auction House had actually been quite discreet.
Even the ordinary guards at the Mittel Auction House had found it difficult to learn about them.
Although Xiao Yao frequently visited the Mittel Auction House, the ordinary guards really hadn't known who he was.
That had remained the case until Ya Fei was sent by her family to gain experience at the Wutan City branch.
Ya Fei had been surprised that someone as young as Xiao Yao could take charge on his own and handle such extensive affairs, and she couldn't help growing curious about him.
As they spent more time together, the two had gradually grown closer.
Only then had word of Xiao Yao's identity gradually spread through the Mittel Auction House.
But the real change in their relationship had come after Xiao Yao's mastery of Sun Power advanced another step.
He had become able to make fuller use of the vitality within Sun Power to improve the talent of those with ordinary aptitude for cultivation.
Xiao Yao had then offered to cleanse and refine Ya Fei's meridians to improve her talent.
At first, Ya Fei had been skeptical, but after trying it, she had been overjoyed. She hadn't expected Xiao Yao to possess such an ability.
Although the Mittel Family had made its start in business, Ya Fei was well aware of the importance of strength.
If she could improve her own talent, she naturally wouldn't pass up such a wonderful opportunity.
Ya Fei, returning a peach for a plum, had learned that Xiao Yao wanted to create his own cultivation technique and needed to read a great many books and even cultivation techniques.
She had therefore thought of making Xiao Yao a guest elder appraiser, specifically in charge of appraising the books and scrolls at the auction house.
Their relationship had grown closer still as a result, and they had begun addressing each other as sister and brother.
Xiao Yao leafed through the books with a focused expression, stopping from time to time to read carefully.
His extensive reading over the years had accumulated day by day, forming an ability called Extensive Knowledge on his panel, which significantly improved both the efficiency and the results of his reading.
As for the scrolls containing cultivation techniques, there was no problem as long as he simply leafed through them without touching them with soul power. That wouldn't damage the Soul Imprints on the scrolls.
Many cultivation techniques were precious precisely because they were recorded using Soul Imprints.
Afterward, one only needed to touch them with soul power to learn the technique directly, along with the insights and experience of the person who had recorded it.
But a Soul Imprint would suffer some wear each time it was used, until eventually only the ordinary contents of the cultivation technique remained.
Without relying on the Soul Imprint, cultivating from the ordinary contents of a technique was many times more difficult, especially without a teacher's guidance.
Fortunately, Xiao Yao only needed to understand how the cultivation techniques operated and take their essence. He didn't need to actually cultivate the various techniques, so he had no need to touch the Soul Imprints.