When her slender hand gently pushed, and the heavy, soundproofed mahogany door of the private room silently slid open, her face had already assumed that smile tempered through countless trials—seductive to the bone, yet perfectly measured—as though her anxious wait had never happened.
The room was dimly lit, illuminated only by several glazed lamps set into the walls. Their soft halos cast ambiguous shadows across the expensive wool carpet.
The air carried the faint, elegant fragrance of premium incense.
That familiar black-robed figure, as though capable of swallowing all light, stood with his back to the door before the enormous floor-to-ceiling window like a frozen statue, overlooking Wutan City's star-like lights below.
His broad cloak concealed him completely from head to toe, radiating an icy mystery that kept others at a distance.
"Sir, you finally came. You truly kept Ya Fei waiting." Ya Fei's voice seemed steeped in honey, soft and mellifluous. Its slightly rising tail carried just the right touch of plaintive resentment and coquettish charm, enough to stir the heart.
She moved forward with the light steps of a cat, swaying gracefully. The high-slit hem of her qipao shifted with each step, revealing an enticing sight.
Mo Lin slowly turned around.
The hood's shadow completely concealed his features. Only a calm voice, almost indifferent, emerged through the cloth, especially clear in the silent room. "Trivial matters delayed me for a while. Manager Ya Fei, have you been well?"
"Thanks to your good fortune, sir, the auction a few days ago was an unprecedented spectacle and concluded perfectly." Ya Fei smiled sweetly and walked to the exquisitely carved rosewood tea table in the center of the room.
She extended her delicate fingers and gracefully lifted the small silver pot being kept warm nearby, personally pouring Mo Lin a cup of freshly brewed tea.
The tea was amber-colored, its steam curling upward with a refreshing fragrance. "Did you come this time to settle the payment, sir? That bottle of Purple Crystal Source sold for 1.78 million gold coins. After the ten percent commission you set, the remaining 1.602 million gold coins have all been prepared here."
She lightly pushed a purple crystal card with gilded edges and the Mittel Family crest engraved upon it toward Mo Lin.
Mo Lin's gaze did not linger even for a moment on that card representing an enormous fortune.
He went straight to the point. His voice passed through the hood with an unquestionable force that instantly dispersed the faint warmth of their polite exchange. "The payment is a minor matter; we can discuss it later. I came tonight to hear how Manager Ya Fei has considered the matter of the 'Ice Emperor, Hai Bodong.'"
Ya Fei's heart abruptly clenched, as if grasped by an invisible hand.
As expected! He truly had come for this matter!
The smile on her face did not diminish in the slightest, but her tone involuntarily grew several degrees more serious. A sharp glint flashed through her peach-blossom eyes. "What you speak of concerns the rise and fall of the Mittel Family. It is a matter of great importance, and Ya Fei would not dare show the slightest negligence. However..."
Her tone shifted, revealing a merchant's shrewdness and caution. "How exactly does sir need Ya Fei to cooperate? And how can sir convince Ya Fei that you truly can contact Grand Elder Hai Bodong, who has been missing for many years?"
She needed tangible leverage, not promises as insubstantial as castles in the air.
Mo Lin seemed to have anticipated her reaction and did not answer at once.
He merely slowly raised his right hand. It was a well-defined palm that appeared quite young.
Under Ya Fei's focused gaze, he gently rubbed the tips of his index finger and thumb together. A thread-thin current of icy blue energy silently emerged, crystalline and translucent as though carved from the purest ice.
The instant that current appeared, the scene inside the private room changed abruptly!
It was as though they had fallen from warm spring into an abyss of bitter cold. Moisture in the air condensed into tiny ice crystals at a visible speed and drifted down in flurries.
In the blink of an eye, the smooth surface of the rosewood tea table was covered in a thin layer of white frost, delicate as cicada wings and radiating a chilling cold!
Even Ya Fei's breath became white mist in the air.
This cold was far beyond anything ordinary ice-attributed Dou Qi could achieve! It carried an absolute, ultimate chill that inspired awe and trembling from the depths of one's soul!
Ya Fei's pupils abruptly contracted to pinpoints. Her delicate body trembled faintly out of control as she instinctively retreated half a step.
Those peach-blossom eyes, so adept at captivating hearts, were now filled with unconcealable horror and disbelief.
As a core member of the Mittel Family, her knowledge far surpassed that of ordinary people!
This aura... this ultimate icy intent that seemed capable of freezing the soul was not something an ordinary Dou Wang could possess!
This was clearly supreme power that had touched upon the Law Origin of ice! Could it be... that the person before her truly had a deep connection with that Grand Elder, who had likewise dominated through ice-attributed Dou Qi?! Or perhaps... he himself was a reclusive peerless ice cultivator?
"This... this is..." Ya Fei's voice carried an uncontrollable tremor, revealing the tremendous shock in her heart.
"Consider this a token." Mo Lin flicked his fingertip, and the icy blue current vanished in an instant, as though it had never appeared.
The room's temperature slowly began to rise again, yet that soul-shaking chill seemed branded upon Ya Fei's heart.
His voice remained calm, but the present silence made it feel even more oppressive. "I have already learned Hai Bodong's whereabouts. He is currently hiding near the eastern border of the Jia Ma Empire, at the edge of the Tagor Desert.
"It is not convenient to reveal the exact location for now. He encountered an unforeseen incident and his strength has been greatly diminished. As for me, I happen to possess a secret method that may help him resolve part of his predicament, perhaps even... restore some of his former cultivation."
Those words exploded one after another in Ya Fei's mind like thunderbolts from the heavens!
The Tagor Desert! Greatly diminished strength! Restoring his cultivation! Could Grand Elder Hai Bodong truly still be alive, and presently in an unprecedented state of weakness?
And this mysterious man before her actually possessed a heaven-defying method capable of restoring a Dou Emperor's strength?!
The overwhelming flood of information crashed against Ya Fei's thoughts like a tsunami. The earth-shaking opportunity hidden within made her heart pound like a drum, her breathing grow uncontrollably rapid, and her full chest rise and fall violently, tracing a breathtaking curve.
Her mind raced at its limit, weighing the risks against the rewards great enough to propel her to the heavens in a single step.
If all this was true... then staking everything on this mysterious man and helping him find and "treat" Grand Elder Hai Bodong would bring returns beyond anything she could achieve through a lifetime of personal effort!
It meant that she would gain an unshakable and powerful patron within the Mittel Family, completely changing the balance of power!
The risks certainly existed, but compared to supreme authority that was almost within reach, what did they amount to?
Moreover, the trace of ice Law Origin aura he had just displayed was of such a lofty level that it had already exceeded her understanding. That alone was the strongest assurance!
After a brief, suffocating silence, Ya Fei suddenly raised her head.
All hesitation, probing, and seductiveness vanished from her face, replaced by a desperate resolve and fiercely burning ambition.
A sharp gleam like that of a hawk flashed in her peach-blossom eyes, as though she meant to pierce the hood's shadow and look directly into Mo Lin's eyes, even though she could see nothing. Her voice was firm and resounding. "Sir! Ya Fei believes you! Please tell me exactly how you need Ya Fei to cooperate! So long as it falls within my authority, the resource network of the Mietel Auction House spread throughout the empire shall be at your command!
"Ya Fei asks for nothing else. I only hope that if sir truly meets Grand Elder Hai Bodong, you will put in a good word for Ya Fei!"
At last, she had pushed all her chips onto this gambling table filled with unknowns!
Beneath the shadow of his hood, the corner of Mo Lin's mouth lifted into a satisfied curve, as though everything were already under his control.
After enduring enough torment and temptation, this beautiful, clever fish had finally bitten firmly onto the hook.
Before you continue