Kicked Away with One Foot, Auction House Gains! [Seeking Follow-up Reads]

Song Qing, however, had no intention of stopping. Yuan Power surged into his claws, carrying a sharp edge as he lunged rapidly toward Lin Yi's shoulder.

Sensing the ambush from behind, a cold glint flashed in Lin Yi's eyes. He shifted his body to the side, easily dodging Song Qing's attack while simultaneously thrusting his right hand out, grabbing Song Qing's wrist with lightning speed.

A crisp "crack" echoed out as Song Qing's wrist was snapped on the spot. At the same time, a surge of violent Yuan Power traveled up his arm, wreaking havoc on his limb.

"Ah..."

A shrill, miserable scream erupted from Song Qing's throat.

Lin Yi pulled his right hand forward slightly, dragging Song Qing in front of him, and simultaneously kicked him in the waist.

In the next instant, Song Qing's body flew violently toward the stairs ahead, finally landing with a heavy "thud" as he face-planted onto the steps like a dog.

Though this all took time to describe, it happened in the blink of an eye.

After kicking Song Qing away, Lin Yi finally raised his gaze toward the top of the second-floor staircase, where a tall girl in green stood—none other than Xia Zhilan, the daughter of the Wanjin Merchant Guild leader.

"Miss Xia, you saw it yourself. Song Qing ambushed me first, so you can't blame me for this, right?"

Lin Yi looked up at Xia Zhilan and shrugged, speaking calmly.

Xia Zhilan had been in a Council Hall on the second floor with Xuan Su, waiting for Lin Yi's arrival. When she suddenly received a report from a servant that Song Qing and Lin Yi were in conflict, she had come out to stop it.

Just as Xia Zhilan reached the top of the stairs, she happened to witness the moment Song Qing attacked Lin Yi from behind and immediately shouted for them to stop.

Initially, Xia Zhilan had been worried that if Song Qing's sneak attack injured Lin Yi, he might not be able to participate in the Immortal Pool Contest three days later.

But what happened next was completely beyond Xia Zhilan's expectations.

Not only was Lin Yi not injured by Song Qing, but he had easily beaten Song Qing into a pathetic mess.

From Xia Zhilan's vantage point looking down, she could clearly see Song Qing's humiliating, face-planted posture, and a look of disgust flashed in her eyes.

Xia Zhilan had always disliked Song Qing, and now, seeing his ugly face twisted in pain, her disgust reached its peak.

Song Qing, having fallen face-first, tried to crawl up while enduring the pain. The moment he lifted his head, he met Xia Zhilan's downward gaze, and his composure shattered!

He had failed to teach Lin Yi a lesson, had been beaten into a dog by Lin Yi in two moves, and had landed right in front of the goddess he was desperately pursuing. In his shame and fury, he spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed back onto the steps, falling unconscious.

"This matter is certainly not your fault. Our Wanjin Merchant Guild will handle the negotiations with the Song Family," Xia Zhilan said, giving Lin Yi a deep look before turning to Steward Xia. "Get two men to carry Song Qing away and treat his injuries."

"Yes!"

Steward Xia acknowledged the order and quickly arranged for two servants to carry Song Qing away.

Xia Zhilan watched with a frown as the pathetic Song Qing was hauled off, then said to Lin Yi, "Let's go. My Aunt Su and the others are still waiting for you."

Lin Yi nodded slightly, climbed the stairs, and followed behind Xia Zhilan.

Before long, the two arrived at a Council Hall.

Inside the hall, besides Xuan Su, there were two elderly men with graying hair.

Seeing Lin Yi and Xia Zhilan arrive, all three pairs of eyes turned toward them.

"Where is Song Qing? Why didn't he come?" one of the elders asked with a frown.

Xia Zhilan said indifferently, "You didn't want to replace him with Lin Yi earlier because you were worried Lin Yi's strength wasn't up to par with Song Qing's, right? Well, you don't need to worry anymore."

"Just a moment ago, Song Qing ambushed Lin Yi in the lobby and was defeated by him in two moves. He's injured, so I had him carried away for treatment."

"What?!"

"How is that possible?"

Hearing Xia Zhilan's words, the two elders exclaimed in shock, their faces filled with disbelief.

The two elders beside Xuan Su were high-ranking stewards within the Wanjin Merchant Guild who had consistently pushed for Song Qing to represent the guild in the Immortal Pool Contest alongside Xia Zhilan.

Only a short while ago, they had been trying to persuade Xuan Su to give Lin Yi's spot to Song Qing.

They never imagined that the youth Xuan Su had chosen, this Lin Yi, would be so strong.

"Miss Zhilan, the Immortal Pool Contest is of great importance. You mustn't let personal feelings lead you to deceive us," one of the elders said, hesitating as he spoke to Xia Zhilan with a solemn expression.

He still found it hard to believe what Xia Zhilan had just said.

Xia Zhilan scoffed, "Song Qing is still downstairs being treated. If you don't believe me, go see for yourselves. Besides, quite a few people saw what happened in the lobby just now!"

"This..."

Hearing Xia Zhilan put it that way, the two elders exchanged glances and were left speechless.

"Hehe, the two of you should understand now that my choice was correct, right?" Xuan Su's beautiful eyes swept over Lin Yi before she spoke to the two elders.

The two old stewards gave a dry laugh and could only nod. "Manager Su has a keen eye for talent; we are impressed... We have some matters to attend to, so we shall take our leave."

"Please, go ahead," Xuan Su said with a graceful smile.

The two old stewards took one last deep look at Lin Yi before hurrying out of the Council Hall to verify the situation with Song Qing.

Lin Yi watched this scene silently, saying nothing.

"Hmph, those two old fogies must have taken plenty of bribes from the Song Family; they've always been dead set on Song Qing," Xia Zhilan said with a dissatisfied huff as she watched the two elders walk away.

"The Song Family are nothing but fence-sitters. They act close to our Wanjin Merchant Guild on the surface, but in secret, they have many dealings with the Blood Wolf Gang and even the City Lord's Mansion. They wanted to let that Song Qing take advantage of us this time—how could we let them have their way?"

Xuan Su smiled, but halfway through, her beautiful eyes turned to Lin Yi, and she added with a meaningful smile, "Little Brother Lin Yi, I really didn't misjudge you..."

"I must thank Manager Su for her high regard," Lin Yi said with a faint smile, then added, "By the way, it seems your guild is hosting an auction today?"

"Hehe, since little brother Lin Yi is interested in the auction, let's go take a look together," Xuan Su smiled and rose from her seat.

Lin Yi did not decline, and together with Xuan Su and Xia Zhilan, he left the Council Hall and headed toward the auction venue.

With Xuan Su and Xia Zhilan present, Lin Yi naturally did not need to pay the ten Yang Yuan Stone entry fee, and the two women led him directly to a VIP room.

Fortunately, they hadn't been delayed for long, so the auction had only just begun by the time they arrived.

Lin Yi had a clear goal: he would bid on every Spirit Medicine of the fourth grade or higher, regardless of the type.

"Hehe, little brother Lin Yi is truly wealthy and imposing," Xuan Su, who was standing to the side, said with a charming smile as she watched Lin Yi ignore the prices.

Lin Yi laughed, "My master just left me a few Yang Yuan Pills, and I've almost spent them all. In front of your guild, it's not even worth mentioning."

As the two chatted and laughed, the auction soon drew to a close.

As for the Spiritual Energy secret technique that appeared at the auction, Lin Yi naturally did not let it slip by.

After the auction ended, Lin Yi stayed in a guest room at the Wanjin Merchant Guild that Xuan Su had personally arranged for him.

Back in the guest room, Lin Yi took out the jade slip he had purchased, which contained the Spiritual Energy secret technique.

Lin Yi's gaze swept over the jade slip, sensing a faint trace of Spiritual Energy within it. With a thought, a wisp of his own Spiritual Energy drifted out from his Mud Pill Palace and finally permeated the jade slip.

As Lin Yi's Spiritual Energy entered, a stream of information surged out from within the jade slip, which Lin Yi received in its entirety.

Jianluo Wave, Spirit-grade Spiritual Energy secret technique...