Snatching in Broad Daylight

"Number Seven's junior, do you think this old face carries any weight with you?"

Elder Shui sneered, his eyes like lightning, fixing on Number Seven's face, which was covered by a black veil.

"P-predecessor, please calm your anger. I am a disciple of the Feng family. The Shui and Feng families are allied through marriage. I implore you to consider our elder relationship and temporarily quell your fury."

Elder Shui's cultivation at the Late Qi Sea Realm was incredibly powerful. The pressure emanating from his eyes made Number Seven tremble uncontrollably.

'Hmph, a cowardly rat!'

Elder Shui withdrew his gaze, looking down at the entire venue with arrogance, and said grimly, "One thousand one hundred and fifty gold. Old Li, you can hammer it down!"

"One thousand one hundred and fifty gold once, one thousand one hundred and fifty gold twice..."

Just as the silver-robed elder was about to bring down his silver hammer, a voice rang out, "One thousand two hundred gold!"

The voice was hoarse and weak, yet as it echoed, the temperature in the venue seemed to plummet.

Without a doubt, the one who spoke was Xu Yi.

At this moment, he had made up his mind and was determined to win.

Money could be earned again, but a defensive divine artifact like Dragon Crocodile Hide, if missed, would be an eternal regret.

Furthermore, he knew he would soon face endless life-and-death battles, and the defensive capabilities of Dragon Crocodile Hide were something he desperately needed.

As for this Elder Shui acting tough, he could scare others, but he couldn't scare him. He had already thoroughly offended even the divine being Zhou Daogan, who was rumored to have already entered the Liquid Condensation Realm. Did he still fear a mere Elder Shui?

"How dare a rat!"

Elder Shui was furious. His eyes blazed with sharp light, staring intently at Xu Yi, who was not far from him.

A powerful pressure emanated from him, causing those around Xu Yi to tremble uncontrollably, yet he remained completely still.

With his powerful soul force, this pressure didn't even count as a tickle. He spoke in his hoarse voice with a calm demeanor, "Old thief, don't be arrogant. This is Linglong Pavilion. It's a public sale, and you can't just snatch things!"

BOOM!

The entire venue shook violently, and all eyes converged on Xu Yi.

The Shui family was such a colossal clan, dominating Guang'an for hundreds of years. When the Shui family patriarch celebrated his birthday, even the Prefect of Guang'an Prefecture would come to offer congratulations.

Elder Shui was an important figure, a powerful cultivator at the Late Qi Sea Realm. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he commanded immense influence in Guang'an.

Today, he was openly called an "old thief" to his face. The thought alone felt surreal.

"You audacious rat, dare you reveal your name? I will make you regret this!"

Elder Shui's nose was practically crooked with anger, and he almost spat out a mouthful of old blood. Having roamed Guang'an for so many years, he felt he had truly seen it all today.

"Old Li, I have already placed my bid. Please proceed with the bidding. If no one else bids, this Dragon Crocodile Hide will be mine."

Xu Yi completely ignored the enraged Elder Shui and coldly reminded the silver-robed elder. He had deliberately altered his voice to sound aged, hence his somewhat elderly tone when addressing the silver-robed elder.

Xu Yi knew very well that no matter how arrogant Elder Shui was, he wouldn't dare to incur the wrath of the public. Moreover, Linglong Pavilion had stood strong in Guang'an for many years and conducted significant business; it was impossible for a mere Qi Sea Realm cultivator to simply disrupt it.

As expected, the silver-robed elder spoke, "Elder Shui, this is an auction. If you two have any grievances, please resolve them privately. Let us continue with the auction process. Number Twenty-Three bids one thousand two hundred gold. One thousand two hundred gold once, one thousand two hundred gold twice..."

The silver-robed elder had been annoyed with Elder Shui for a long time. As a professional auctioneer, he viewed anyone who publicly suppressed bids as an enemy.

Qi Ming earlier was fine; they had a pleasant discussion, and he even mentioned that if he refined the Divine Essence Pill, he would sell it through Linglong Pavilion, showing considerable respect.

But this Elder Shui was unreasonable and resorted to brute force to suppress others. The silver-robed elder, constrained by the Shui family's influence and having indulged Qi Ming earlier, couldn't openly criticize him.

Now, with Xu Yi standing up against tyranny, he naturally welcomed it.

"One thousand three hundred gold!"

Elder Shui's eyes were wide with rage, wishing he could glare Xu Yi to death on the spot.

Indeed, no matter how powerful the Shui family was, or how high his cultivation, he would never dare to openly rob someone within Linglong Pavilion.

"One thousand three hundred and fifty gold!" Xu Yi bid without hesitation.

He had made up his mind to go all out. Even if he ultimately failed, at least he would have no regrets.

"One thousand four hundred gold!"

Elder Shui's eye twitched. He forcibly suppressed his boiling anger and said coldly, "Number Twenty-Three, if you stop now, I will pretend that none of this ever happened."

As soon as Elder Shui said this, everyone's heart skipped a beat. When had the usually arrogant Elder Shui ever spoken so softly?

Even those with keen minds began to speculate about which great power Xu Yi belonged to.

Even Xu Yi's heart trembled, and then he was overjoyed. He mused, Could it be that the Shui family member spent too lavishly earlier and is now running out of funds? "One thousand four hundred and fifty gold!"

"One thousand five hundred gold! Number Twenty-Three, are you truly seeking an irreconcilable conflict with my Shui family!"

Elder Feng was going mad.

Xu Yi had guessed half correctly. Elder Shui was not running out of funds, but he did have reserves.

The Shui family was wealthy, and as an elder of the Shui family, he was naturally not short of money. He had prepared over ten thousand gold for this auction.

Who would have thought that all the items Linglong Pavilion was selling this time were top-tier? He had already spent over four thousand gold bidding for the previous three items.

By this calculation, Elder Shui still had over five thousand gold in reserve. Under normal circumstances, bidding for the Dragon Crocodile Hide would be a sure thing.

However, Elder Shui was determined to win the grand finale of this auction, which meant his budget for the Dragon Crocodile Hide was limited.

What made it worse was that Xu Yi, a stubborn fellow who wouldn't back down, suddenly appeared and went all out, leaving Elder Shui completely unsure when he could finally get the Dragon Crocodile Hide.

Moreover, Linglong Pavilion had a rule: payment was due immediately after the auction ended, with no exceptions for delayed payments. This meant Elder Shui couldn't even go home to get money in time.

It wasn't that Elder Shui hadn't planned carefully or prepared adequately. It was just that the Dragon Crocodile Hide appeared too suddenly and was completely outside his considerations. He had originally come for the final item of the auction.

Bidding on the other three items was just a casual affair. He never expected the Dragon Crocodile Hide to suddenly appear and catch him completely off guard.

While others might not know the value of the Dragon Crocodile Hide, Elder Shui was acutely aware of it. Thirty years ago, he had traveled to the northern lands with his granduncle and encountered a Dragon Crocodile in a cluster of ancient volcanoes.

That monster, ten feet long, with the head of a crocodile and the body of a dragon, had left a deep impression on him. At the time, his granduncle, who was on the verge of entering the Liquid Condensation Realm, wielding the Shui Family's treasured Azure Luan Sword, could only fight the Dragon Crocodile to a draw.

He remembered very clearly that all of his granduncle's powerful moves at the time had precisely struck the Dragon Crocodile's head, leaving not even a white mark.

Elder Shui had never forgotten such terrifying defensive power.

Now, with the Dragon Crocodile Hide appearing, and Linglong Pavilion inexplicably allowing Gao Junmo, a mere Mid Qi Sea Realm cultivator, to test it without even permitting him to use the Seven Absolute Swords, it would be a miracle if they could ascertain the quality of the Dragon Crocodile Hide.