Meanwhile, on the auction stage.
Ning Wangshu looked at Yun Qingwu and said calmly, "I heard them call you Yun Qingwu just now. So, are you a descendant of Fairy Yunmiao?"
Taken aback by Ning Wangshu's question, Yun Qingwu froze for a moment.
Then she collected herself. After a brief hesitation, she nodded slightly, then shook her head. "Yunmiao was my grand-aunt. She never had a Dao companion in her life, so she had no direct descendants."
After a pause, she tentatively asked, "Your Excellency... did you know Grand Ancestor Yunmiao?"
Ning Wangshu didn't answer directly. He only said, "I know you must have a lot of questions right now, but let's talk about them later."
"First, I'll remove these shackles."
With that, Ning Wangshu simply pointed a finger. A few light clacks rang out, and the shackles on Yun Qingwu broke apart.
Then Ning Wangshu beckoned to Gong Shiyu and the others, who were seated behind them. "You can come over too. Take good care of your sect master."
"I'll handle everything else."
At Ning Wangshu's words, Gong Shiyu and the others rose without hesitation and leaped onto the stage.
The moment the others at the auction saw Gong Shiyu and her companions, they were stunned.
"That's... Chief Gong of the Yunqing Sect!"
"And Elder Yan Rushuang of the Yunqing Sect!"
"Gasp... They're still alive! And this man is with them. Could he be from the Yunqing Sect too? But how come I've never heard of him?"
"Exactly. If he really were from the Yunqing Sect, with his cultivation, there's no way he'd be unknown. Besides, judging by the sect master's reaction, even she clearly doesn't know him."
"Maybe he's an older powerhouse from the Yunqing Sect who's been traveling abroad, someone even their sect master has never met.