"Smack—"
Yu Xiaogang slapped Zhu Zhuqing across the face. His expression was icy, and he panted heavily. "Why didn't you follow my plan? Why didn't you use the Godly Zhuge Crossbow? You could have won!"
The Resting Room was empty. Flender and the others had already gone after Qiankun Mingxin, leaving only Yu Xiaogang behind.
With no one else around, he finally stopped hiding his anger and slapped Zhu Zhuqing.
Even after being struck hard across the face, Zhu Zhuqing's expression remained cold and numb. "I'm sorry."
What she wanted was to defeat her opponent fair and square.
"Go back and reflect on what you did. You won't take part in the final team battle," Yu Xiaogang said coldly.
He had no need to waste time on students who wouldn't listen.
After all, Xiao San was the only one he considered his disciple.
"I'm sorry." Zhu Zhuqing bowed deeply, turned, pushed open the door, and walked out.
"Little sister?"
As soon as Zhu Zhuqing stepped outside, she ran into Ning Rongrong.
Ning Rongrong saw the handprint on Zhu Zhuqing's face. Surprise flashed through her eyes, then she cried out in anger, "Who hit you? Was it Qiankun Mingxin?! That's too much! I'm going to kill her!"
Ning Rongrong turned to charge off, but Zhu Zhuqing caught her by the arm. "Don't go... It wasn't her."
"Then who..." She turned back and looked at the huge handprint on Zhu Zhuqing's face. An unbelievable answer came to her. "Was... was it... Grandmaster?"
She could hardly believe the words coming out of her mouth. How could it have been Grandmaster? He had always cared most about their group of students. Even when he was angry, the worst he would do was punish them physically.
A faint glimmer flickered in Ning Rongrong's eyes as she looked at Zhu Zhuqing, hoping for an answer.
But when Zhu Zhuqing stayed silent, her eyes gradually dimmed, then filled with anger. "No! I'm going to confront Grandmaster! It was only one lost match. How could he hit someone?"
"Rongrong." Zhu Zhuqing held Ning Rongrong's hand. This was too humiliating. Better not to let anyone else know.
"It really was Grandmaster!" Ning Rongrong's eyes widened. Seeing Zhu Zhuqing's swollen cheek, she felt tears fill her eyes.
She couldn't believe that the usually taciturn Grandmaster would strike a woman.
"Please keep this a secret for me." Zhu Zhuqing's voice was low. It would be a lie to say she wasn't disappointed.
Her childhood sweetheart had left her behind in the Star Luo Empire, forcing her to face everything alone.
Now, she had travelled a thousand miles to find him, only to discover that he had long since become a womanizer, more sullied than anyone could imagine.
And now, the teacher she thought could guide her to greater strength had treated her this way just because she'd lost a match.
Zhu Zhuqing let go of Ning Rongrong's hand and walked toward the exit, disappointed.
"Where are you going?" Ning Rongrong grabbed Zhu Zhuqing's hand, afraid she might be so upset that she would leave for good.
"I'm going out to clear my head. Don't worry. I'll be back soon." Zhu Zhuqing waved behind her without turning around.
Elsewhere, Flender, Zhao Wuji, and the others followed Qingxi for a long time, but eventually lost track of her.
Soto City Auction House.
At one in the morning, the auction had just ended, and scattered groups of people were making their way out.
Moving against the flow of people, Qingxi slipped in without a sound. She eventually found the familiar scent in a room on the highest floor.
Inside the presidential suite.
Drell wore a loose dressing gown that left much of his muscular build exposed. The candlelight made his wheat-colored skin look even more rugged.
He slumped in his chair, nodding off from time to time before forcing himself awake.
Several bulging Storage Soul Tools sat on the pear-yellow desk. The clock on the wall had just struck one in the morning.
Drell yawned again, his gaze bleary as he looked at the calligraphy paper on the desk.
Today was the last day of their agreement. Could that esteemed person have forgotten?
"Duke, where's the stuff I asked for?" Qingxi emerged from the darkness, clad in a loose black robe. Her voice, impossible to place as male or female, made Drell jolt.
"My lord, you're here." Drell hurried to his feet and bowed, pointing at the Storage Bags on the desk. "A... a few items couldn't be found. Everything else is here."
"And this... is the rest of the money." He pulled a black card from his clothes and cautiously held it out to Qingxi.
"What couldn't you find?" Qingxi sat beside the desk and inspected the contents of the Soul Tools. Their total capacity was ten cubic meters, and eleven bags held metal materials alone. There were also two bags of medicinal herbs.
"Dark Element Silver, the Ten-Thousand-Year Ginseng King, and Soul Awakening Grass..." Drell's voice grew quieter with each item. He hadn't forgotten what this esteemed person had said before: if he couldn't find everything, it would cost him his life.
A flicker of surprise crossed Qingxi's eyes. She hadn't expected only three items to be missing.
Calmly, she waved her hand and put away the Storage Soul Tools. She glanced at the black card in Drell's hand but didn't take it. Instead, she pulled out a pale green medicine bottle and set it on the desk.
Drell looked at the bottle, and his eyelid twitched. It looked exactly like the bottles that had contained the pills sold to Spirit Hall.
Spirit Hall had never caused the auction house trouble after that day. Instead, it had sent people to ask where the pills came from. It seemed the things really were the genuine article.
"Keep the rest of the money as your reward. Keep helping me look for Soul Awakening Grass. You don't need to worry about the Dark Element Silver or the Ten-Thousand-Year Ginseng King. If you hear anything, just crush this jade, and I'll come find you."
Qingxi placed a golden jade token in Drell's palm and turned to leave.
"My lord, if you're looking for metal materials, you could visit Gengxin City. They sell all kinds of raw metal ore there year-round. You might find the Dark Element Silver you need." Drell's voice rang out behind her.
"I'll go when I have time." Qingxi nodded and walked straight out.
As soon as she was gone, Drell hurriedly picked up the medicine bottle from the desk, opened it, and sniffed. His expression immediately changed to one of astonishment.
It was a pill that could evolve a Martial Soul.
Remembering the promise Spirit Hall had made him, Drell suppressed his desire and sealed the bottle again.
He couldn't believe that such a priceless thing had been casually given to him by that esteemed person.
He sat back down and stared at the bottle and the golden stone in his hands, lost in thought. Should he tell Spirit Hall about this or not?
Under the bright moon and sparse stars, the streets outside the auction house were deserted. Only a few street lamps and a night patrol cart remained.
Qingxi hummed a little tune as she bounced along, thoroughly delighted.
She'd barely held back her laughter at the auction house. Combined with the Immortal Herbs she'd gathered earlier at the Ice and Fire Spirit Pool, these materials were enough for her to refine a Soul-Splitting Pill.
Just thinking about it made her happy, though finding Soul Awakening Grass would make things even better.
And there were enough metal materials to forge an unrivaled weapon—with some left over.
Qingxi walked along cheerfully, then suddenly stopped. She took a few steps back, her gaze settling on a hotel at the end of the street.
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