Upon entering the consignment room again, Zhu Jin handed his identity card to the snake maid.
"Sir, please wait a moment. The manager is tallying all the auction proceeds and completing the handover." The snake maid gently coiled her slender tail around an enormous teacup, placed a cup of warm tea on the table beside Zhu Jin, then smiled and stepped aside to wait silently.
Zhu Jin nodded slightly. He merely held the cup, feeling its warmth seep into his icy dragon claws, but he did not drink it. A little caution never hurt, especially in an auction house that appeared fair on the surface but was utterly dark beneath it.
As he waited, Zhu Jin casually asked, seemingly without much thought, "By the way, does Venerable Yao Han Feng often hold charity auctions for pills like this?"
The snake maid naturally did not think much of it and answered honestly, "In reply to you, sir, Venerable Yao has always had the habit of providing medical treatment and medicine to others. Since Starfall Pavilion was founded, it has regularly distributed low-grade healing medicines to low-level cultivators and ordinary people, as well as offered free consultations. Although this pill auction does not involve low-grade pills, it is held from time to time. This is not the first occasion."
Zhu Jin nodded softly, a glimmer hidden in his eyes as he posed his real question. "But as far as I know, Starfall Pavilion was founded by Venerable Feng Feng Xian and Venerable Yao Yao Chen. This Han Feng is someone I've never heard of before."
Upon hearing that, the snake maid continued, "Oh, then you must not know about what happened back then, sir. Han Feng was the direct disciple of Starfall Pavilion's founder, Venerable Yao Yao Chen. Later, Venerable Yao disappeared. Rumor had it that Soul Hall had harmed him, and the matter caused quite a stir. Even the three giants of the Pill Tower were alerted. But in the end, nothing came of it. Soul Hall was too powerful, and they had always captured alchemists. They had long been mortal enemies with the Pill Tower."
"Later, Venerable Yao Han Feng inherited the legacy and became the new Venerable Yao, continuing these acts of kindness."
The snake maid did not find anything strange about his questions. After all, a merchant association sold everything, including information. Many cultivators came to merchant associations specifically to inquire about intelligence. The snake maids were much like know-it-alls of the martial world. So long as the information was not excessively confidential, they were happy to chat with distinguished guests and build good relations.
What the snake maid did not notice was that cracks had already appeared in the teacup in Zhu Jin's hand from the force of his grip. Nor did she notice that his gaze was growing colder and colder.
"Han Feng..." Zhu Jin was no fool. Though the timeline had already diverged, the essence of a person remained unchanged. Is this where the singularity lies? Han Feng succeeded—and even deceived Venerable Feng!
Zhu Jin's dragon claws turned somewhat pale. He had once watched an anime about histories that had deviated from their proper timelines, threatening the survival of the human world. The protagonist traveled to various singularities to repair them and return history to its proper ending.
And clearly, the Battle Through the Heavens timeline he was currently in was utterly abnormal. Han Feng had successfully murdered his master and obtained all of Starfall Pavilion. In the grand scheme of the Dou Qi Continent, this was merely a minor incident at the Dou Venerate level, not even worthy of the attention of the various Dou God Clans. Yet when a butterfly flapped its wings, a thought could change the heavens. The consequences of this butterfly effect were easy to imagine.
What Zhu Jin feared most was not Hun Tiandi winning in the end, but Han Feng obtaining the inheritance of Tou She Ancient God!
Han Feng was a villain who betrayed his master and ancestors and refined living people into pills. He was even worse than Hun Tiandi. If he became a God, he would not merely use the entire Central Plains to refine pills—he might use the entire Dou Qi Continent!
As Zhu Jin's thoughts continued to race, the doors were pushed open. Footsteps suddenly drew closer from afar and entered the hall. A giant python, reduced in size, slowly slithered in with its upper body held upright. Zhu Jin opened his eyes and looked toward the lifted curtain.
"Hehe, greetings, Dragon Clan sir. I am a manager of the merchant association. My name is Zhou Bo." Seeing the little dragon sitting cross-legged atop Old Turtle, the giant python approached and said with a smile.
"Fire Ember." Zhu Jin concealed his true name and nodded indifferently. "Manager Zhou, has the handover been completed?"
"Hehe, it has been completed." Manager Zhou placed a storage ring on the table and said, "Inside this storage ring are all the gold coins earned from the auction. You may count them if you wish. And also..."
Manager Zhou flicked out his forked tongue. A meaningful glint appeared in his eyes as he smiled. "This Dou Ling Pill now belongs to you as well, Mr. Ember."
At the mention of the Dou Ling Pill, even Old Turtle, who had kept his eyes closed, half-opened them for a glance. After using Dragon Sense to inspect the gold coins, Zhu Jin picked up the Dou Ling Pill and gave it a shake. After pondering for a moment, he placed it into the storage ring as well.
"Now that I have received the items, I won't impose any longer. Farewell." Zhu Jin did not hesitate further. He cupped his hands toward Manager Zhou and prepared to leave.
"Please wait a moment, Mr. Ember. I believe you know that the pill cauldron you forged was purchased by our merchant association. Our young master, Zhou Ziyang, is quite interested in your forging skills. He has a matter he would like to ask for your help with. Could you meet with him and have a chat?" Seeing Zhu Jin about to leave, Manager Zhou suddenly asked.
Naturally, Zhu Jin knew about this. Before learning of Venerable Yao Han Feng's situation, he might truly have planned to earn some money and take his time enjoying life. But things were different now. He had no interest in helping anyone.
"No. I have matters to attend to, so I will not stay any longer. Farewell." With that, Zhu Jin did not wait for Manager Zhou to try to persuade him to stay. Old Turtle erupted with the cultivation of a Dou Emperor, and they instantly left the merchant association.
Standing in the hall, Manager Zhou narrowed his eyes as he watched Zhu Jin and the Ancient Dragon Turtle vanish from sight. A cold glint flashed through his gaze.
Not long afterward, a Six-Eared Python appeared with its upper body raised and asked, "Could you tell what kind of Dragon Clan he belongs to?"
Without question, this was the young master Zhou Ziyang whom Manager Zhou had mentioned.
Manager Zhou shook his head. "I could not tell. A barrier of soul power surrounds him, so I cannot determine what kind of dragon he is. He looks young and has yet to master the art of shrinking, yet he can forge such an unusual pill cauldron. As far as I know, no such Dragon Clan exists in the Beast Domain. He has likely obtained some ancient forging method or fortuitous opportunity."
Zhou Ziyang frowned slightly and gave a quiet hum. His voice contained an unmistakable, cold killing intent. "Then use the old method. If he truly obtained an ancient inheritance, use every means possible to make him serve our empire. If that fails, eliminate him."
"Yes." After accepting the order, Manager Zhou glanced at him and asked, "And the matter concerning Venerable Yao...?"
"Proceed according to the original plan."
In the darkness of night, an old turtle flew through the air. Zhu Jin looked down at the vast Beast Empire and the streams of people below. His right hand slowly clenched, and within his palm lay a shrunken dragon scale.
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