The Strongest Protagonists Are the Ones Without Cheat Powers

Upon entering the consignment room again, Zhu Jin handed his identity card to the snake maid.

"My lord, please wait a moment. The manager is tallying all the auction proceeds and completing the handover." The snake maid gently curled her slender tail around an enormous teacup. She placed a cup of warm tea on the table beside Zhu Jin, then smiled and stepped aside to wait quietly.

Zhu Jin nodded slightly. He merely held the cup, feeling its warmth and letting his icy dragon claws absorb a little heat, but he did not drink it. There was no harm in being cautious, especially in an auction house that appeared fair but was secretly dark beyond measure.

As he waited, Zhu Jin casually asked, seemingly without much thought, "By the way, does Venerable Yao Han Feng often hold charitable pill auctions like this?"

The snake maid naturally did not think much of it and answered honestly, "In reply to my lord, Venerable Yao has always had a habit of providing free medical treatment and medicine. Since Starfall Pavilion was founded, it has periodically distributed low-grade healing medicine to low-level cultivators and ordinary people, as well as offered free consultations. Although the pills auctioned this time are not low-grade pills, such auctions are held from time to time. This is not the first time."

Zhu Jin nodded gently, a faint glint hidden in his eyes as he threw out 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."

Hearing this, the snake maid continued, "Oh, then my lord must not know what happened back then. Han Feng was the direct disciple of Yao Chen, the founding Venerable Yao of Starfall Pavilion. Later, Venerable Yao disappeared. Rumor had it that Soul Hall had harmed him. The matter caused a tremendous uproar, even alarming the three great heads of the Pill Tower. But in the end, it came to nothing. Soul Hall was too powerful, and they had always captured alchemists. They had always 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. A merchant association sold everything, including intelligence. Many cultivators came to the association to inquire about information. They were like know-it-alls of the martial world; as long as the information was not too confidential, they were happy to chat with distinguished guests and build good relations.

Yet the snake maid did not notice the cracks appearing in Zhu Jin's teacup from the force of his grip. Nor did she notice that Zhu Jin's gaze was growing colder and colder.

"Han Feng..." Zhu Jin was no fool. Though the timeline had diverged, people's fundamental nature remained. Is this the world's singularity? Han Feng succeeded—and even deceived Venerable Feng!

Zhu Jin's dragon claws turned pale. He had once watched an anime about history deviating from its proper timeline, threatening the survival of the human world. The protagonist traveled to each singularity to repair it and return history to its proper ending.

And clearly, the Battle Through the Heavens timeline he was in was far from normal. Han Feng had successfully murdered his master and obtained all of Starfall Pavilion. In the vast Dou Qi Continent, this was merely a minor incident involving a Dou Venerate, something that would not even catch the attention of the various Dou God Clans. But when a butterfly beat its wings, a single thought could change the heavens. The consequences of this butterfly effect were unimaginable.

What Zhu Jin feared most was not Hun Tiandi winning in the end, but Han Feng obtaining the inheritance of the Tou She Ancient God!

Han Feng was a villain who betrayed his master and ancestors, refining living people into pills. He was no less evil than Hun Tiandi. If he became a God, he would not merely use all of Central Plains to refine pills—he might use the entire Dou Qi Continent!

As Zhu Jin's thoughts raced, the doors opened. Footsteps suddenly drew closer from afar and entered the hall. A python whose body had been shrunk stood upright as it slowly entered. Zhu Jin opened his eyes and looked toward the lifted curtain.

"Hehe, greetings, sir of the dragon clan. I am the merchant association's manager, Zhou Bo." Seeing the little dragon sitting cross-legged atop the old turtle, the giant python approached and said with a smile.

"Huo Jin." Zhu Jin concealed his real name. He nodded indifferently and said, "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. And also..."

Manager Zhou flicked his snake tongue, a meaningful gleam appearing in his eyes as he smiled. "This Dou Ling Pill also belongs to Mr. Jin."

At the mention of the Dou Ling Pill, even the old turtle, who had kept his eyes closed, half-opened them to take a look. After Zhu Jin used Dragon Sense to scan the gold coins, he picked up the Dou Ling Pill and lightly shook it. After pondering for a moment, he placed it into the storage ring as well.

"Since I have received the goods, I will not disturb you any longer. Farewell." Zhu Jin did not hesitate further. He cupped his hands toward Manager Zhou and prepared to leave.

"Please wait, Mr. Jin. I believe you know that the medicine cauldron forged by you was purchased by our merchant association. Our young master, Zhou Ziyang, is quite interested in your forging skills. He has something he wishes to ask your help with. Would you be willing to meet him for a chat?" Seeing Zhu Jin about to leave, Manager Zhou suddenly asked.

Zhu Jin naturally knew about these matters. If the incident with Venerable Yao Han Feng had not occurred, he truly would have planned to earn some money and leisurely enjoy life. But things were different now. He had no interest in helping anyone.

"No. I still have some matters to attend to, so I will not stay any longer. Farewell." After saying that, Zhu Jin did not wait for Manager Zhou to urge him to stay. The old turtle erupted with the cultivation of a Dou Emperor and vanished from the merchant association in an instant.

Standing in the hall, Manager Zhou narrowed his eyes as he watched Zhu Jin and the Ancient Dragon Turtle disappear from view, a cold glint flashing through his gaze.

Not long afterward, a six-eared python appeared with its body held upright and asked, "Could you tell what kind of dragon he was?"

Without question, this was the young master Manager Zhou had mentioned—Zhou Ziyang.

Manager Zhou shook his head. "I could not tell. A barrier of soul power enveloped his body, so I could not determine what kind of dragon he was. He is a dragon who looks young and cannot yet master the art of shrinking, yet he can forge such an unusual medicine cauldron. As far as I know, no such dragon clan exists in the Beast Domain. He likely obtained some ancient forging technique or fortuitous opportunity."

Zhou Ziyang frowned slightly and gave a quiet hum. His voice carried an unmistakable cold killing intent. "Then follow 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 acknowledging the order, Manager Zhou glanced at him and asked, "What about Venerable Yao's matter...?"

"Proceed according to the original plan."

In the darkness of night, an old turtle flew through the sky. Zhu Jin looked down at the vast Magical Beast Empire and the bustling crowds below. His right hand slowly clenched, and in his palm lay a shrunken dragon scale.