Guessing Their Identities

Almost gritting his teeth, Old Biao forced out five words. The look in his eyes said he wished he could swallow that woman downstairs whole!

Yet surprisingly, no one bid this time. The woman beside Lu Tengfei seemed to have suddenly lost interest in the Soul Imprint. She remained silent and did not even glance at Old Biao.

"Fourteen million! Any higher bids?" The auctioneer swept his gaze across the hall again and called out loudly. When no one responded, he continued, "Fourteen million! Going twice!"

"Fourteen million! Going three times! Sold! Congratulations, Old Biao! You've got something to support you in your old age now!" Though Soul Imprints were rare, their prices had always been stable, usually between eight and twelve million. No one had expected this one to sell for fourteen million, earning an extra two million!

"Next comes the highlight of this auction: a Mechanical Clan corpse!" As he spoke, the auctioneer waved his hand, and the curtain behind him was pulled aside.

It was a body over three meters tall, with two legs and four arms. Its body was made of some unknown material, not the steel frame one might have imagined. Under the lights, it gave off a dark silver gleam, like mercury, and even appeared to possess a certain elasticity.

This Mechanical Clan corpse had been perfectly preserved without the slightest damage. Like it was asleep, it stood quietly on its display rack, radiating immense majesty, as though it could awaken at any moment.

"Yanqing, hurry up and tell us what this thing is actually good for!" At that moment, an old man seated on Lu Tengfei's other side spoke up. He was thin, his temples gray, his face gaunt, looking as though he was one foot in the grave. Yet his voice was as vigorous as Lu Tengfei's, and his eyes flashed with sharp light. He did not seem like an old man with one foot in the grave at all.

Hearing this, Wu Yanqing smiled faintly and reached up to tug at the thick gold chain around his neck. He signaled for those nearby to clear the area before speaking. "I'm sure everyone has heard of the Twin Ghosts! No matter how far apart they are, the parent and child bodies can sense one another, and no interference can disrupt that connection!"

"What do you mean?"

Everyone in the hall was confused by Wu Yanqing's words, unable to understand why he had brought this up.

"What do I mean? If anyone here acquires this Mechanical Clan corpse and binds it as its master, then you will become like the parent body of the Twin Ghosts, while this Mechanical Clan corpse will become like your avatar. No matter how far away it is, it can be controlled by the parent body. Its physical structure resembles that of a human, but it is far more powerful than a human body. This Mechanical Clan corpse is merely silver in color, yet it is equivalent to a human expert with a gene count of seven or eight hundred. Whoever obtains it will gain a super avatar with a gene count of seven or eight hundred!"

"Hiss..."

At Wu Yanqing's words, sharp intakes of breath rose one after another throughout the hall. This was simply too heaven-defying. A super avatar—what did that mean? Tang Yu's current gene count was only a little over 150. He neither could nor dared to hunt high-level mutant creatures in the deep sea. But with this Mechanical Clan corpse, he could do so easily. And he would not fear death at all, because even if it were destroyed, his main body would suffer no loss whatsoever.

And that was not even the most important part. Think about it: the combat experience gained from fighting powerful monsters would be shared with the main body. That was terrifying. Cultivation techniques, secret arts, and gene serums could all be bought, but combat experience—the great terror of life-and-death battles drenched in blood—could not be measured with money.

"What's the starting price for this thing?"

After quite some time, someone finally came to their senses and began asking Wu Yanqing about the price of the Mechanical Clan corpse. Anyone could guess that it would be outrageously expensive, far beyond what ordinary people could afford.

"What, Tengfei? You're interested? Honestly, with your talent, gaining combat experience through this Mechanical Clan corpse would be like adding wings to a tiger!" Instead of answering immediately, Wu Yanqing smiled at Lu Tengfei and asked him.

"Yes, but anyone can tell this thing must cost an absurd amount!" Lu Tengfei nodded without denying it, then added.

"Yanqing, quit keeping us in suspense and tell us the price already!" The old man beside Lu Tengfei said impatiently.

"Hehe, the value of this item is impossible to estimate at present. Our chairman recently suffered excessive mental exhaustion due to certain matters, so he wishes to collect treasures capable of replenishing mental power. If anyone has such an item, you may offer it in exchange. Even useful information will do. We will assess the value of the information and make up the difference or return the excess!"

"..."

Upon hearing Wu Yanqing's words, everyone fell silent. Many of them had never even heard of items capable of repairing mental exhaustion, much less possessed one. After a round of discussion came another stretch of silence.

"I have a piece of information. I don't know whether it's worth this Mechanical Clan corpse!" Just as everyone thought the final auction item was about to go unsold, someone finally spoke. It was none other than Lu Tengfei.

"Oh? You have something, Tengfei? Let's hear it." Wu Yanqing had originally thought that perhaps some young masters from the major families in the hall, or a few of the old men, might have something. He had not expected Lu Tengfei to speak first.

Hearing Wu Yanqing's words, Lu Tengfei shook his head. "This information concerns a secret, so I can't simply reveal it here!"

Lu Tengfei was right. Information was only valuable when others did not know it. Once revealed, it lost its value.

"That's not a problem. Tengfei, come with me!" Wu Yanqing gave the crowd an apologetic look, then motioned for Lu Tengfei to follow him backstage.

About ten minutes later, Wu Yanqing and Lu Tengfei emerged.

"How did it go?"

"What secret information did Lu Tengfei reveal?"

Hearing the crowd's murmurs, Wu Yanqing raised his hand to signal for quiet.

"Tengfei's information is indeed reliable, but it is not particularly useful to the chairman. As compensation, I have already transferred ten million Federation Credits to him!"

"My god! What kind of information is worth ten million Federation Credits?"

Not only Meng Xuanxuan, but even Tang Yu was stunned. He could not understand what sort of information could be worth that much money!

"Is anyone else interested? If not, then this auction will end here. It's time to disperse!" Wu Yanqing's gaze swept over the people in the hall, especially those he thought might know certain information. But no one answered. The old man beside Lu Tengfei appeared eager to try, but for some reason, he ultimately said nothing!

No one had expected the auction to end with its final featured item going unsold. It came as a surprise to everyone.

"Brother Tang, Miss Lin Xi, are you two planning to keep looking around? I'm eager to return and try out the Stealth Thunder Insect, so I can't accompany you any longer!" After leaving the commerce, Wang Jing apologized to Tang Yu and Meng Xuanxuan.

"No..."

"It's fine. Brother Wang, go ahead. The two of us will look around on our own for a while longer!" Meng Xuanxuan had been about to say there was nothing left to see and that they should leave together, but Tang Yu interrupted her. Though she did not know why he had done so, she gave him face and did not argue.

Hearing Tang Yu say this, Wang Jing nodded and left with his attendant, Xie Bai. Only then did Meng Xuanxuan raise her question to Tang Yu.

"Young Master, how are you planning to get this girl? The usual way?" Back at the hotel, Xie Bai asked Wang Jing with a smile. They had obtained the gene catalyst serum. Not only could he break through the shackles and raise his gene count beyond 400, but more importantly, he could extend his lifespan. Ordinary martial artists, even Force-awakened martial artists like him whose gene counts had surpassed 300, only lived a little over a hundred years. In the end, they would become nothing more than a pile of dirt, vanishing into the dust of history. But once one's gene count exceeded 400, it was different. The body's functions changed, and lifespan increased. One could live to at least two hundred. This was the most fundamental reason humanity pursued martial arts.

"Lin Xi's identity is not simple. Hmph! She may be able to fool others, but she cannot fool me. That girl is very likely Meng Xuanxuan, the young heiress of Dream Domain Network Group. We cannot act rashly. We must use a gentle approach. There is no need to rush. I'll first adapt to the Stealth Thunder Insect. Elder Xie, use the gene catalyst serum as soon as possible. I have a feeling we may run into trouble when we return!"

In the Black Market Commerce's high-class reception area, Meng Xuanxuan and Tang Yu sat quietly in chairs made of nanmu pearwood. The living room was furnished with a full set of nanmu pearwood furniture. Such items had already been priceless before the Great Cataclysm, and were even scarcer now. An entire matching set was extravagantly luxurious.

"I'm saying, Tang Yu, you're not trying to fool them, are you? If you anger them, neither of us will be able to bear the consequences! Even Qin Bo wouldn't be able to do anything!" Meng Xuanxuan sipped the fragrant tea, but she had no mood for it at all. She had thought Tang Yu had kept her behind for something good, but instead, he had returned to the commerce and found the auctioneer, Wu Yanqing, telling him that he possessed something capable of replenishing mental exhaustion. Wu Yanqing had been greatly shocked by this. Though he did not entirely believe Tang Yu, he did not dare neglect him, so he invited the two inside to wait.

"Little brother, what is your name?" After a while, Wu Yanqing appeared to have finished handling his affairs and finally came in to ask Tang Yu.

"Tang Wei. This is my friend, Lin Xi!" Tang Yu answered calmly.

"Oh? Is that so? Could it be that my subordinates got it wrong? Tang Yu, eighteen years old, scored 658 on this year's college entrance exam. Meng Xuanxuan, the young heiress of Dream Domain Network Group, scored 638. You two are about to attend military training at the Asian Military Academy, correct?" Hearing Tang Yu's answer, Wu Yanqing smiled and shook his head, then rattled off the information. Tang Yu was left dumbfounded, while Meng Xuanxuan, who had been sitting beside him all along, remained relatively calm. Identities were difficult to conceal if someone truly wanted to investigate them.