The girl's actions sent a thunderous roar through the male cultivator's mind.
His face went white, and he nearly lost his footing.
Then the pallor gradually gave way to red, a warning of the fury about to erupt.
The male cultivator whipped his gaze toward Su Jiu. "You knew all along!"
"You played me?! You dared to play me?!"
Su Jiu gave him an innocent smile. "Fellow Daoist, what are you talking about? The Auction House's rules say the highest bidder wins!"
Su Jiu threw his exact words back at him. The male cultivator glared at her, grinding his teeth, but could not get a single word out.
At the sight of Su Jiu's "harmless" smile, Yun Huanling hugged himself in fright. He looked at the male cultivator with pity, thinking, Why would you court disaster by provoking this little demon?
The Auction House's steward had clearly caught on as well. Several people immediately surrounded the man.
The steward said politely, "Please pay the spirit stones first. I will bring your purchase to you shortly."
The man roared, his eyes nearly splitting with rage, "No, no! I'm withdrawing my bid!"
The steward's smile faded a little. "Please don't joke about such things here. We will take you seriously. I believe you should have known before coming that the Dawn City Auction answers directly to the City Lord's Residence. If you truly intend to do this, are you trying to oppose the City Lord?"
The man grew frightened. "No, no! She tricked me."
Su Jiu merely smiled faintly without a word, as though watching an idiot.
This time, it was not just Yun Huanling. Liu Zhiyan shuddered involuntarily too, and began going over everything he had done since meeting Su Jiu. He probably, perhaps, seemingly had not offended her.
The steward