Venerable Yao

A moment later, at the entrance of the Miter Auction House, under the watchful eyes of several fully armed guards,

Hai Bodong strode without pause straight into the Miter Auction House's spacious, resplendent main hall.

After Hai Bodong pushed open the doors and entered,

he found the hall somewhat empty.

Perhaps because evening was approaching,

only a receptionist

and a handful of support staff seemingly left behind specifically to clean the hall remained inside the auction house.

Hearing the door open, the receptionist quickly approached Hai Bodong.

His face instantly filled with a professional smile as he bowed and asked Hai Bodong,

"Sir, it is so late. May I ask what business you have at our Miter Auction House?"

"Hmm! There is nothing for you to do here. Just give this to whoever is in charge!"

As he spoke, Hai Bodong took a token symbolizing the Mite'er Family's Supreme Elder from the Storage Ring on his right hand.

He then tossed it into the hands of the nearby receptionist.

"This is...?"

The receptionist carefully caught the token Hai Bodong had thrown over and blinked in confusion.

When he saw the special inscription carved upon it, representing the status of a Supreme Elder of the Mite'er Family,

his expression changed drastically.

When he looked at Hai Bodong again,

his gaze held an additional trace of reverence.

He immediately bowed even more earnestly and said,

"Please wait a moment, Elder. I will immediately deliver this item to the manager of our Miter Auction House branch!"

"Hmm! Hurry up."

"Do not keep me waiting too long!"

With a wave of his hand, Hai Bodong did not stand on ceremony.

He sat down directly in a nearby chair.

Then he reclined leisurely, closed his eyes, and rested.

The receptionist did not say anything further upon hearing this.

He merely nodded hurriedly.

Then, in great haste, he quickly headed into the interior of the Miter Auction House in Wutan City.

A moment later, a man and a woman emerged from the inner hall of the Miter Auction House.

The woman was Ya Fei, who had come to Wutan City for training.

The man was Gu Ni, the only second-tier alchemist at the Wutan City branch of the Miter Auction House.

"This junior, Ya Fei, pays respects to the Supreme Elder!"

"This junior, Gu Ni, pays respects to the Supreme Elder!"

After seeing Hai Bodong's true appearance,

the two bowed and respectfully greeted him in turn.

"Hmm! I will not waste words!"

"I need a place to rest temporarily. Make the arrangements."

Hai Bodong remained sprawled flat in the reclining chair, his eyes closed as he spoke indifferently.

"Yes! We will make the arrangements at once!"

"We hope the Supreme Elder will find his accommodations satisfactory!" Ya Fei hurriedly replied with a smile.

After speaking, Ya Fei did not waste any more words. She immediately waved over several attendants from the Miter Auction House.

She instructed them to quickly prepare the finest room inside the Miter Auction House for Hai Bodong.

As for herself, she and Uncle Gu Ni continued standing attentively beside the reclining Hai Bodong.

Quietly awaiting Hai Bodong's next instruction.

After briefly explaining his specific requirements to Ya Fei,

Hai Bodong began studying the strange ring he had obtained from That kid Xiao Yan today in the luxurious suite Ya Fei had prepared for him.

This thing actually absorbs Dou Qi on its own, and it did so for three whole years. Could there be a Soul Body left behind by some legendary powerhouse hidden inside?

Thinking of the ring's strange properties,

Hai Bodong could not help but think to himself.

"Perfect!"

"I have the Seven Illusory Azure Spirit Birth that old Nalan Jie gave me. I might as well give it a try!"

With that thought, Hai Bodong no longer hesitated. He immediately took out the preserved Seven Illusory Azure Spirit Birth from his Storage Ring.

Next, he continuously compressed and refined it using his own Dou Qi energy and Soul Strength.

Then he tried slowly injecting it into the Ancient Ring.

A moment later, under Hai Bodong's extremely careful observation, an astonishing phenomenon appeared.

The Ancient Ring actually shifted from passively absorbing the essence of the Seven Illusory Azure Spirit Birth to actively absorbing it.

Immediately afterward, a somewhat illusory ghostly soul

suddenly emerged from the Ancient Ring.

"This junior is Hai Bodong. May I ask Senior's name?"

After sensing that the other party's Soul Strength, though weak,

was still far stronger than his own,

the ever-cautious Hai Bodong did not dare act presumptuously. He immediately cupped his hands and bowed respectfully.

"Hello, little fellow! My name is Yao Chen!"

The elderly man in Soul Body form said with a smile,

stroking a strand of his beard.

"Could you be that number one alchemist of the continent from Central Continent, Venerable Yao, Old Yao?"

Hai Bodong asked in surprise.

Apparently very pleased by Hai Bodong's astonished expression, the Soul Body named Old Yao

immediately replied with a smile,

"Hmm! Little fellow, you guessed correctly!"

"I am indeed the number one alchemist of the continent from Central Continent that you spoke of—Venerable Yao, Old Yao!"

"Um, according to what I know, had you not already disappeared long ago in the rumors?"

"How did you end up in this tiny Wutan City now, reduced to nothing but a Soul Body?"

As for Hai Bodong's question,

Old Yao did not wish to answer it in detail for the moment.

After all, answering it would involve one of the most painful memories buried deep in his heart.

Thus, upon hearing this, Old Yao

merely deliberately changed the subject

and continued speaking to Hai Bodong.

"Enough, let us not talk about that for now."

"Let us first discuss Xiao Yan, the new disciple I had originally chosen."

"You mean Xiao Yan of the Xiao Family?"

Hai Bodong asked in surprise.

"That is right. I mean that Xiao Yan from the Xiao Family."

Old Yao paused, then continued,

"Originally, I only absorbed that kid's Dou Qi for three years in order to awaken from my slumber as quickly as possible."

"But during those three years, I discovered that not only was that kid's innate Soul Strength extraordinary, his temperament had also become increasingly mature under the tempering of others' words."

"He also happened to possess some talent for alchemy, so I had recently been preparing to take him as my disciple."

"Who would have thought that you would interfere midway, and that kid's little lover even seems to be someone from one of the Eight Ancient Clans."

"Now that I have fallen into your hands, it will likely be difficult for me to return and take Xiao Yan as my disciple!"

"May I ask, Senior Old Yao, what are the Eight Ancient Clans? Why has this junior never heard of them?"

Filled with doubts, Hai Bodong hurriedly asked.

"Hehe! You are not from Central Continent, so it is perfectly normal that you have not heard of the Eight Ancient Clans."

Old Yao paused, then continued,

"Uh... Let me put it this way!"

"The Eight Ancient Clans are, simply put, eight great families whose ancestors once produced Dou Di."

"Because their clan members possess the Dou Di Bloodline, their cultivation speed in Dou Qi far surpasses that of ordinary people."

"Among them, the Ancient Clan and the Soul Clan are the most powerful, but they generally reside within Dou Di Spaces, where the energy of heaven and earth is denser."

"Therefore, people on the Dou Qi Continent rarely have the chance to encounter members of their clans."

"Thank you, Senior Old Yao, for clearing up this junior's doubts. This junior has learned much!" Having had the doubts in his heart resolved, Hai Bodong hurriedly thanked Old Yao gratefully.