In the manor courtyard, Lu Changfeng had just stepped out of his room.
Glancing back at Xiao Xun'er resting inside, he gently closed the door, then turned and headed out of the courtyard. He planned to visit the Mittel Auction House in the imperial capital and see whether he could buy a magic core from a seventh-rank magical beast.
He was preparing to refine a seventh-tier pill for Xiao Xun'er. Not only would it help stabilize her pregnancy, but it would also allow the child in her womb to start at Dou Zong upon birth.
The seventh-tier Heavenly Spirit Wondrous Pill was a special pill formula he had comprehended with the help of the Heaven-Defying Comprehension System.
Refining this pill was not particularly complicated, but the ingredients it required were rather unusual. The most crucial ingredient was a magic core from a seventh-rank magical beast.
Without the magic core, the pill could not be refined.
That was why Lu Changfeng planned to try his luck at the Mittel Auction House. It was the largest auction house in the Jia Ma Empire and should have channels for obtaining all sorts of precious materials.
With that thought, he quickened his pace out of the courtyard and headed toward the center of the imperial capital. After walking for a while, Lu Changfeng arrived at the entrance to the Mittel Auction House.
The building before him looked quite imposing. A sign bearing the name Mittel Auction House hung above its towering gateway, and several armored guards stood at the entrance, every one of them looking alert and vigorous.
Lu Changfeng stepped forward to enter. Seeing him approach, the guard at the entrance looked him up and down.
Noticing Lu Changfeng's extraordinary bearing and a presence unlike that of an ordinary person, the guard treated him fairly courteously.
"Sir, may I ask what brings you to the Mittel Auction House?"
Hearing this, Lu Changfeng glanced at him and said evenly, "I want to see Mittel Tengshan of your auction house."
At the name Mittel Tengshan, the guard visibly froze for a moment.
After all, Mittel Tengshan was the patriarch of the Mittel Auction House, a prominent figure even within the Jia Ma Empire. Ordinary visitors to the auction house could not meet him at all.
But seeing Lu Changfeng's extraordinary bearing, the guard did not dare slight him carelessly. Just as he hesitated over whether to go inside and announce him, another guard beside him gave a cold snort, his face carrying a measure of disdain.
"You think you're worthy of seeing our Patriarch Teng Shan? Our patriarch handles countless affairs every day, with so many important matters to attend to. He has no time to see a nobody like you."
"If you want to buy something, just go inside and behave yourself. Don't waste our time here."
As he spoke, the guard looked Lu Changfeng up and down, his eyes filled with contempt.
Seeing that look on his face, Lu Changfeng wasted no words and uttered a single word flatly.
"Noisy!"
The moment he spoke, an immensely powerful presence erupted from his body!
That presence pressed down like a sky-blotting tide. In a single instant, the guard whose face had been full of disdain dropped straight to his knees!
With a thud, his knees slammed heavily against the ground. The guard turned deathly pale and trembled violently all over. He felt as though a mountain were pressing down on his back; even breathing became difficult, and cold sweat poured ceaselessly from his forehead.
The guard beside him, who had been relatively courteous, was also caught in that presence. Although he did not kneel like his companion, the pressure bent him at the waist, and his face looked just as strained.
Fear lingered in his heart as he thought how fortunate he was that he had not spoken as rudely as his companion. Otherwise, he would have been the one kneeling on the ground now.
As for the guard kneeling on the ground, he was so frightened that his soul nearly fled his body. Although he had seen many powerful figures during his years of duty at the auction house, he had never felt such a terrifying presence.
It was far more terrifying than that of any powerful figure he had ever seen!
Only then did he realize just how frightening a person he had provoked. Anyone in the Jia Ma Empire who could casually unleash a presence like this was simply beyond his ability to offend.
The guard beside him hurriedly pleaded, "Please show mercy, sir!"
"My companion spoke without restraint and offended you. Please don't stoop to his level!"
The kneeling guard also nodded desperately, stammering, "Spare my life, sir! I had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai, and I offended you... Please let me off this once! I'll never dare do it again!"
Lu Changfeng lowered his head and glanced at him, his expression unchanged.
Still, he could not be bothered to quibble with such a minor figure, so he withdrew his presence. As he did, that terrifying pressure vanished instantly.
The kneeling guard collapsed limply onto the ground, gasping for breath, his clothes soaked through with cold sweat.
The guard beside him also let out a long breath of relief, his back already drenched in cold sweat. He wanted nothing more than to slap himself. Why had he not stopped his companion from spouting that nonsense?
They had nearly brought disaster upon the entire Mittel Auction House.
Lu Changfeng paid the two guards no further attention and stepped toward the auction house.
The guard who had been relatively courteous hurried after him with his back bent, his attitude more than ten times as respectful as before. "Please follow me, sir. I'll take you to see Patriarch Teng Shan right away."
After saying this, the guard hurried ahead to lead the way, not even daring to look back.
Lu Changfeng followed him and walked unhurriedly through the doors of the Mittel Auction House. The other guards at the entrance had all witnessed what had just happened. Every one of them was so frightened that he barely dared breathe, keeping his head lowered without daring to steal another glance.
Only after Lu Changfeng disappeared through the doors did the guards dare raise their heads and exchange looks.
"That presence just now... what level of expert was he?"
"I've worked here for so many years, and I've never felt such terrifying pressure." "Enough, enough. We're lucky to be alive. Hurry up and clean up the entrance."
The guard who had knelt on the ground still had such weak legs that he could not stand. He leaned against the base of the wall, his face deathly pale.
Only one thought remained in his mind now: he had nearly died just then. That young man's strength was too terrifying, so terrifying that he could not muster even the slightest thought of resistance.
Meanwhile, Lu Changfeng had followed the guard into the auction house. After passing through a corridor, they arrived outside a reception room.
The guard stopped at the door and bowed respectfully. "Sir, please wait here a moment. I'll go and invite Patriarch Teng Shan over right away."
Hearing this, Lu Changfeng nodded, then stepped into the reception room.
The guard hurriedly turned and left at a brisk pace, thinking as he walked that he absolutely had to make things clear to Patriarch Teng Shan: this guest must not be offended.
Lu Changfeng, seated in the reception room, felt nothing in particular. He merely picked up the teacup on the table and took a sip.
Right now, he cared about only one thing: whether the Mittel Auction House had a magic core from a seventh-rank magical beast.
If it did, he would buy it outright and return to refine the pill. If not, he would have to go elsewhere and think of another way.
Still, the Mittel Auction House was, after all, the largest auction house in the Jia Ma Empire. Although it could not produce anything eighth-tier, with a little luck, he should be able to come across a seventh-rank magic core.
As he was thinking about this, a flurry of hurried footsteps came from outside the door. Clearly, someone was rushing over.