"Hmph! You old man, why are you deliberately taking advantage of me!"
Before they even arrived, their booming voices echoed across the sky like thunder. Upon hearing this, Song Gang scoffed and looked up at the sky, shouting back.
Upon hearing this, not only Xiao Yan and the people around him, but even Elder Xuan, who had not yet arrived at the edge of the sky, couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, wondering what this meant.
"Hmph, old man, stop pretending. You should know that Brother Yan Xiao's combat strength is no less than yours or mine, which is why even I call him 'brother.' But you still insist on calling him 'young friend.' Isn't that just deliberately taking advantage of me?"
"Well..."
Upon hearing this, everyone present was stunned and looked at each other. Although they wanted to laugh, they held back their laughter when they thought of the person who said it. Only Xiao Yan, who was standing next to Song Gang, couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Surprisingly, Song Gang, who seems quite unrestrained, would care so much about these trivial matters.
High in the sky, upon hearing Song Gang's words, Elder Xuan couldn't help but show a wry smile. He was quite helpless when it came to Song Gang.
"That old man, he's still the same. All these years managing the auction house alone, and they still haven't been able to change his temperament. It seems there's no hope for him in this lifetime!"
Muttering something under his breath, Elder Xuan ignored him completely. He glanced at Luo Jin beside him, who also turned his gaze towards him. The two smiled at each other, then shook their heads slightly before leaping down.
The two landed in a flash. Song Gang below was still spitting angrily at Elder Xuan, but when he saw Luo Jin following behind Elder Xuan, his mouth, which had been spitting like a machine gun, suddenly opened wider than an umbrella, and his words came to an abrupt halt.
Instantly, beads of cold sweat began to trickle down Song Gang's forehead, while Luo Jin watched him with a calm smile, making no move whatsoever.
At this moment, seeing this scene unfold, Elder Xuan couldn't help but chuckle, looking at Song Gang as if he were looking at a child who had made a mistake.
"This is..."
Seeing this, Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow in surprise, his gaze meeting Luo Jin's. The latter smiled slightly, secretly transmitting his voice to Xiao Yan:
"You were able to subdue such a terrifying Heavenly Flames, and I only took in a subordinate. What's so surprising about that?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan smiled bitterly. It was true that he had acquired some Heavenly Flames, but how many of those Heavenly Flames hadn't he obtained by risking his life? Compared to Luo Jin, Xiao Yan had suffered far more.
Elder Xuan smiled helplessly at this. Others might not know, but he certainly did. Despite Song Gang Gang's seemingly fearless demeanor, he had even argued with Elder Luo when they spoke to each other. Yet, Luo Jin had him completely under his thumb. Song Gang felt a chill run down his spine whenever he saw him. This was the main reason why he didn't follow Luo Jin but instead managed the auction house.
"Hehe, that..."
Song Gang looked at Luo Jin, but those who didn't know the situation would assume he was looking at Elder Xuan. After all, few people would pay much attention to the weak young man behind Elder Xuan, whose strength was only One-Star Half-Emperor.
" Old Man Song..."
Before Song Gang could speak, Elder Xuan squinted at him and shook his head almost imperceptibly. As soon as he opened his mouth, Song Gang quickly realized what was happening, gave an awkward smile, rubbed his hands together slightly embarrassedly, and then tried to usher the group into the auction house.
However, just moments later, as Song Gang was about to lead the group into the auction house, the expressions of the several powerful individuals present suddenly changed. They turned around, their solemn gazes instantly shooting towards the northern horizon.
Elder Xuan and the others wore solemn expressions, their eyes almost narrowed to slits, their sharp gazes fixed on the northern horizon. They clearly sensed that an extremely terrifying aura was rapidly approaching them from there.
As for Xiao Yan, whose Spiritual Strength had already entered the Late Emperor Realm, he naturally noticed this as well. Moreover, what he perceived was far more than what Elder Xuan and the others had discovered.
The terrifying Spiritual Strength moved with Xiao Yan's thoughts, instantly enveloping most of the Ancient Wilderness City. Under the influence of this Spiritual Strength, several figures on the northern horizon also came into Xiao Yan's view.
There were four people in total on this trip. Among them, apart from the elder in the lead, the other three were Mo Zhai, Yan Bing, and Old Monster Hu, who had already met Xiao Yan before.
Zhang Hao was not among them; perhaps because of his strength, Yan Bing did not bring him along.
Based on Xiao Yan's understanding of Mo Zhai and the other two, these three naturally wouldn't attract much of Xiao Yan attention. However, when Xiao Yan's Spiritual Strength swept over the leading elder, his expression suddenly became solemn.
Under Xiao Yan's perception of his late-stage Emperor Realm soul power, the aura of this elder in the lead had reached an extremely terrifying level, far surpassing that of Elder Xuan and others, and even far inferior to Yan Bing beside him!
"This aura... this old man is actually a Nine-Star Half-Emperor!"
Xiao Yan had seen Dou Di experts before. Most of the Ginseng Spirit Clan in the Ginseng Spirit Realm were at this level, so he was familiar with the aura of a true Xiao Yan Dou Di expert. Although the aura of this old man was terrifying, surpassing that of Eight-Star Half-Emperor, it was still far from the level of Dou Di. That's why Xiao Yan immediately concluded that this was a Nine-Star Half-Emperor!
"Hmm? Spiritual Strength at the Late Emperor Realm? I didn't expect you to have such profound attainments in the path of the soul at such a young age, but... humph!"
Seemingly sensing the probing of Xiao Yan's Spiritual Strength, the old man, while flying, turned his profound gaze directly to Xiao Yan at the entrance of the auction house below.
Despite the great distance, the old man's gaze immediately fell upon Xiao Yan. However, before he could finish speaking, the old man suddenly let out a chilling snort. At the same time, a terrifying Soul Storm, far more powerful than Xiao Yan's Spiritual Strength, swept across the void and fiercely bombarded Xiao Yan's Spiritual Strength.
"Not good!"
Upon realizing this, Xiao Yan's face instantly paled in shock, and with a thought, he tried to withdraw the Spiritual Strength that had been spreading out.
However, compared to Xiao Yan, the old man's speed was even more terrifying. Before Xiao Yan could react, the surging Soul Storm had already slammed into the Spiritual Strength that Xiao Yan was spreading out.
"Bang!"
A deep thud echoed through the void, and Xiao Yan's Spiritual Strength was withdrawn into his body. However, his face turned deathly pale in an instant, and his body trembled, uncontrollably taking several steps back. Then, Luo Jin, who had flashed over, helped him up.
Upon seeing Xiao Yan's face turn deathly pale, a chill flashed in Luo Jin's eyes. He turned his gaze and looked towards the northern horizon, where a group of people were rapidly approaching.