The night passed in the blink of an eye, and before long, morning had arrived. The sun had barely peeked over the horizon when Qingyang City burst into commotion. Streams of people filled its streets and alleys, while wave after wave of people converged on the city from outside its gates. A careful observer would have noticed that, though they appeared merely to be heading into the city and wandering its streets, they were all converging on the same place: the busiest street in Qingyang City, in its very center. There stood an auction house called the Heavenly Cloud Auction House, controlled by the Heavenly Cloud Chamber of Commerce, the largest chamber of commerce in the entire southwestern region. It was a true colossus, with influence throughout the southwest. Its strength was so terrifying that even the four great powers of the region dared not provoke it lightly, and its wealth was beyond anyone's imagination. The savings any one of those four powers had amassed over all these years probably could not compare. With its wealth and strength, had the Heavenly Cloud Chamber of Commerce not been uninterested in contending for supremacy over the southwest, the four trump-card powers of the region would likely have become history on the Origin Martial Continent long ago. Such was the terrifying strength of the Heavenly Cloud Chamber of Commerce. It was no wonder that even one of its small auctions attracted so much attention.
At the Liu residence, Xiao Yan vanished in a flash from where he sat cross-legged on his bed and appeared before the wooden door. He reached out and opened it. Outside, Liu Huabai stood before Xiao Yan's door, just about to raise his right hand and knock. But the instant his hand was about to touch the door, it suddenly swung open, giving him such a fright that he jumped involuntarily and stumbled half a step back. Seeing Xiao Yan standing inside, Liu Huabai finally recovered and hurriedly said with a smile:
"Hehe, you're already up, senior? Good. Let me take you to see Qingyang City's annual auction. Perhaps many of the items won't catch your eye, but your attendance alone would give the Heavenly Cloud Chamber of Commerce face, and that would benefit my Liu Clan quite a bit. So..."
"All right. I said I'd go, and I will. Let's go. Let me see for myself whether this Heavenly Cloud Chamber of Commerce really has that much face."
Liu Huabai wanted to say more, but Xiao Yan cut him off and strode out toward the entrance of the residence. Liu Huabai hurried after him, walking alongside him and explaining some of the Heavenly Cloud Chamber of Commerce's strength and background along the way. However, because Qingyang City was so remote, Liu Huabai knew little about the chamber himself. He knew only that it had come to the southwestern region two hundred years ago and, despite that short time, had developed rapidly and possessed deep foundations, hardly inferior even to some long-established powers. Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow slightly and silently took note. He could hardly afford to overlook a power like that. After all, even someone as strong as Liu Feng had perished when those long-established powers joined forces. Since the Heavenly Cloud Chamber of Commerce had remained standing for two hundred years, it surely possessed considerable strength, so Xiao Yan was right to take it seriously.
As they spoke, the two arrived at the main gate of the Liu residence. The Liu Clan's first elder and the others had long been waiting there for Xiao Yan and Liu Huabai. Outside stood a lavishly decorated carriage, already prepared. Pulling it was a reddish-brown Seventh-Rank Magical Beast, a Blazing Sun Colt. Such beasts were rarely found in the wild, as most were tamed by humans and used for transportation. Their weak offensive power also made survival in the wild difficult, so any Blazing Sun Colt with some intelligence would come to a human marketplace and seek a good master to ensure its survival. The one before Xiao Yan had been taken in by Liu Huabai when it was at the early stage of the sixth rank. It was utterly loyal to him, and Liu Huabai took great care of it in turn. Unless it was for an important personage, he would never bring it out. Yet the colt, normally so haughty after being spoiled by Liu Huabai, was now trembling all over as though it had seen some prehistoric beast. Liu Huabai was startled. This same colt had glared at a Dou Zun expert a few years ago, yet now it showed such fear at the sight of Xiao Yan. Could it be...
At the thought, Liu Huabai's pupils abruptly contracted, and he looked at Xiao Yan in shock. If Xiao Yan truly possessed that level of strength, then the Liu Clan really did have hope of becoming one of the many powers in the southwestern region.
Xiao Yan glanced at the Blazing Sun Colt trembling incessantly before him and raised an eyebrow. Turning to Liu Huabai beside him, he said helplessly:
"It seems I can't ride in your carriage."
Liu Huabai was alarmed. He was just about to say something when he saw that Xiao Yan had already turned and was walking toward the auction house, leaving him with only the sight of his somewhat slender back and the still-trembling Blazing Sun Colt.
A short while later, Xiao Yan and Liu Huabai led the Liu Clan members to the entrance of the auction house. The throngs of people did not disappoint for such a grand auction, surging wave after wave toward the gates. Though numerous burly men stood guard at the entrance, they still could not hold everyone back, and the area before the gates remained in chaos. When the crowd saw Liu Huabai and the others, their expressions changed as one. Over the past half month or so, the people of Qingyang City had been astonished by the Liu Clan's crushing defeat of the Wu Clan. They had heard that a mighty expert had helped the Liu Clan, using overwhelming strength to crush the Wu Clan, robbing its members of all fighting spirit before slaughtering every last one of them on the spot. Yet no one had seen the expert. After all, who would dare show their face during a life-or-death battle between the two clans? If things went wrong and they were mistaken for someone hoping to profit like the fisherman, they could lose their lives. Losing one's life to watch a great battle was not worth it. Qingyang City had no one that foolish.
Now, seeing the Liu Clan turn out in such force for an auction, the people of Qingyang City were naturally intrigued, and conversation spread along both sides of the street. Some also noticed Xiao Yan standing abreast of the Liu Clan head and first elder. At once, a clamor rose to the heavens before the auction house. Liu Huabai, the Liu Clan head, could not help frowning. He exchanged a glance with the first elder beside him, whose expression was identical to his own, and was about to reprimand the crowd when another voice, like a bear's roar, beat him to it:
"Shut up, all of you! Out of the way! You're blocking Clan Head Liu and First Elder Liu! If you don't want to die, get the hell out of my way!"
Xiao Yan looked toward the source of the voice. Its owner was a tall, powerfully built middle-aged man, bald and broad-faced, with a scar across his face. He looked like a wild bear. Xiao Yan sensed that the man was quite strong by local standards: a Nine-Star Dou Zong.
The middle-aged man glared viciously at the passersby and snorted. Once everyone had fallen silent, he turned to Liu Huabai and the others, the flesh of his face bunching upward. With the scar on his face, he looked downright terrifying. The Liu Clan members found the sight pleasant enough, but Xiao Yan's mouth twitched violently when he saw it. That smile was truly unrivaled! With a smile that terrifying, even someone of equal strength would probably find their fighting power reduced by twenty percent for no reason when facing him.
The burly man naturally saw the expression on Xiao Yan's face. He was just about to flare up when Liu Huabai stopped him.
Liu Huabai took a great step forward, cupped his hands to the middle-aged man, and laughed loudly.
"Hahahaha! Brother Xiong Man, it really has been a long time! Hahahaha!"
Hm? The middle-aged man Liu Huabai had called Xiong Man frowned, making the scar on his face writhe like a maggot, a rather disgusting sight. Xiong Man looked impatiently at Liu Huabai, only to notice the deep furrows between his brows and the slight, repeated shaking of his head from side to side. His pupils contracted slightly. Liu Huabai would surely not joke with him like this for no reason. The young man beside him was probably no ordinary person. Could it be...
Xiong Man seemed to think of something and looked at Liu Huabai with wide eyes. When he saw Liu Huabai nod slightly, he understood at once. The next moment, Xiong Man bunched up the flesh of his face again and gave Liu Huabai and the others an utterly terrifying smile. It was especially radiant when he looked at Xiao Yan, though Xiao Yan's mouth twitched violently at the sight. Without speaking, he forced a smile in return.
Xiong Man paid it no mind. Laughing loudly, he strode forward and exchanged a few words and laughs with Liu Huabai. Then he looked at Xiao Yan, cupped his hands, and said with a hearty laugh:
"You must be the eminent senior who helped the Liu Clan crush the Wu Clan and become Qingyang City's foremost clan?"
Xiao Yan smiled faintly and glanced sideways at Liu Huabai, who gave an embarrassed smile. Only then did Xiao Yan look at Xiong Man and say:
"That's right. Someone entrusted me with helping the Liu Clan gain a foothold in the southwestern region."
Everyone who heard those words jolted, and their expressions instantly became a sight to behold. Even the Liu Clan members all looked somewhat grave. Xiao Yan might be a senior, but to say such a thing so openly was paying far too little regard to the people of the southwest.
Only Liu Huabai ignored the expressions on his clansmen's faces and watched Xiao Yan calmly. Xiong Man raised an eyebrow. Gaining a foothold in the southwestern region was easy enough to say, but without sufficient foundations, merely uttering those words might have already sealed one's fate. Yet since this man dared make such an extravagant claim, and in front of people from the Heavenly Cloud Chamber of Commerce no less, he was presumably no ordinary figure. Xiong Man's eyes darted about. In an instant, he cupped his hands to Xiao Yan and laughed loudly.
"Senior, you truly have great boldness! With your protection in the future, never mind gaining a foothold in the southwestern region-the Liu Clan could probably become a top power without difficulty! In that case, congratulations are in order, Clan Head Liu! To have secured the protection of such a senior, it seems this humble brother will have to rely on your care in the future!"
As Xiong Man spoke, he turned to Liu Huabai with a terrifying smile. Liu Huabai frowned and was about to answer, but Xiao Yan beat him to it. Smiling faintly, Xiao Yan replied without turning his head:
"Become a top power in the southwestern region? That will depend on the Liu Clan's luck. In any case, so long as the Liu Clan isn't destroyed, that will suffice. They can handle the rest themselves. If anyone wants to wipe out the Liu Clan, I wouldn't mind letting them have a taste of what it's like to have their own clan exterminated."
As soon as Xiao Yan finished speaking, a cold gleam shot from his eyes, tearing through the space before Xiong Man and vanishing into the void. Xiong Man's expression instantly changed, and he hurriedly cupped his hands and bowed to Xiao Yan.
"Yes! With your great divine abilities, senior, who would be blind enough to offend the Liu Clan? Please rest assured, senior. From now on, I will reside in Qingyang City and work with Clan Head Liu to build it up. If anyone dares offend the Liu Clan, I, Xiong Man, will be the first to show them no mercy!"
To make his position clear, Xiong Man gave Liu Huabai's shoulder a few especially hard pats as he finished. Liu Huabai cursed inwardly but endured the pain and grinned along with him, baring his teeth. Liu Huabai understood that Xiao Yan was making preparations for after his departure. Once Xiao Yan left, the Liu Clan would suffer a great loss of strength. Even with the gold-inscribed plaque, it would likely be difficult to support the entire clan in the short term. If someone stepped forward to help the Liu Clan now, the clan would presumably face far less trouble in the future, which would also benefit its development. So although he was in pain, it was worth it for the clan's future.
The group chatted outside the auction house for quite some time. At last, a deafening bell rang in their ears, and Xiong Man realized that they had come to attend the auction but had remained outside because of Xiao Yan. A little embarrassed, he scratched his head and laughed as he said to Xiao Yan and the others:
"Hahahaha! I got so caught up talking with Senior Xiao Yan today that I forgot all about the auction. My apologies, everyone. Haha! Come, come, come! After the auction, I'll treat Senior Xiao Yan and everyone to a meal to make up for my mistake today. How about it? Hahahaha! Senior Xiao Yan, please! Hahahaha!"
With that, Xiong Man led Xiao Yan and the Liu Clan members into the auction house.