Night gradually enveloped the entire city, and in the distant sky, the bright moon hung high like a silver plate, casting its thin, snow-white light down upon the city...
As the city gradually quiets down in the darkness, the hustle and bustle of the daytime fades into the night, only to be unveiled once again when the sun rises the next day.
The snow-white moonlight enveloped the entire city, and from time to time, eerie bird calls echoed through the air, heavy and urgent, as if telling a terrifying story. Combined with the night, this created an eerie atmosphere in the world.
The city appeared exceptionally quiet on the surface, devoid of lights and noise. In the dark corners of the city, ghostly figures flickered, whether they were rats or poisonous snakes, it was hard to tell.
The Lin Clan mansion.
In the guest room, Xu Songming's face was gloomy. Since returning to the Lin residence this morning, he had been sitting here all day, carefully recalling every alchemist he had ever met, and even everyone in the Alchemist Alliance, hoping to find out the origin of the black-robed youth he had met today.
Unfortunately, even after racking his brains, he still couldn't get any useful information from it. Under his sleeves, the old man's withered hands were clenched tightly together, Elder Zhang face was extremely gloomy. Today's events not only failed to avenge his granddaughter, but also made him lose face once again. If this matter were to spread and reach the ears of those old fogies in the Alchemist Alliance, it would truly become a laughing stock.
"Bang!"
With a heavy palm strike, the table beneath the old man's hand was instantly blasted apart, turning into fragments that scattered in all directions.
Outside the room, the waiter sensed the chilling killing intent emanating from inside and couldn't help but show a look of fear on his face before quickly retreating.
"Damn it! What's the use of finding the information? This kid is so young and he's already a Third-Tier Alchemist. His achievements are even greater than mine. Even if I find his information... I still can't harm a single hair on his head!"
Standing up, Xu Songming looked up at the roof beam, his gloomy old eyes blazing with anger. Then, he couldn't help but cough violently. This was a gift from Xiao Yan today; a single punch had seriously injured him, and even with the pills, he couldn't recover to his peak condition in a short time.
Xiao Yan's strength far surpasses that of ordinary Half-Emperor. Even though he is Eight-Star Half-Emperor, in Xiao Yan's eyes, he is no different from a Dou Sheng, like an ant.
Next door, the girl in the red dress had calmed down and sat blankly at the table. Unlike Xu Songming, she looked as frail as an ordinary woman who couldn't even kill a chicken. Of course, this was only how she appeared. After all, in Xuan City, everyone knew that she was a Half-Emperor level expert. Who would dare say that someone of that level was weak?
"Crunch..."
The door was suddenly opened, and an old man with a gloomy face stepped in heavily, holding a cane.
"Waaaaah... Grandpa!"
Upon seeing the newcomer, the girl, who had been in a daze, immediately snapped out of it. Tears welled up in her red-rimmed eyes, as if she felt wronged or ashamed. No one knew what emotions were contained in those tears.
Poisonous snakes have no tears, and everyone knows how vicious they are. Humans may shed tears, but who can know whether those tears are sincere or feigned?
"Hmph, all you do is cry! If crying were effective, why would you need me to take action!"
Seeing the girl start sobbing again, the old man showed no mercy and coldly rebuked her. The girl immediately seemed to have her throat blocked, and low sobs came from her nose, gradually subsiding.
On the other side, inside the main hall, Lin Zehong and his son were sitting, both with gloomy expressions. As expected of father and son, their posture and facial expressions were exactly the same, and perhaps even their temperaments were similar.
Lin Ran inherited everything from his father, except for his abilities, of course.
"Father, what do we do now? Everyone knows that Xuan City is Lin Clan territory. Now, our Lin Clan members have actually been beaten on our own turf. If we can't get revenge, our Lin Clan will be ridiculed!"
Lin Ran's face was gloomy, and his eyes revealed a sinister look. He felt both fear and resentment towards the black-robed youth from earlier that day.
"Hmph, I'll settle this score sooner or later, but for now, let's take care of business first. That old man definitely won't let that kid off the hook. Heh, his heart is even narrower than ours, like the gaps between our fingers—he won't let anything slip through his fingers except for time. Let him deal with that kid. What we should be paying attention to now are the people from the two major families."
"They're here?"
As soon as Lin Zehong finished speaking, Lin Ran frowned. The young man in black robes was not easy to deal with, and the people from the two major families were even more difficult to deal with. Over the years, the Lin Clan had spent a lot of money to please them.
"Not yet, but this auction is going to be quite a big deal, they definitely won't miss it. As far as I know, the Bai Clan patriarch will be coming in person, along with his son, and the Huo Clan will also send a Elder Quan. It seems they know some inside information about the auction, so we must be careful."
"Oh? He's Bai Ying's son? It's said he's been stuck at the Nine-Star Half-Emperor for over ten years; he's nothing but a good-for-nothing. His Bai Clan will be kicked out of the Four Great Clans sooner or later."
Lin Ran sneered again. He had heard about Bai Zhan's affairs, but in his opinion, a mere Nine-Star Half-Emperor was hardly a threat.
"Hmph, you'd better watch your words. Regardless of whether he's a waste or not, he's still stronger than you. Besides, the Bai Clan is one of the Four Great Clans. For that reason alone, you have to curry favor with him. Only by pleasing that kid will Bai Ying have a good impression of us, which will be entirely beneficial to the Lin Clan. You can't afford to mess this up!"
Upon hearing Lin Ran's words, Lin Zehong reprimanded her in a deep voice, and the latter immediately gave an embarrassed smile, not daring to say anything more.
After giving a few more instructions, Lin Zehong slowly withdrew his gaze. He couldn't help but recall the battle that morning. He had never imagined that a Half-Emperor could defeat him, a Dou Di, so badly.
"Kid... you'd better not fall into my hands!"
The next day.
As the morning sun shone on the earth, the entire Xuan City was fully awakened from the darkness. The vast Xuan City was bustling with people and exceptionally prosperous.
Xiao Yan, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed with his eyes closed, slowly opened them.