"Honored guests, to protect our buyers' identities, you must put on masks before formally entering the auction hall." The greeter timidly fetched two masks from the entrance to the inner hall and handed them over.
Why hasn't anyone come yet? Guests of this standing are beyond what I can handle! the girl furiously grumbled inwardly.
Ling Yu and Su Yao did not mind and put them on.
Seeing how easygoing the two were instead made the greeter breathe a sigh of relief.
Tap-tap-
The sound of high heels tapping against the floor came from behind the three of them. As soon as she heard it, the greeter relaxed.
Ling Yu turned to see a woman approaching in a shimmering silver-white gown, her entire bearing cool and noble. Her fair skin was almost translucent, her features delicately striking, her nose straight, and her long, slightly curled hair hung loosely.
"Greetings, Manager Ailin!" The greeter immediately bowed.
Ailin nodded, and the girl promptly bowed to Ling Yu and took her leave.
"My apologies for keeping our honored guests waiting. The fault is mine." She lifted her brows and bowed, a gesture that, paired with her exquisite face, never failed.
"It's fine. We only came to have a look out of curiosity." The corners of Ling Yu's lips lifted slightly, his smile faint but unclouded.
"Please accept our auction house's apology."
With a thought, Ailin took a VIP card and an exquisitely wrapped gift from her Storage Soul Tool, then bowed as she offered them to Ling Yu.
Seeing the words "Viscount Nuoding" engraved on the VIP card, Ling Yu marveled inwardly. Their hands and eyes reach everywhere. They found out who I was and even engraved a VIP card this quickly.
"It's quite all right. There's no need to be so courteous, Manager Ailin." Ling Yu accepted them and put them into his Storage Soul Tool.
"If you have no objection, my lord viscount, allow me to show you around the auction. There's an interesting lot today, too."
"Then sorry for the trouble, Manager Ailin. Please introduce it to us." Ling Yu nodded.
Ailin then led them through a special passage to the red seating area, where they sat down.
"Manager Ailin, may I ask whether any intact Soul Tools have ever appeared at the auction house?" Barely seated, Ling Yu was already somewhat impatient to ask.
"Quite a few, but they're mostly Storage Soul Tools. Other support-type Soul Tools rarely fetch a good price, while offensive Soul Tools are the rarest of the rare."
"I see. Then could you notify me if any appear in the future? Any category will do."
"Rest assured, from today onward, whenever the auction house offers rare treasures, we'll send you an illustrated catalog beforehand so you can conveniently attend the auction."
"Then thank you, Manager Ailin."
"It's what the auction house ought to do."
"This next item is truly the rarest of the rare!" The auctioneer on the platform raised his voice.
As soon as he finished speaking, three burly men wheeled out a cage cart covered in red cloth.
"This is today's most interesting lot." Although Ailin wore a smile, a shadow flickered in her eyes.
"You must all be curious about what's inside. First, let me reveal its starting price-one hundred thousand gold coins, with each bid increasing by no less than ten thousand." The auctioneer knew well how to stir up the atmosphere. Under his prompting, everyone present looked curiously at the red cloth.
"Then take a good look, everyone!" The auctioneer lifted the red cloth, revealing a girl curled up inside the cage cart.
"With a price like this, I imagine you've all guessed what makes her special."
"That's right, she's a catgirl, a mutation caused by a problem during her Martial Soul Awakening. She has both cat ears and a tail. Our honored male guests surely know what that means." A meaningful expression appeared on the auctioneer's face.
Ailin was just about to explain further to Ling Yu when she noticed that he was pondering something. His gaze held neither greed nor curiosity, but puzzlement.
A Martial Soul like Yu Xiaogang's, which exists outside his body and possesses a degree of intelligence, is one extreme.
A catgirl's constant possession state is the other extreme.
A human can turn into a beast, and a Martial Soul can also become a beast on its own.
Are both caused by a sudden leap in bloodline mutation? Is the Martial Soul's bloodline concentration so high that it affects the body itself? In Yu Xiaogang's case, was his Martial Soul's grade too high for him to bear at all, ultimately causing it to develop independent intelligence?
There's too little information to judge, and too many influencing factors. Perhaps something went wrong during the awakening ceremony itself.
Could it also be bloodline atavism? For instance, an ancestor who was a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast that took human form?
Then what about the Wolf Bandits? Is there no reproductive barrier between Soul Beasts and humans? Could enemies and allies share the same origin? Or are they descendants of werewolves who underwent a sudden mutation like the catgirl? They have no Soul Rings but drop Soul Bones, which means a Wolf Bandit's Soul Bone was something he absorbed.
I can't experiment on people either. I can only collect cases and analyze them. Ripples stirred in Ling Yu's heart.
"Do you want the catgirl as well, my lord viscount? If you do, your name alone is enough for me to authorize a credit allowance of two hundred thousand." Seeing his prolonged silence, Ailin assumed he was worried about money.
"I'm merely curious about Martial Soul mutations." Ling Yu shook his head. Although he could be considered wealthy, most of his wealth lay in fixed assets, and he did not even hold their ownership rights. He could not produce that many gold coins.
Besides, his interest in the catgirl leaned more toward researching Martial Soul bloodlines. But if he actually had to conduct the research himself, he could not bring himself to do it. She was a living person, after all.
"Oh? Have you studied Martial Souls as well, my lord viscount?" Ling Yu's interest in Soul Tools had already surprised Ailin. Now, faced with a catgirl, he focused on her Martial Soul rather than her beauty.
An interesting person. Something stirred in Ailin's heart.
"Only a little superficial dabbling, nothing fit for distinguished company." Ling Yu smiled faintly.
At those words, Su Yao glanced at him. Recalling the contents of Ling Yu's notes, she felt a strange sensation rise within her. If that's all superficial dabbling, what counts as in-depth study?
In the end, the catgirl was bought for one hundred and sixty thousand gold coins.
"What a detestable order of things," Ling Yu remarked with some feeling as he left the auction hall.
Seeing that it was about time, Ling Yu headed to Clear Breeze Pavilion for the banquet.
Within the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect-
"Sect Master, word has come from our people below." A figure appeared in the great hall in a flash.
Ning Fengzhi took the message and began reading it, a thought stirring within him. Oh? He finally used that VIP card. Why was it to become an apprentice in jewelry design and carving?
I thought he would buy something special and give me a glimpse of the Heaven Dou Secret Medicine.
Custom diamond engraving tools in unusual sizes? Three specially cut gemstones?
Suddenly, inspiration flashed through Ning Fengzhi's mind, and he recalled a piece of news he had read earlier-Xue Qinghe had donated three Soul Tool research laboratories to Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
Could he be researching Soul Tools?
His first Soul Skill supposedly projects his spiritual power outward to probe his surroundings. Could he be able to see inside Soul Tools?
If that really is the case...