Chapter 408 : A Hot Potato
Unexpected events often occurred outside auction venues, and if any rare treasures appeared in the auction, the possibility of incidents would increase exponentially. Without question, the ninth-grade Spirit Nourishing Pill qualified as a rare treasure, far exceeding ordinary standards. The treasure hunters couldn't even wait for the buyer to leave Cloud Stream City's boundaries before ambushing them right at the auction house entrance.
Among the cultivators present, some were surprised, some enlightened, and others indifferent. Regardless of their thoughts, at this moment, everyone shared one consensus: to leave this trouble spot.
Curiosity was universal, but spectating wasn't always wise—one might end up sacrificing themselves!
Almost immediately after the black-clad leader spoke, the already panicking bystanders fled even faster. Perhaps only Jiang Mo, after assessing the situation, actually slowed her pace.
Yun Qingyue didn't approve of her staying to watch the excitement and whispered near her ear: "This matter doesn't concern us. We should leave first."
However, Jiang Mo rarely disobeyed, but now her steps grew increasingly slower until she finally stopped at a position neither too close nor too distant from the scene. Standing at the street corner with arms folded, she looked up at the two forces already engaged in combat again: "Don't worry, Ah Yue. I've checked—those people in black aren't particularly strong in cultivation. They're no match for me."
Yun Qingyue heard the eagerness in her voice and looked at her helplessly: "Even so, what do you intend to do?" She glanced at the battle, not believing that the tiger cub she'd raised simply wanted to uphold justice by drawing her sword to help.
Jiang Mo probably sensed Yun Qingyue's distrust and felt somewhat underestimated. She immediately insisted: "By staying, I might prevent a robbery!"
Yun Qingyue remained noncommittal. Even she had no intention of intervening—this was the cultivation world, after all, where survival of the fittest was a rule engraved in one's bones. Although killing for treasure wasn't commendable, minding one's own business was the survival strategy everyone had long adopted. In such situations, not trying to get a piece of the action was already considered noble character.
Reality proved that events developed even worse than Yun Qingyue had anticipated...
Jiang Mo looked up for a while, then suddenly said: "How much time has passed? Why haven't the city guards arrived yet?"
The cultivation world was vast, with each city representing a faction. Setting aside the sects or clans behind the cities, for the city itself, the city lord's mansion was undoubtedly the greatest power. The city guards were the cultivator force under the city lord's jurisdiction, maintaining order within the city. Although most cultivators among them weren't particularly high in cultivation, their presence itself represented the city lord's authority.
Normally, since the auction house belonged to the city lord's mansion, if trouble occurred here, the city guards would be the first to arrive. Even with moderate cultivation levels, their speed was unquestionable—by now, they should have arrived.
But they hadn't. Today, the city guards seemed nonexistent, showing no intention of appearing.
Yun Qingyue's gaze swept across the scene, and she timely reminded: "The auction house doors are closed."
Hearing this, Jiang Mo immediately looked toward the auction house and indeed saw its doors and windows tightly shut. Not only that, but a barrier had also appeared around the auction house, shimmering with colorful light under the sun—undoubtedly a protective shield. The auction house had chosen self-preservation, directly barring out customers who had just completed major transactions.
Such behavior was frustrating but not entirely blameable. As the saying went, once goods and money exchanged hands, the auction house had already delivered the Spirit Nourishing Pill to the buyer. Whether the buyer could keep it afterward was naturally not their concern.
However, the auction house's behavior today made Jiang Mo ponder. She lowered her head and asked: "Ah Yue, don't you think something's off about the auction house? It's as if they're... shifting trouble elsewhere?"
Hearing this, Yun Qingyue's eyes flickered briefly. Though she said nothing, her attitude was about eighty percent like tacit agreement.
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While outsiders had leisure to discuss the hidden truth behind today's events, those caught in the situation were too busy dealing with it to consider anything else.
The young man in rich attire, protected by his entourage, now appeared somewhat disheveled. While guarding the storage ring containing the Spirit Nourishing Pill, he constantly glanced around. But his repeated hopes ended in disappointment. Seeing the situation increasingly disadvantageous, he couldn't help but rage: "Why haven't the city guards arrived yet? Aren't they usually the fastest?"
Several family disciples guarding him exchanged glances, all with bitter smiles: "Third Young Master, don't wait any longer. The city guards won't come. We should leave this place and find another way to escape."
Clearly, most of this group were quite clear-headed. From the moment they discovered the auction house had sealed itself, they knew Cloud Stream City didn't intend to interfere, and they had no retreat—initially, they had considered returning to the auction house. If they did, the auction house wouldn't be able to remain uninvolved despite its wishes. But the black-clad people had discerned their intentions and blocked them, and the auction house had reacted quickly, resulting in the current situation.
The young man in rich attire wasn't foolish. After abandoning unrealistic hopes, he quickly assessed the situation. Glancing at the entangled combatants, he gritted his teeth and made a decisive move: "Go! Let's get the item back first!"
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When Jiang Mo stayed to watch, it was unclear whether she intended to help or hoped to profit from the situation—the Spirit Nourishing Pill was too expensive for her to buy, and she wouldn't actively rob, but if given the opportunity to be the third party that benefits, she wouldn't mind a bit of opportunism. Alternatively, if she helped protect the Spirit Nourishing Pill, there would likely be a generous reward.
Unfortunately, before she could act, the battlefield rapidly shifted.
A force capable of acquiring the Spirit Nourishing Pill, even if not a profound sect or family, must at least be wealthy and influential. Everyone noticed the young man's modest cultivation and underestimated him, yet surprisingly, when he said he was leaving, he truly managed to escape.
Jiang Mo, hiding to observe the battle, saw the young man take something from his storage ring. Before she could see clearly, a dazzling golden light flashed. After a few breaths, the golden light dispersed, and the group had vanished.
"What was that?" Jiang Mo was astonished; even with her cultivation level, she couldn't discern it clearly.
Yun Qingyue, with her extensive knowledge, explained: "That's a Wen Family Golden Talisman. Legend has it that the Wen family possesses extraordinary talent in talisman arts. After the method for crafting teleportation scrolls was lost, they created teleportation talismans. However, compared to the lost teleportation scrolls, these talismans are inferior in many aspects..."
Indeed, before Yun Qingyue could finish, the black-clad fighters above had already discovered the young man's departure. However, the Wen family's teleportation talismans clearly had flaws. The black-clad people quickly discerned the youth's escape path, swiftly disengaging from their opponents, and with a wave toward the northwest, commanded: "Chase!"
Several streaks of light flashed, pursuing northwest in succession, leaving behind only chaos and no trace of people. Despite this, the city guards still hadn't appeared, and even the auction house showed no signs of reopening anytime soon.
Jiang Mo gave the auction house one last deep look before following in pursuit.
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The Wen family's teleportation talismans weren't perfect, but they were certainly swift for escape.
Understanding that he wouldn't receive aid within the city, the young man in rich attire used the teleportation talisman to gain a head start, instantly traversing hundreds or thousands of miles beyond the city. When the talisman's effect dissipated, he and two guards found themselves in a desolate wilderness.
"Bah! The mighty city lord's mansion can't even protect a single Spirit Nourishing Pill. They even set people up. Truly shameless!" As soon as he steadied himself, the young man spat in hatred. By now, how could he not see that he'd been handed a hot potato? Most frustrating was that he had to hold onto this hot potato, as an elder in his family needed the Spirit Nourishing Pill. Otherwise, he wouldn't have spent so lavishly at the auction.
The two guards were helpless and about to urge him to leave. The young man, aware of the teleportation talisman's limitations and understanding that their current location wasn't completely safe, didn't wait for them to speak. He immediately applied a speed talisman and started running, saying as he went: "Let's go! Quickly return!"
The three transformed into streaks of light, speeding away in a different direction, flying even faster than cultivators one level higher.
In less than half a cup of tea's time, the black-clad pursuers caught up, with the young man's other guards trailing behind them. The leader of the black-clad group briefly investigated the area, immediately determined the direction again, and led his subordinates in pursuit.
The two groups passed swiftly, one after another—the former rushing to seize the treasure, the latter hurrying to protect it. Perhaps while fighting in Cloud Stream City, they had noticed someone watching, but now outside the city with fewer people around, no one dared approach even if they sensed something amiss. Thus, no one noticed that there was still a small tail following them...
Jiang Mo, carrying Yun Qingyue, had been following them all the way. After a while, the young man who had gone ahead was finally caught up to.
The leader of the black-clad group wasted no words and directly cast a spell. Given the difference in cultivation levels between the two, observers had no doubt that this casual attack would be enough to kill the youth instantly.
The young man was terrified, too panicked to continue fleeing, and hastily activated his strongest defensive treasure.
Reality proved that spending resources was indeed effective—a golden barrier immediately enveloped him completely. The black-clad leader's fierce attack struck the barrier, causing the golden light to flicker several times, yet it managed to withstand.
But before the young man could breathe a sigh of relief, the black-clad leader launched several more spells in succession. The golden barrier, enduring continuous attacks, immediately began to waver. The youth within the barrier paled, and seeing the black-clad leader launch another attack, he instantly felt "my life is over." Yet even at this moment, he didn't surrender his storage ring but clutched it even tighter.
Watching this scene from afar, Jiang Mo couldn't help but inwardly sigh, "valuing money over life."
Of course, the youth might also have been thinking, "if I can't survive, neither will you succeed," intending to perish together with the Spirit Nourishing Pill.
At this critical moment, just as Jiang Mo decided to intervene, someone unexpectedly beat her to it—in this desolate mountain wilderness, another person appeared from nowhere, directly blocking in front of the youth's protective barrier, raising a hand to deflect the lethal attack.