Hearing the words of the person from Suite 1, everyone came to an understanding and wiped away their cold sweat.
So it wasn't what they were thinking. What the other party meant was to get the evil spirit out. It seemed like they were the ones who were corrupted...
"I see..."
Hall Master Sai heaved a huge sigh of relief and his face flushed red.
Zhang shi's previous words had nearly scared him to death. He had really thought that the other party had such heavy preferences... Only after hearing this did he come to a realization.
In truth, Zhang Xuan also didn't expect his words to incur such a huge misunderstanding. His mind had been too absorbed into getting the Soulless Metal Humanoid that he'd failed to consider the possible innuendo in his words.
Just like everyone guessed, the reason behind the affliction of the old man selling the Soulless Metal Humanoid was indeed vengeance from the soul oracle whose tomb was dug up. With his life at stake, it was natural that no treasure would be able to interest him. It was because he had been trying to suppress the evil spirit through the use of battle technique that the Library of Heaven's Path compiled a book on him.
It was because of that that Zhang Xuan could comprehend what was happening.
Recovering from the awkward atmosphere, Song Chao asked, "Based on what I know, the plague of an evil spirit concerns the subject of souls. Since you said that you are able to... get it out, does it mean that you are skilled in that subject?"
Due to the intricacies behind souls, even master teachers would be stumped before this problem. Based on the other party's voice, he seemed to be rather young. Thus, Song Chao was curious to know what method the other party in mind.
The crowd immediately turned their gazes over, and even the old man on the stage seemed a little anxious at this point. He was worried that the man in the suite was just making empty promises.
"The plague of an evil spirit is similar to a lethal poison corroding one's soul. There's nothing I can do about that!" The voice from the suite echoed.
"Nothing you can do about that? Then..." Everyone nearly fainted. The other party had declared so confidently a moment ago and yet he was saying that he was helpless at this point in time. Wasn't this change in attitude a little too rapid?
Having his hope shattered when it was so close to him, the old man couldn't retain his calmness. He immediately asked anxiously, "Then why did you say that you can help me get it out..."
"Since I can discern your condition and describe it so aptly, naturally, I have my own means!"
Man from the suite chuckled.
"This..." The old man was baffled.
The other party had clearly stated that he was helpless toward the plague of the evil spirit. But now, he was claiming that he had a solution in mind. Was that fellow playing him a fool or was there some secret meaning behind those words that he failed to comprehend?
Just as the old man was still stuck in bewilderment, the voice from the suite continued, "Alright, hand the Soulless Metal Humanoid to me and I'll solve your problem. There are too many people here so it's not convenient for me to go into detail!"
"Alright!" After a moment of hesitation, the old man surveyed the surroundings and bowed, "I thank everyone here for participating in the auction of the Soulless Metal Humanoid. Pardon me, but I've managed to find a buyer already. Thus, I can only apologize to everyone here!"
After finishing his words, the old man grabbed the Soulless Metal Humanoid.
Hu!
With a light smile, the old man put the metal humanoid lying vertically on the stage away before walking off.
"Young master, what do we do?"
Seeing that the buyer had been confirmed, the elder in Suite 23 started to panic.
The young master had come over excitedly with a huge fortune in hand just to buy this Soulless Metal Humanoid but in the end... he didn't manage to spend a single cent. He could still accept it if the other party's financial ability was above that of his, but the problem was that... the other party managed to win over the metal humanoid with just a single word without spending a single cent...
The more he thought about it, the more dismal he felt.
"What else can we do? Are you able to expel the evil spirit plaguing him?" Song Chao asked with a darkened complexion.
"I... can't!" The elder shook his head.
The plague of a spirit involved the subject of soul. Even though his cultivation and knowledge were impressive, there was nothing we could do about the seller's problem as well.
"Forget it. Go and look into who the person in Suite 1 is. We'll decide on our actions afterward!" Song Chao instructed.
"Yes!" The elder nodded his head.
If he didn't even know who the enemy was, how could he make suitable preparations?
"To be capable of produce a seventh level painting, discern that the seller is plagued by an evil spirit, and show no interest in 4-star Tutelage Jade Tokens... That person in Suite 1 sure is a mysterious figure. Investigate him! Make sure to dig up every single bit of information about him!"
Song Chao wasn't the only curious one. Everyone in the auction was also dying to know whom that formidable figure in Suite 1 was, especially given how he was able to get Hall Master Sai willingly share his suite with him.
"This is the Soulless Metal Humanoid?"
In a vast room in the Appraiser Hall, Zhang Xuan studied the puppet on the floor in interest.
The sale of the Soulless Metal Humanoid meant that the auction had come to an end. Under Manager Luo's lead, the old man was brought to the room.
The metal humanoid was around the size of a real human but its physique was much more muscular. As though crafted using metal, its skin was also gold in color. It was hard to tell the person's original appearance under the metal coating.
Knowing that this wasn't the time to be examining the object, Zhang Xuan stored it in his storage ring right after confirming the product was authentic. Then, he turned to look at the old man before him.
"Mister, please cure me of my affliction!" The old man hurriedly clasped his fist.
In truth, after seeing that the other party was a young man, he suffered a breakdown.
After all, no matter how talented a person was, his extent of knowledge was still limited by his age. He thought that the person who was able to tell that he was plagued by an evil spirit should at least be an old man who was beyond his sixties... He didn't think that the other party would be so young, and he found it hard to believe that such a young person could cure him of his affliction.
If not for the other party pointing out his condition accurately, he would have surely thought that this was a scam.
"Un!"
Nodding his head, Zhang Xuan started circling around the other party silently. Then, lifting his eyebrow, he said, "Hall Master Sai and Elder Jin, I have something that I would like to trouble you two!"
"Zhang shi, there is no need to stand on ceremony. Feel free to speak whatever that's on your mind!"
The duo nodded.
Even though each of their cultivation was higher than the lad before him, the latter had simply performed too many extraordinary miracles. They didn't dare view him as a junior.
"Simple..." Zhang Xuan sent a telepathic message over.
"This..."
Hearing Zhang Xuan's message, the duo stared at one another in shock.
After a moment of hesitation, Hall Master Sai awkwardly asked, "Zhang shi... Surely this isn't good?"
"Just do as I say. I know what I'm doing!" Zhang Xuan nodded.
"Alright!"
The duo gritted their teeth.
Seeing the look of difficulty on the faces of the two elders, everyone was perplexed, especially the old man selling the Soulless Metal Humanoid.
Does my treatment require the help of these two?
"Pardon me!"
Just as he was perplexed, he heard Hall Master Sai and Jin Conghai harrumph at the same moment. Then, the duo lifted their palms and two surges of zhenqi surged into the surroundings, sealing the entire area from the world.
"What are you all trying to do?"
The old man frowned.
Through this action, the duo had sealed his path of escape.
In other words, they planned to make a move on him!
"Do you all... intend to steal the Soulless Metal Humanoid?"
Upon realizing something, the old man's eyes narrowed.
The Soulless Metal Humanoid was incomparably valuable. As just a Transcendent Mortal 2-dan pinnacle cultivator, he was still a far way from becoming one of the top experts of the Myriad Kingdom Alliance. He knew that if he were to spread the word, there was a high possibility that someone might come after him for it.
Thus, as soon as he obtained the object, he immediately rushed to the Appraiser Hall. He felt that given the Appraiser Hall's reputation, they shouldn't conduct despicable acts like stealing the goods of its customers. Yet, to think that... the respectable hall master would make a move on him himself!
"Zhang shi..."
Luo Qin also didn't expect such a sight to occur and his face paled. To think that Zhang Xuan would resort to this eventually!
If the Appraiser Guild were to commit such actions, the reputation of the auction hall would also go down to the drain. An auction hall that had lost its credibility would surely lose all of its customers.
"Don't worry. If I intended to kill him, he would already be long dead. There would have been no need for us to seal his surroundings at all." Zhang Xuan rolled his eyes.
No matter what, he was a master teacher. The other party should have been able to see through the benevolent face he had, why was the other party treating him as though a villain who would resort to such petty crimes?
To kill a person and rob him of his possession... To think that you can even think of this!
It was just a Soulless Metal Humanoid. Its value still wasn't sufficient for Zhang Xuan to go to such an extent.
"That's good..."
Hearing Zhang Xuan's promise, Luo Qin heaved a sigh of relief. Turning around, he saw Hall Master Sai and Elder Jin making a move simultaneously. The old man could barely take two blows before he was subdued. Then, the duo sealed his cultivation, leaving him completely powerless.
These two were top-notch experts. With their strength, dealing with a Transcendent Mortal 2-dan pinnacle cultivator was a walk in the park.
Seeing that the other party had only sealed his cultivation, the old man knew that he was overthinking it and he heaved a long sigh of relief. But still, baffled by the condition, he asked, "What do you all intend to do?"
"Didn't you ask me to expel the evil spirit in you? If we don't limit your movement, how can we expel the evil spirit?"
Zhang Xuan smiled.
Hearing that the sealing of his cultivation was a necessary procedure to expelling the evil spirit, the old man nodded his head and said, "I see! I'll be depending on you then, mister!"
"Un!"
Nodding his head, Zhang Xuan stepped forward. The edges of his lip slowly curled up as he raised his hands.
Pah!
His palm struck the other party's face.
"You..."
The strike had caused the old man to flip on the spot and crash onto the floor. Dumbfounded, the old man stared at Zhang Xuan with widened eyes.
What was going on?
In exchange for the Soulless Metal Humanoid, you are supposed to expel the evil spirit within me. Yet, you had someone seal my cultivation first before... then came over here to slap me... What are you up to?
The old man was just about to ask about the situation when a kick came flying toward him.
Peng!
"What is going on..."
His words were jammed back into his mouth by the kick, and he was sent flying a few meters away.
Struggling to his feet, the old man's eyes were filled with fury. He was about to turn insane at any point now.
But of course, he wasn't the only one that was about to turn insane. Everyone in the room looked as though they had seen a ghost.
This was especially so for Luo Qin. At this point, he nearly couldn't hold back his tears anymore.
Didn't you say that... you aren't intending to kill the other party and steal his possessions? Even if you aren't going to kill him, beating the other party up and taking his possession like that... isn't alright either...