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"Hold it!"
As the middle-aged man was still groveling, a calm yet commanding voice echoed from the upper floor of the auction hall.
The voice carried a powerful surge of soul power, prompting everyone present to instinctively fall silent and look toward the source.
Creak—
A black private room on the second floor opened, and a lavishly dressed man stepped into view.
With his hands behind his back, he leapt onto the stage in one smooth motion.
"Manager Yuan, you're finally here!"
The middle-aged man hurriedly dropped to his knees, fawning over the newcomer with obsequious flattery.
"Useless fool. You've brought shame to the auction house!"
The man referred to as Manager Yuan offered him no courtesy, his gaze locked instead on Aether and the pair behind him—Paimon and the fox girl.
"Yes, yes… The manager's scolding is justified…"
Though humiliated, the middle-aged man felt a strange sense of relief seeing Manager Yuan step in to take responsibility.
"Hmph. Since the founding of this auction house, we've held honesty as our foundation. And yet you took it upon yourself to leak customer information? You deserve death!"
Yuan had no intention of sparing him. He reached out, grabbed the man by the neck, and gave it a violent twist. The man collapsed, lifeless.
Tossing the corpse aside with casual indifference, Yuan pulled out a silk handkerchief and elegantly wiped his hands before addressing the crowd:
"Everyone, the integrity of this auction house has never been in question. This man acted on his own and violated our code. He has been dealt with. Rest assured, no one is above the rules of this house."
All eyes were now on Manager Yuan. His swift and brutal action stunned the onlookers, sweeping away any doubts they had about the auction house's strength.
The auction house was still the auction house. So what if some mysterious youth could instantly kill a Soul Sage? The fact that the manager could stand tall on stage without fear showed they had confidence—backing strong enough to suppress even that mysterious youth.
Inside Private Room No. 2, Xue Qinghe watched Manager Yuan's appearance with unease.
According to intel from the Spirit Hall's secret network, Manager Yuan was in fact an outer elder of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan.
The forces behind this auction house weren't just nobility—they also had ties to one of the Upper Three Clans!
If Yuan dared to step out even after witnessing Aether instantly kill a Soul Sage, then there was likely at least one powerhouse from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan inside the auction house right now—perhaps even a Title Douluo.
That clan had only two Title Douluo: Bone and Sword.
Both were elite even among Title Douluo. Especially Sword Douluo—frankly, even She Long and Cixue wouldn't necessarily win against him in a fight.
So even though he trusted Paimon's explanation, Xue Qinghe couldn't help but worry.
Meanwhile, Manager Yuan was eyeing Aether and Paimon with interest.
He had already sent people to investigate them before stepping out—but results were scant. It was as if they had appeared out of nowhere. The only real trail led back a few days through the fox girl behind them.
Due to their mysterious strength, Yuan had initially intended to turn a blind eye.
After all, the strongest combatant currently in the auction house was just a Soul Sage—no match for that youth.
But just moments ago, a summons rang in his ear.
And now, he knew: today, this youth and everyone behind him would not be leaving.
"You boy… I don't know what your relationship is with the Crown Prince. If you had left earlier, I might've chalked this up to giving His Highness some face and let it go."
Yuan's tone turned sinister.
"But now that you've broken the auction house's rules… you'll have to accept the consequences."
"I don't want to waste time. Bring out whoever you think is your strongest backing."
Aether glanced at the man in front of him. His soul power was no stronger than the ones he'd already dealt with. But from the private room he had stepped out of… there was a formidable presence.
Everyone here thought their backing made them invincible?
Then let them all come out now. No need for the usual dance of fighting lackeys before the boss. He'd just take out the final boss directly and clear the stage.
Yuan sneered, "Looks like you won't cry until you see the coffin." He then turned to the crowd and theatrically declared:
"Everyone, today our auction house tried to proceed as usual, but was met with vile interference! This person relies on brute strength to trample over our rules and even wants to rewrite them! I implore you all to uphold justice for this auction house!"
"…"
"Wait, didn't this guy act all domineering earlier? Why's he suddenly acting like some damsel in distress?"
"What the hell? That kid took out a Soul Sage like it was nothing! You want us to stand up for you? Yeah, good luck with that."
"What's going on? What kind of twisted drama is this?"
Everyone stared blankly at Yuan, who now seemed just short of crying on stage.
Was this guy seriously trying to win sympathy now?
Where'd that earlier bravado go?
Sigh…
"You've gone too far, haven't you?"
A sigh echoed from the surroundings, followed by the sound of a sword's hum. Two figures appeared beside Manager Yuan.
One was a refined, scholarly middle-aged man with distinguished features.
The other was an elderly man with white hair and beard, cold and aloof, wielding a long sword and eyes brimming with pride.
"Wait, isn't that Ning Fengzhi of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan… and Sword Douluo?!"
"Damn! They're here too? How come we didn't see them before?"
"They're nobles, obviously in a private room. What, you thought they'd sit out here with the commoners?"
"Hold on! Ning Fengzhi and Sword Douluo stepping out now… Don't tell me they're here to help the auction house?"
"Holy crap. The auction house really called in the big guns?!"
"Hah, you bunch of idiots still can't see what's going on…"
...
"I am Ning Fengzhi. May I ask your name, sir?"
On the auction stage, Ning Fengzhi addressed Aether, hands behind his back, voice calm yet firm.
"..."
"Traveler, I think they're trying to play some dirty tricks," Paimon frowned, sensing the situation getting messier.
Aether nodded. "Yeah, this is what it looks like when someone wants to have their cake and eat it too."
If the two had simply stood up for the auction house outright, he might've respected them more. But now they were hiding behind flimsy excuses of "impartial justice"?
"Sir, I've observed the events from below and have a general understanding. In an auction house, one must respect its rules.
Even if she's your friend, taking her by force just because you're stronger—people will only condemn you for that."
Ning Fengzhi continued, speaking loud enough for all to hear.
"Is it reasonable, then, for this auction house to treat people as merchandise?" Aether asked coldly.
"Sir, here, slaves are allowed to be bought and sold."
"What about those who weren't slaves, but were forced to sign slave contracts?"
"How can you prove they were forced? If they signed, they're slaves. That's all that matters."
"..."
Aether knew… Ning Fengzhi wasn't entirely wrong.
In this kingdom, selling people was illegal. But selling slaves? Perfectly legal.
And the difference between the two came down to one flimsy piece of paper called a slave contract.
"When a contract becomes a tool for enslaving others… what will you do then?"
Aether suddenly thought of an old friend.
People once called him the God of Contracts—Morax.
_
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