Chapter 4127 — Enemies Meet Again

"I know," Wei Shenjin said with a grim nod, then ground his teeth and raised the bid: "Five thousand five hundred spirit jade!"

Even as a core disciple of the Snow Sword Sect and a cultivator of early Golden Core, squandering so much spirit jade on a single top-grade spirit jade made his heart bleed. Yet even so, Wei Zhao had no intention of letting him and Situ Qian have their way.

"Five thousand six hundred spirit jade," Wei Zhao said, raising again without the slightest change of expression.

"Fine! Very fine! Splendid!" Wei Shenjin stared coldly across the distance at Wei Zhao and gave a cold snort. "Friend, Wei has taken note of you!"

"And I've taken note of you!" Wei Zhao shot back at once with a cold laugh. "Something I could have had for one thousand one hundred, and you drag the price all the way up here—very fine indeed!"

"Then let us see how this plays out!" Wei Shenjin said, laughing in sheer fury. Though he did harbor some misgivings about Wei Zhao sitting beside Cai Zhongxuan, he absolutely could not afford to lose face in front of the crowd.

Besides, in his view, even if the brat knew Cai Zhongxuan, he was by no means certainly one of the Pill Hall's people—and even if he were, his standing there could hardly be high. As a core disciple of the Snow Sword Sect, he had no lack of grounds to strike back; he need only act cleanly and leave no opening for anyone to seize upon.

To onlookers, Wei Shenjin's thinly veiled threat was a rare bit of spectacle, but Wei Zhao had no intention of paying him any mind at all. From the mortal realm all the way to Cloud Stair Island, he had heard such threats a hundred times over and more; had he taken each one to heart, he could not even have kept count, much less found the leisure for it.

"Young Hero Lin, I have heard tell of this Wei Shenjin—he is the rising star of the Snow Sword Sect's younger generation, and both in strength and in method he is thoroughly seasoned. You would do well to be careful, and not give him a chance to strike from the shadows," Cai Zhongxuan warned with some concern.

The cultivation world may vie over patrons and backing, but in the end what matters most is one's own strength. Wei Shenjin was a cultivator of early Golden Core through and through, and in anyone's eyes Wei Zhao, merely at the peak of late Foundation Establishment, could not possibly be his match.

"Elder Cai need not worry. I made an enemy of him long ago; today's little bit hardly makes a difference," Wei Zhao said with an unconcerned shake of his head.

Recalling the feud between Wei Zhao, Xue Li, and the Snow Sword Sect—one that had long since become a matter of life and death—Cai Zhongxuan said no more for the moment, resolving only to keep a closer watch on Wei Zhao's behalf in the days to come.

Five thousand six hundred spirit jade—enough to force even Wei Shenjin to withdraw in unwilling defeat. The price had long since far outstripped the value of a top-grade spirit jade, and naturally no one else bid further. Without question, the top-grade spirit jade fell into Wei Zhao's hands.

Holding the top-grade spirit jade he had won, Wei Zhao was curious as to what special value it truly held, but under so many watchful eyes he could hardly make any attempt; he could only put it away for now and, once back, ask that ghostly thing for a clear answer.

As the next lot was brought to the stage, the stir over the top-grade spirit jade was quickly cast from people's minds. After all, they had come here to bid on treasures; watching a bit of drama was merely a diversion, not something to dwell on for long.

The only ones who would truly keep the matter in mind were likely the two parties involved—or rather, only Wei Shenjin, who had lost face. Wei Zhao had never been one to set much store by the likes of him.

The several lots brought out afterward were each more valuable than the last, and the active bidders began gradually to shift from the lower-tier Ding-numbered area to the more competitive upper tiers. After all, they were the main force of this grand auction.

Yet none of these items ever caught Wei Zhao's discerning eye—either they did not suit his taste, or their quality fell short.

Though Wei Zhao was still only at the peak of late Foundation Establishment, hardly a figure of consequence in the crowded field of Central Island, his eye was in no way inferior to that of the other great personages present—especially since, thanks to the Heavenly Pill Pavilion, he was not in the least short of spirit jade.

While Wei Zhao refrained from bidding, Wei Shenjin on the other side was not content to sit idle, and carried off a Golden Core-grade weapon of no small value: shaped like a hairpin, a divine weapon made expressly for female cultivators. Though it held no lethal attack power, once worn it had a certain chance of increasing one's defense.

At the same grade, defensive weapons were far more valuable than offensive ones. Cultivation was no easy road, and the stronger the cultivator, the more he treasured his own life; and a defensive weapon like this hairpin, which required hardly any practice—indeed, which took effect without even deliberate use—was all the rarer a prize.

The trouble was that its defensive power was merely ordinary: it could hold up against exchanges between early Golden Core cultivators, but the moment one fought above one's level, it was utterly useless. And the crux of it was that it was a Golden Core-grade weapon, and there was currently no one at Wei Zhao's side who could make use of it.

To him, then, it was a thing of no use and no harm; otherwise he would certainly have cut in and never let it fall into Wei Shenjin's hands.

"Brother Wei, you're so good to me! I've wanted a hairpin like this for ages, and it's a rare Golden Core-grade weapon besides. Put it on for me, will you? I want to go back and let all those vixens in the sect have a good look—I want them green with envy!" Situ Qian cooed and wheedled, sweet with delight.

Wei Shenjin frowned slightly, but nodded and took the hairpin to put it on her himself. Situ Qian promptly leaned into his arms, and their display of affection drew a round of strange sidelong glances from the crowd.

Far from being embarrassed, Situ Qian rather enjoyed it. Wei Shenjin had always been the man of her dreams, and now that she had finally won him, of course she wanted outsiders to see plainly how loving and sweet they were.

"What a pity—if only we could have bought that top-grade spirit jade as well, this auction would have been perfect. We're just short of a pair of wedding ornaments, Brother Wei!" Situ Qian complained, still unsatisfied at heart.

"Hmph. That blind fool, relying on Cai Zhongxuan to back him, thinks he can look down on everyone and dares to ruin my plans—he clearly has no idea what death means. Rest assured, I promise he won't live past today!" Wei Shenjin cast a cold, sinister glance toward the direction of Jia Number Twelve.

"Mm-hm, I knew Brother Wei wouldn't let me down!" Situ Qian nodded again and again.

At the same time, Wei Zhao likewise sensed their ill-meaning gazes, but merely smiled faintly in unconcern and went on watching the auction.

He was not afraid of the pair's malice; if they truly meant to take revenge, that suited him perfectly well. After all, he had long been set on avenging Xue Li—was it not convenient that they should deliver themselves to his door? R1152