"Roy and Rain, how dare the two of you go drinking while I was occupied with business matters for all of us!" The first thing Ronie did after barging into the drinking room, she scolded the men of her family who were supposed to be taking on the responsibility of supporting the family.
As the woman of the family, one was expected to be cared for and supported by the men of the family. But instead of that being the case, she was the one working while the men in the family were just drinking wine the entire night and even slept through the morning.
Rain who was still in a daze from being interrupted rubbed his eyes and sat straight up, but when he saw his mother who was fuming with anger, he was immediately alert and fully awake despite the wine which he drank yesterday.
As for Roy, he was still deep in slumber as he mumbled, "Don't worry Ronie, I promised to take care of you for the rest of my life. As a man, I'll prove those words true."
"Father, wake up." Rain took the initiative to wake Roy up by shaking his arms which were being used as a pillow.
"What's the matter?" Roy asked in a daze as he opened his eyes, only to see his wife staring at him with her arms tucked at the side, having known his wife for years, he understood that he was in deep trouble.
"Senior Roy, Senior Ronie, if you have any arguments, please wait until we settle official matters first…"
"Shut up!"
"Keep your mouth shut!"
The couple reacted in a similar manner as Ace and Rain struggled to contain their laughter.
"Ace, Ronie, have the two of you agreed on the terms and conditions?" Roy changed the topic immediately before the situation got out of control for him.
"Yes, the details of the contract have already been written down in black and white. Senior Ronie, please show the contract you signed to senior Roy."
Ace requested politely as he explained matters briefly to Roy who had just woken up, the two men having the same thoughts in mind to change the atmosphere of this conversation.
"Fine." Ronie took out the contract and placed it on the table after clearing the table, but deep down, she had already made the decision to get back at her husband for ruining her chance to have some fun.
The contract was only one page long, the details were written in point form and even though it seemed short, it was because the information was concised.
1) The Peacock Auction Hall will offer 2% of its annual profit to the Nirvana Sect.
2) The Nirvana Sect will protect the Peacock Auction Hall against outsiders.
3) The Nirvana Sect will offer a roulette item to the Peacock Auction Hall monthly, only 10% of the profit for the roulette item will go to the Nirvana Sect.
4) The Nirvana Sect will assist the Peacock Auction Hall in becoming the greatest and only auction hall in the Nebula Kingdom.
5) The Nirvana Sect will assist the Peacock Auction Hall in opening branches across all seven continents of the cultivation world.
6) The Peacock Auction Hall can send up to five of their most talented youths to the Nirvana Sect every year as disciples.
7) These disciples will create and be in charge of the management hall that keeps track of the Nirvana Sect accounts.
8) The Nirvana Sect will do everything within its capability to help the Peacock Auction Hall expand.
9) Most importantly, the Peacock Auction Hall can put up priority missions in the Nirvana Sect for up to three times every month.
Priority missions will be glowing golden in colour and the rewards while bountiful, the Peacock Auction Hall would still do it in exchange for a rare resource of material they require.
It was a fair trade in simple terms.
"Senior Roy, what do you think about this? This is the best the Nirvana Sect can offer and all I request of you, is your trust in me." Ace asked after Roy went through the terms with Rain, their eyes wide open in shock, they expected Ronie to bargain for a few terms, but never by this much.
Without a doubt, in terms of just interactions with others, Ronie was a notch above them.
"I see no problems with this contract, but since things have already come to this, why don't you rest here for the night. The auction hall will be starting tomorrow and there might be some items that catch your interest."
"Thank you senior Roy, I'll be staying here for the night in this case." Ace accepted readily as he heaved a sigh of relief, the first step of his plan had gone much more smoothly than expected and that was more than enough for now.
Next, he had to look around for academies in the Nebula Kingdom, but instead of travelling around aimlessly, he decided that it would be easier to speak with Rain.
"Senior Roy, senior Ronie, I would like to speak with Rain for a moment."
"Go ahead, it's better for people close to your age to talk with you compared to old people like us."
"You're the one who's old." Ronie rebutted immediately as the two youths scuttered out of the room before they got dragged into the crossfire of their argument.
After the youths left the room, Rain suggested that they headed towards the Astrology Pavilion of the Nebula Kingdom to have some tea and desserts at the same time.
"Is there a specific reason why you chose the Astrology Pavilion?" Ace asked on the way as Rain led the way.
"The Astrology Pavilion is the best place to speak with soundproof walls and individual rooms including its top tier wine and desserts that are the best on this continent."
"I see, the price must be costly then."
"No worries, even though the Peacock Auction Hall had been on the decline for the past ten years, I can still afford to treat you there without much pain."
Ace nodded his head and asked, "By the way, where is that brother of yours who even got me to steal the grand item back?"
"I have no idea either, he should be having fun somewhere right now. I regret even letting him have the chance to see it right now, but at least you retrieved it back."
Along the way, the two youths were exchanging information and cultivation experience with each other and before long, they arrived at the entrance of the Astrology Pavilion.
The Astrology Pavilion had seven floors to it, but the treatment each floor receives differs to a significant extent.
The first floor was for the common cultivators in the Nebula Kingdom.
The second floor was for the elites of the Nebula Kingdom.
The third floor was for those with reputation, strength, or nobility in the Nebula Kingdom.
The fourth floor was for important guests such as a general or character who has power over affairs of the Nebula Kingdom.
The fifth floor was for characters such as Rain and his parents who were leaders of the Peacock Auction Hall with reputation and strength in the Nebula Kingdom.
The sixth floor was for the legendary Dragon Tier forces or the Emperor and a few other people.
As for the seventh floor, no one had ever entered there from what outsiders know. But what they don't know is that the seventh floor is actually a separate dimension and that was where Ultric and his friends were.
Ace was close to his master, but neither of them would realise that the other person had already made it this far.
"Young master Rain, please wait for a moment, a private room will be prepared for you shortly."
"Thanks."
"Young master Rain, would you like to browse the menu first, we've added quite a few additions to the list which you might like."
"Sure, that would be appreciated."
As the waiter passed the updated menu to Rain, he looked at Ace in curiosity and asked, "Young master Rain, who is this young boy? Is he the son of a friend?"
"Hahahaha, hahahaha." Rain couldn't help but break out in laughter as he explained to the waiter.
"You're mistaken, even though he's younger than me, he's younger than me, he's the one who's being treated as a senior this time around."
"Oh, he must be the young genius Ace on the Galaxy Rankings."
"The Galaxy Rankings have been updated?"
"Yep yep, would you like to purchase the ranking from us, I assure you that it's the cheapest price you can find on the market."
"I'll take one." Rain agreed without any hesitation and passed the waiter a card.
The waiter took the card and scanned it on some machine before returning it to Rain with what seemed like a book in hand.
"This young boy here by the name of Ace is ranked number one for some reason, believe it or not, all the geniuses are out to kill him right now and seize his throne. This includes Craze from the Magic Castle who has the strength to kill a Martial Lord as well.
As for the difference in strength between him and Ace, he might still have the upper hand for now with the few years of advantage he has. But give Ace more time and his throne would be secured, but compared to the Universal Rankings where the true geniuses lie, he wouldn't even count as an ant in the eyes of the weakest among them.
"Young master Rain, sect master Ace, the personal room for the two of you have been prepared, please follow me."
"Lead the way." Rain replied amiably.