"Did you see that?"
Older Sister Xiaxia stopped in the middle of her gossiping and sat up straight, her eyes burning with excitement and surprise.
"Hmmm.....This little girl found by Little Wenwen is really interesting! She doesn't seem like a normal commoner!"
Neither Bodus nor the 'Emperor' said a word, but one could notice the interest flickering in Bodus's eyes. The 'Emperor's' expressions were well hidden behind his metal mask, and his body revealed no change either.
Suli Wenzhaobei on the other hand was greatly startled, though he hid it deep within his lazy allure, as he tapped the bone fan against his other wrist. Inside he was pondering on the strangeness of the situation. Once he hid his aura and turned on invisible mode, there were very few who could break through his barriers and sense his presence, even when he was right behind them. And those few were those high level cultivators whom no one on these lands dared to provoke.
Could this girl be one of them?.....No...She was definitely a commoner. Even before a highly powerful person, his sense of the other would not disappear. Then how did she sense him?....And how did she know exactly where he was standing? Was this some kind of spiritual tool?...Or did she make a contract with a rare and powerful beast?
Even as he stood, smiling like a devil as various thoughts turned within his mind, the group accompanying Rihanna noticed something amiss and noticed a devilishly enchanting man had appeared at some point and stood before Rihanna who was still bowing down respectfully.
Bowing down was not exactly part of the culture of Madsa-Tamu, but they understood the feelings behind it, so they looked at the man again, wondering what relationship this girl had with such a man who exuded a powerful and pressurizing aura! This man did not look like a normal cultivator!
Before Wen Haoli, they could afford showing off their disregard. But this fellow, though much younger than them, was way above them in all other aspects. They looked at each other, unsure how to intervene. Rihanna noticed their hesitation, but did not think too much about it. This fellow was a sadistic pervert, and not at all easy to deal with. She could not put all these people in danger.
"Uncle He, this is My Lord, and my new master. He had allowed me time off yesterday, so I could go and watch the splendors of the opening day match by myself. It looks like my master needs me today, so I will bid you goodbye and leave with my master now. Please do enjoy yourselves!"
Wenzhaobei could feel his lips jerk downwards. Who was this little girl fooling? As if she truly wanted to follow him and serve the whole lot of them! Did she think he could not read the ever changing expressions on her face?! He thought he was the one bullying her and having fun...now it was looking quite the opposite! Tsk!
"Never mind.....as your new master, I am also extremely understanding and magnanimous. How could I bear to have my little maid be dragged away from her friends she met after a long time? I simply came to remind you that you lack money....perhaps, you might have something to sell here at the auction here today? After all....I, as your master, have never not been kind to you....have I?"
Rihanna was looking at him in a daze....just what was this fellow trying to accomplish by putting up such a pitiable play?! It was okay for a high level cultivator to treat a commoner as a maid...but now he behaved as a benevolent master full of compassion for a nobody like her!.....Did he realize that everyone around was staring at them with very strange looks?!
But he came to remind her that she could sell her possession?...was he talking about the Frozen Magma Flower?! Even as she bowed down again to thank him profusely, her eyes darted all around, till they felt a familiar aura locked on her. Even through the sheer window drapes blocking out her vision, she felt certain it was the 'Emperor's' eyes staring at her, and she stared back in wonder. He had not made any comments even after knowing she had taken away his prized flowers. And she was certain that this time too he was the one who had pushed out this lazy fellow to specially come and give her the permission to put the flowers up for auction. But...why?!
Rihanna looked away and smiled widely at her Lord. Wenzhaobei stepped back. He had noticed the small movements of her eyes, and knew that she had guessed who had been behind him. Once more he was amazed at this little girls perception. How deep did her thoughts go? Who exactly was she?...And what was her purpose? He chewed on these thoughts as he returned back to his seat, where the others were waiting like eager cats burning on the pan of curiosity.
Returning back to Rihanna, she heaved a deep sigh of relief, though she was equally befuddled as to what that guy wanted from her. His image was growing through a very fast metamorphosis in her mind.....and she was not quite able to accept this change! Or was there something about her which interested him? She wondered about her special body constitution, but quickly rejected it. He could have bound, gagged and carried her off from the Chen Clan itself if such was the case. Then.....?
'Do you realize that he had hidden his aura and was in an invisible mode when you suddenly turned and bowed down to him? How did you even know where he was?'
Rihanna blinked in surprise at Little Purple's sudden question, then frowned as realization dawned. True...she had not sensed him through his aura...it was the same strange feeling when she faced Siyu which had sensed when he came near her. Was there something wrong with her sensory radar?.....or was there something wrong about him?
'Don't think too much. I do have an idea...but we cannot discuss that in here.'
Rihanna turned and smiled widely at the Uncles still waiting for her at the entrance of the auction house. Though they had not come forward, they had not left her either. She felt very touched. As such her smile was far more genuine than when she was facing the pervert guy before.
The auction house was named the Green Dragon Auction House. As she followed the group inside she couldn't help turning to Uncle He.
"Uncle He....do dragons really exist on these lands?"
From childhood she had held great respect for these fantastical creatures. Whether they were the western dragons which looked more like dinosaurs, or the eastern dragons which looked more like large flying snakes....both were equally magnificent in their bearing. If these creatures really existed in this world, she really really wanted to at least see one of them!
"Ummm.....Little Rihanna....these are just legendary creatures. They definitely existed in the far far past.....but no one has ever seen a dragon in the last hundreds of thousands of years. There have been no records either. Most probably they perished with time. They no longer exist now girl!"
Uncle He was feeling especially bad - like someone having to tell a kid that candies no longer existed. He saw the changing expression of Rihanna, from excitement and curiosity to disappointment and grief.....and he was unsure how to coax this little fellow. So he did the next best thing he could think of. He held her hand, and dragged her into the long and wide outer hall of the auction house, which was crowded with people, and pushed her towards one of the long tables set up at the sides of the hall.
Rihanna looked about her and saw another four or five long tables at various ends of the hall. Each table had a person manning it from behind, and lines of people were crowding in front of each table. She looked at Uncle He in confusion.
"This is the front hall of the auction house. The tables have been set up specifically for this fifteen day auction, so all guests who have anything to sell can bring their possession here and have it authenticated by the specialists behind the counter. Once they receive the spirit stamp of authentication, they will then be moved to those open shelf cabinets which you can see at the end of the hall. All the people visiting the auction house can check the items which will be going up for auction the next day, and accordingly prepare their bidding. This gives them a bit of time to prepare. All items verified today, will be put up for auction tomorrow. So....if you have something to sell, then this is the place. Go on....you should not disappoint your new master!"
At the end of it, Rihanna realized these guys were just trying to teach her how to butter-up to her new master. Trying not to laugh in exasperation, she headed over to one of the tables, secretly taking out one of the Frozen Magma Flowers and hiding it inside her long loose sleeves. These sleeves even had inner pockets sewn on them, making it a very handy accessory indeed!
The Frozen Magma Flower drew a lot of attention, instantly drawing all eyes around on her as well. Trying to curb the discomfort and anxiety she felt from all the bubbling voices as people crowded around her, she waited for the specialist to give the spirit stamp of authentication, then watched as a special guard placed the Frozen Magma Flower very carefully inside a jade box, then carried it over to the open shelf cabinets at the far end of the hall.
The cabinets were all inscribed by complicated array patterns. Even Rihanna could guess, these arrays were not simply for defense, but definitely held offensive techniques as well. These patterns were far more intricate and complicated than the ones she had seen before.
The Underworld Abyss definitely hid a number of experts. From all she had observed since yesterday, this place was far better managed, with systematic regulations and strict laws and punishments. Even the people coming here dared not cross the lines. No wonder the Underworld had grown into such a big force that even governments could not force it out of their hiding. Their roots went deep and were very strong!
But what was the purpose behind this Underworld? They could easily form their own country....or did they wish to take over all the lands in one sweep? Was this world at the crux of a major shift in system of society? The image of a cold eyed face hidden behind a metal mask flashed through her mind. Rihanna blinked in surprise. Why did she think of him just now? Was it because she wasn't sure what position he held in this Underworld Abyss? Hmmm....that must be it!