I Pick up a Lost Godhood

Chapter 116 - 114: Who Do You Think You Are

"I just came to join the fun. Brother Wang, you’re so mean! You came back and didn’t even come play with me," Zhao Lingxuan said with a pout.

"Haha, do you think I could even get into the Main Hall? Why’d you spend so many Spirit Stones? If you wanted some, I could have just refined more for you."

"Hee hee, it’s fine. It’s not like it was my money."

Li Changfu gave a few dry coughs. This wasn’t the place to reminisce. Still, he was pleasantly surprised that Wang Meng knew Zhao Lingxuan.

"Junior Sister Zhao, please have a seat over here," Ning Zhiquan said, standing up. Instantly, everyone realized Zhao Lingxuan must have an extraordinary background and that her surname, "Zhao," likely meant she was from *the* Zhao Family.

"Tianyi, who is this little girl?"

"Zhao Lingxuan of the Zhao Family. A real handful," Li Tianyi muttered, pursing his lips.

Zhao Lingxuan smiled and said very politely, "Thank you, Brother Ning, but I’ll be fine sitting over there."

She pointed to the corner where the Thunderlight Hall members were sitting.

Behind Ning Zhiquan, Zhao Guang looked like he wanted to say something but held his tongue. He knew his words carried no weight, so he decided not to make a fool of himself.

Everyone watched as Zhao Lingxuan made her way over to the Thunderlight Hall section, where Suo Ming quickly gave up his seat for her.

"Brother Wang, Thunderlight Hall seems so fun. When I’m old enough, can I join Thunderlight Hall too?"

Zhao Lingxuan asked.

"Heh, you’ll have to ask Hu Jing about that."

"Sister Jing, can I please join Thunderlight Hall?" Zhao Lingxuan asked. Her words left the crowd stunned; it was obvious to anyone that Zhao Lingxuan had an extraordinary background, and a decision like that was surely not hers to make.

Hu Jing smiled. "As long as you’re willing, we would of course welcome you."

What shocked the others more was the price of two hundred and ten Spirit Stones. However, after what had happened earlier, they were somewhat prepared for it. Chen Haiguan felt like he was about to stop breathing. ’One wave of shock after another... It’s suffocating!’

It was like watching a play. Everyone just stared as the three sets of Pills achieved a miraculous sum: the sky-high price of two hundred and ten Middle-Grade Spirit Stones.

This caused the subsequent Pill set from Immortal Origin Hall to lose all its luster. Although it sold for one thousand two hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones, that was for a much larger quantity of Pills and simply couldn’t compare to Wang Meng’s sale.

Liangyuan didn’t care about that at all. He only regretted failing to obtain those Pills. ’But why would the Zhao Family want these Pills?’

’And with Zhao Lingxuan getting so close to Wang Meng... something about this whole situation felt off.’

’Could it be... the Zhao Family is trying to...???’

’You have your schemes, and I have my counters. Zhao Tianlong is no easy opponent.’

Zhou Luodan had her pawn in Zhou Feng, and Thunderbolt was just a simple-minded brute who didn’t understand strategy. Wu Fatian wasn’t much better, and crucially, he had no cards left to play. Zhao Tianlong, on the other hand, had already laid a foundation in Thunderlight Hall. By cleverly using Zhao Lingxuan to get closer to Wang Meng, he could kill two birds with one stone.

Having Zhao Lingxuan buy those Pills was a gesture of goodwill, intended to make Wang Meng develop a favorable impression of the Zhao Family. The Spirit Stones were essentially a gift to Thunderlight Hall. Besides, Zhao Ya was still a member, so if Thunderlight Hall grew stronger, it would benefit the Zhao Family as well.

As for Little Lingxuan, Zhao Tianlong’s scheme suited her perfectly. She could now openly and brazenly seek out Wang Meng.

"Sister Tian’Er, you’re here too." Zhao Lingxuan hadn’t expected to run into an acquaintance.

At once, Zhou Qian and the others turned to look at Ma Tian’Er. It seemed this Thunderlight Hall, which had appeared to be on its last legs, was full of hidden masters.

Ma Tian’Er gave a wry smile. "You little rascal, what are you doing joining in on the fun?"

"Hee hee, it’s a long story. We can chat all about it when this is over."

Zhao Lingxuan’s adult-like tone made it hard for anyone to suppress a chuckle. Regardless, her forceful intervention had allowed Thunderlight Hall to let off a great deal of steam.

The way everyone was looking at them now was completely different from before.

As the auction for Immortal Origin Hall’s Pill set proceeded, everyone, aside from the active bidders, was still buzzing about Wang Meng’s three sets of Pills. Their gazes couldn’t help but drift toward the Thunderlight Hall members.

Even Yang Ying was no exception. ’How on earth does Wang Meng know Zhao Lingxuan?’ she wondered. ’It’s obvious that while she keeps her distance from everyone else, she’s unusually friendly with him. That must mean she’s let her guard down. Kids like her, despite their age, are usually the most guarded, unless they’re with someone they truly trust.’

’That rules out the possibility that he’s just deliberately trying to get close to her.’

’But isn’t Wang Meng from... a peasant family?’

Li Changfu paid no mind to the crowd’s musings. "The next item is a Teleportation Array Talisman! The starting bid is eight hundred Spirit Stones. This is part of a Hall-level mission; completing it will earn a double reward."

This was essentially a mission disguised as an auction item. However, for a group mission with an eight-hundred-Spirit-Stone starting price, the difficulty was likely immense.

No one knew what lay on the other side of the Array Talisman. It was a double-edged sword: it could lead to endless treasures or to nothing at all. However, items issued by the Main Hall usually had some inherent value.

The Talisman was won by Mingren of Lingyin Hall for nine hundred Spirit Stones.

Mingren had a good reputation, so most of the others showed him respect by not bidding against him.

"And now for the final item of today’s auction. After this concludes, you are all welcome to browse and purchase items in the back hall... From Thunderlight Hall, we have the Nameless Sword! The starting bid is two hundred Middle-Grade Spirit Stones, and the minimum bid increment is one hundred Middle-Grade Spirit Stones!"

After announcing the price, Li Changfu himself froze. He quickly looked down at his notes again, fearing his eyes had deceived him.

’This is outright robbery!’ he thought. ’Only a ready-to-use treasure from an Ancestral Master might command such a price. The nerve of this kid!’

Two hundred Middle-Grade Spirit Stones???

Forget the Thunderlight Hall members; even Zhao Lingxuan was dumbfounded. ’Isn’t that a bit too much???’

The Holy Hall Pavilion fell utterly silent; you could hear a pin drop. The murmuring ceased completely. After the precedent set by the Pills, even though this price was astronomical, who was to say some other bizarre twist wasn’t in store?

Li Changfu was at a loss for words. He’d seen the sword. Frankly, it was a shoddy-looking piece of work. If it hadn’t been for Zhang Liang putting up the capital, backed by the Ancestral Master’s praise, he would never have agreed to take such a risk.

Zhang Liang sat quietly in the crowd, taking it all in. The moment the Pill sets were sold, he felt like he was about to explode with joy. ’We’ve already made a huge profit!’

He just never imagined the starting price for the sword would be even more outrageous.

In that moment, he realized he didn’t seem to understand Wang Meng at all.

Wang Meng walked onto the stage and looked at Li Changfu. "Elder Li, is it possible to change the price?"

Li Changfu was taken aback for a moment. "Generally, we don’t change prices on the fly, but there’s no rule explicitly forbidding it. As long as no one objects, you can."

Wang Meng looked out at the audience. No one voiced an objection.

"I’d like to adjust the price. The starting bid is now two hundred Middle-Grade Spirit Stones plus one Top-Grade Spirit Stone. Each bid increment will be one hundred Middle-Grade Spirit Stones and one Top-Grade Spirit Stone."

Instantly, everyone was dumbstruck. They had all assumed he was going to lower the price, but he had actually raised it.

"He’s insane! An absolute madman!"

"Yeah, only an idiot would buy that! Who does this guy think he is?!"

Zhang Liang was stunned speechless. ’This is just too arrogant!’ The other members of Thunderlight Hall were equally baffled. ’Has Wang Meng gone mad?’

This was simply going too far.