Wu Xiaohuang had been holding it in for some time. He blurted as he could not take it anymore, "Shopkeeper Su, will a Heavenly Fire Ore really be auctioned at the Auction Meet this time?"

The item was so precious that even the experienced top-grade Spiritualist was moved.

Nonetheless, being moved was one thing; having the ability to win the bid for the item was another thing.

Su Tianqian chuckled and answered, "Senior Wu, this affected the Su family's Chamber of Commerce's prestige, so I won't falsify this."

Wu Xiaohuang nodded and asked in high spirits, "Shopkeeper Su, can the successful bidder of this item be decided by default?"

Su Tianqian's eyes flickered as he looked at the elder in shock.

Normally, since an item was going to be auctioned, the highest bidder would be able to bag it. Even so, under special situations where someone took a fancy to a certain item and was willing to pay a huge price for it, it could be reserved indeed and not be auctioned.

Nevertheless, Wu Xiaohuang shook his head embarrassedly when he was being stared at by Su Tianqian. He quickly expressed, "Shopkeeper Su, please forgive me. I was being too greedy."

A Heavenly Fire Ore was a great item. Even if Wu Xiaohuang had no use for it, he could keep it and exchange it for another rare item in the future.

After all, items that were truly good could not be measured with spirit ores.

Exchanging goods was the favorite pastime for top-notch powerhouses.

This was because many things did not have fixed values. Perhaps a certain thing would be considered one of a kind by certain people, but it might just be a slightly more precious item to other people.

Different environments, needs, and likes—these would naturally cause many unexplainable and queer situations.

Su Tianqian waved his hand and said, "Senior Wu, you're not the only one that made such a request."

"Oh? Who else did?" Wu Xiaohuang asked curiously as he was moved.

"After I sent the invitations, the clans of the 2 Venerable Ones made the same request too," Su Tianqian answered seriously.

Wu Xiaohuang's face changed. The bit of ill-feeling that he had instantly disappeared.

Judging from Su Tianqian's expression, it was clear that he rejected those 2 clans flatly. If he did not show deference to the 2 Venerable Ones by obliging them, would the Wu family even have a place in this?

Ou Yangming's eyelids flickered too as he did not think that Su Tianqian would be so bold as to not give face to the clans of the Venerable Ones. Despite that, this made the young fellow and the others more certain that the shopkeeper was definitely supported by a force that was feared by even Venerable Ones.

Su Tianqian kept a smile on his face as he noted, "As a matter of fact, the friend that wants to auction the Heavenly Fire Ore isn't hoping to just exchange it for spirit ores."

"Oh, Shopkeeper Su, you're saying that…"

"Hehe, Senior Wu, if you're really interested in the Heavenly Fire Ore, why don't you prepare some rare items?" Su Tianqian suggested, "If he takes a liking to what you prepared, the Heavenly Fire Ore will be yours."

Su Tianqian's eyes flickered. He nodded without saying anything else.

In actuality, this was a workaround that was rather beneficial to rogue cultivator clans like them.

If the bidders were going to compete solely with how influential they were, even if the Wu family joined hands with the Xue family, they would not be able to surpass the clans of the Venerable Ones.

Those 2 clans had such profound foundations that they could not be compared by the Wu family nor the Xue family.

Having said that, since the seller stated that the Heavenly Fire Ore could be exchanged with other valuable items, this would be a great opportunity for the other rogue cultivator clans.

Needless to say, it would not be easy to seize the opportunity. In terms of collections of rare and priceless treasures, the normal rogue cultivator clans could not compare with the Venerable Ones' clans as well.

However, there were innumerable rare treasures in the world, each one with a fluctuating price. This would also be a chance for the rogue cultivator clans. Perhaps a certain item that they possessed would be fancied by the seller. In that case, regardless of the conditions given by the clans of the Venerable Ones, they would not be able to stop the other clans from obtaining the Heavenly Fire Ore.

That said…

Wu Xiaohuang's expression kept changing. If his clan were to forcibly bag the Heavenly Fire Ore under the nose of the Venerable Ones' clans…

Putting aside whether or not the Wu family had suitable precious treasures, even if they had 1 or 2 of those, they would not dare to take them out at this time.

Su Tianqian turned around and cupped his hands at Ou Yangming. "Brother Yu, would you attend the Auction Meet?"

Ou Yangming pondered for a brief moment before he replied to the shopkeeper with a smile, "Brother Su, since you're inviting me with great kindness, I'd be denounced for failing to appreciate your kindness if I don't show up." He waved his hand and said forthrightly, "We'll meet again during the Auction Meet."

"Alright." Su Tianqian clapped his hands hard and smiled. "Brother Yu, if you happen to have items that you don't need, feel free to bring them to the Su family's Chamber of Commerce for them to be auctioned. Hehe, if they're great items, I assure you that we won't make you suffer any loss."

Ou Yangming smiled with his eyes squinted. "Okay, I'll cooperate with you if I get the chance to, Brother Su."

Su Tianqian did not gain anything, but he did not give up and left with a bright smile.

After he left, Wu Xuning handed the jade box to Ou Yangming and noted, "Big Brother Yu, there were many winners from the past Hunting Meets but very few of them were visited and congratulated by Shopkeeper Su himself."

Ou Yangming simply smiled and opened the jade box. A piece of ancient jade was placed inside.

He released his mental power slightly to scan the ancient jade and immediately found out about its value.

The ancient jade was more than just a jade object to be admired. Unique energy was contained inside the jade, where it could help calm one's mind if one carried it during cultivation. It would not let one achieve twice the cultivation effect by putting in half the effort, but it would still be greatly beneficial.

Such an ancient jade could be considered a treasure.

Nonetheless, given Ou Yangming's field of vision at the moment, he would not value the item very much.

When Ou Yangming casually kept the box inside his interspatial bag, Wu Xiaohuang and Wu Xuning saw him well. They became more certain that the young fellow was a core disciple from an influential sect, or he would not be unmoved by such a precious item.

Ou Yangming then nodded at Wu Xiaohuang and said, "Senior Wu, I gained some new understanding of martial arts and formation maps throughout the hunt, so I'd like to cultivate in isolation for some time."

Wu Xiaohuang was stunned, but he quickly reacted to the situation and replied to him, "Alright. In this case, I'll reject your guests so that you don't need to meet other people."

Honestly, he felt rather regretful. If Ou Yangming was willing to show his face in public, he would surely cause a bigger sensation, which would increase the reputations of the Wu family and the Xue family. Nevertheless, since the young fellow asked to be in isolation, the patriarch agreed to it right away.

This was because he knew very well he must not offend the young man at this time.

Ou Yangming did a fist salutation and left. He returned to his courtyard to further comprehend what he had learned from before.

On the other hand, Wu Xiaohuang returned to the inner court to meet Xue Yan. When the Xue family's top-grade Spiritualist heard about the Heavenly Fire Ore, he was deeply moved as well but sighed. "I wouldn't mind giving it a go if my clan wasn't attacked but now… It's a pity." He kept shaking his head regretfully.

The Xue family suffered a major setback because they were attacked by the Teng family. Their foundation was still there, but they had to focus on going against their enemy first, so they could not have extravagant hope of bothering about other things at the moment.

Wu Xiaohuang shook his head and sighed as well. "Since there are the Wang family and the Li family in Huixun City, I suppose that the Heavenly Fire Ore won't fall into the hands of anyone else."

Struck with a thought, Xue Yan asked, "Brother Wu, do you think that Younger Brother Tianrui would want to meddle in this?"

Wu Xiaohuang's face changed, and he pondered for a long time. "That depends if he has suitable treasures for the trade."

They looked at each other and nodded. It was clear that they were looking forward to what might happen.

If Ou Yangming were to attempt to get the Heavenly Fire Ore, they might be able to pry his origin from that. Once they confirmed he was related to a formidable force, they would cling to him regardless of all costs. By then, not to mention the Teng family, even the Venerable Ones in Huixun City would regard them with special respect.

There were also huge disparities between Venerable Ones. Normally, rogue Venerable Ones were inferior to that from proper sects due to inheritances.

Moreover, there were more Venerable Ones with inheritances than there were rogue Venerable Ones. Therefore, if the Wu family and the Xue family found a strong backing, the situation would be entirely different.

※※※※

Inside the Wang residence in Huixun City, Wang Weinian had a cold look on his face, and he seemed slightly furious.

"Is Su Tianqian still not willing to remove the Heavenly Fire Ore from the auction list?"

Wang Fu bowed a distance away from him and answered, "Yes. We've requested many times, but he still rejected us."

"Hmph, the Su family's Chamber of Commerce…" Wang Weinian repeated the words several times with a luster in his eyes.

"Master, we've secretly investigated for a long time and found out that the Su family's Chamber of Commerce is indeed closely connected with the Beyond Heaven Pavilion." Wang Fu hesitated for a while before he added in a deep voice, "Great Ancestor instructed that we mustn't have conflicts with the Beyond Heaven Pavilion no matter what."

Wang Weinian stood up abruptly and glanced coldly at Wang Fu. He uttered, "I know what to do, and I don't need you to teach me."

"Yes." Wang Fu lowered his head and dared not say anything else.

The patriarch fell silent for a brief moment and finally sighed. "Forget it. Ask the rest to prepare more spirit ores. This time, we must do our best and claim the Heavenly Fire Ore no matter what."

Wang Fu responded to him and retreated. That being said, they both knew that they would not be the only clan that was interested in the Heavenly Fire Ore since word about it had spread.

They were not confident about succeeding as they wished.

It was worth noting that the same scene happened in not only the Wang family but also many aristocratic families in Huixun City.

Regardless of how displeased they were with Su Tianqian, they dared not try to cause trouble.

After all, the Beyond Heaven Pavilion was similar to an unshakable mountain that oppressed everyone's wild ambitions and greed.