Strongest War Emperor

What arrogance!

Such a brazen, arrogant tone!

Everyone had the same feeling: the winds of change were coming to Celestial Phoenix City...

...and to the Shen Family.

When a young man hailed as a Profound Iron Level VIP by the Treasure Pavilion appeared out of nowhere, could a mere family like the Shens possibly withstand the wrath that had built up in his heart?

And why had this young man suddenly become so sought-after that even the Treasure Pavilion would go to such lengths to win him over?

Countless questions swirled in the minds of the crowd.

In the neighboring private room, Sima Yan and Mo Liusheng had seen everything and could only exchange wry smiles.

Judging by the power Shen Lang had previously revealed, he was more than qualified to make such a statement.

A minor family like the Shens was, in truth, completely unqualified to challenge him.

The Shen Family remained untouched not because he lacked the power to retaliate, but because...

The insignificant Shen Family wasn’t even on his radar!

If he chose to reveal his astounding talent for Artifact Refining, the Treasure Pavilion would certainly not be the only power vying to win him over.

The Profound Iron Level Influences arriving today would likely fight tooth and nail for him.

With a Profound Iron Level Influence backing him, forget the Shen Family—even the Celestial Phoenix City Lord’s Mansion would be of no consequence.

At this point, most of the second-floor private rooms were still empty, but a commotion began to stir in the occupied ones.

People came and went, all seemingly trying to gather information about Shen Lang.

Lian Ruoshui cast a peculiar glance toward Shen Lang’s private room, chuckled softly, and resumed the auction.

Once the auction was more than halfway over, the previously restless crowd suddenly fell silent.

The main event was about to begin. Several groups of strangers arrived, ascending to the second floor one after another within minutes of each other.

The first group was led by a middle-aged man.

He had a dignified bearing, with a restrained light in his eyes. His sweeping gaze was filled with authority.

He was followed by two young men and two young women. The men were strikingly handsome, with sharp brows and star-like eyes. The women were exquisite beauties with flawless, porcelain skin. Judging by their appearance and aura, they were all extraordinary individuals.

”It’s the people from Evil Wind Valley! I recognize that man—he’s Lord Drunken Thousand Cups of the Evil Wind Valley! I was fortunate enough to see him once at a banquet in the City Lord’s Mansion!”

Someone in the crowd below exclaimed in delighted surprise.

The second group to arrive wasn’t nearly as impressive. The young man in the lead was handsome enough, with an extraordinary air about him, but his condescending expression—as if he were a god looking down on mortals—was incredibly off-putting.

He looked like he was just begging for a beating.

Moreover, the venomous glint that occasionally flashed in his eyes was like that of a viper, making anyone who met his gaze feel a jolt of alarm and instinctively look away.

What was strangest of all was that despite his companions being of a similar age, two of them flanked him, carefully supporting his arms like a pair of junior eunuchs escorting a senior one in the Imperial Palace.

Clearly, this man came from a powerful background—the kind of person who doesn’t even have to shake it himself after taking a piss...

”That’s Yao Chengjie, the Young Sect Leader of the Holy Light Sect! Wow, he came in person! This auction is turning into a truly grand event!” someone whispered cautiously.

Soon after the Holy Light Sect, representatives from several other Profound Iron Level Influences, including the White Rainbow Sect and the Golden Embryo Sect, also arrived, ratcheting up the tension in the room.

As the auction moved into its later stages, a woman in courtly dress entered with a young man in tow, and the entire hall fell momentarily silent.

The woman appeared to be in her thirties. She was exceptionally beautiful, with a graceful and noble air.

Following her was a black-clad, silver-haired young man.

It was hard to find the words to describe this young man.

His features were so perfectly, unnaturally beautiful that any attempt to describe them seemed superfluous...

If one had to use a single word to describe him, it would be ”demonic.”

This was precisely Shen Lang’s impression upon first seeing the young man.

Utterly demonic. If you hadn’t seen him with your own eyes, you would never believe a person could be so perfect.

’I’m sure this is the first time I’ve ever seen his face, so why does he feel so familiar...’ Shen Lang clutched his head and let out a groan.

”What’s wrong?” Xue Dangdang asked, her voice full of concern.

Shen Lang shook his head. ”I don’t know. I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before. I feel this strange sense of affinity for him...”

The other three in the private room glanced at each other, at a loss for words.

This world was a mysterious place. No one could say for certain whether things like past and future lives existed; the so-called Divine Demons were nothing more than legends.

But the feeling of meeting a stranger and experiencing déjà vu was not unheard of...

After all, that was exactly what had happened when Xue Dangdang first met Shen Lang.

The demonic young man’s face was a mask of indifference. His aura was glacial, and as he appeared, everyone in the auction hall felt the temperature plummet, the hair on their arms standing on end.

Just then, something startling happened. The silver-haired youth, with his demonic beauty, suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He was still on the staircase when he abruptly turned, his gaze locking onto the private room where Shen Lang and the others were seated!

Before Shen Lang could react, however, a gratingly effeminate voice drifted from the Holy Light Sect’s private room. ”Well, what a surprise. The Profound Dao Sect is the farthest from here, yet you’ve still come all this way to muddy the waters.”

The moment the voice spoke, the atmosphere in the auction hall grew palpably tense.

Many in attendance knew that the Holy Light Sect and the Profound Dao Sect had always been rivals. Their disciples were known to come to blows for no reason at all.

If they started a ruckus here, it was likely that innocent bystanders would get caught in the crossfire.

The families of Celestial Phoenix City couldn’t afford to provoke any of them.

If they got dragged into it, they would have no one to blame but their own bad luck.

”If your Holy Light Sect can be here, why can’t the Profound Dao Sect?”

The voice didn’t come from the Profound Dao Sect, but from the direction of the White Rainbow Sect.

Just then, the middle-aged man from the Evil Wind Valley spoke up. ”This is the Treasure Pavilion. It would be best if everyone showed a little restraint. Since we’re all here for the Potion formula, let’s settle things with our abilities in the end. Why waste time on verbal sparring in a place like this?”

”Heh heh, my Holy Light Sect is determined to acquire the formula for the Giant Potion. Uncle Zui, I’m afraid this junior will have to offend you,” the voice from the Holy Light Sect said again.

Drunken Thousand Cups laughed heartily. ”Your father and I have been friends for years, so I ought to look out for you. However, this item is far too important. I’m afraid that I, Drunken Thousand Cups, will have to pull rank on my junior this time. HAHAHAHA...”

”Hmph!” A cold snort came from the White Rainbow Sect’s room, followed by silence.

The Golden Embryo Sect’s private room remained utterly silent from start to finish.

Likewise, the woman in courtly dress from the Profound Dao Sect merely spared the Holy Light Sect’s room a faint glance. Maintaining her smile, she followed an attendant into her private room without uttering a single word.

With the second-floor private rooms now quiet, the crowd downstairs finally breathed a collective sigh of relief.

After that little interlude, the auction finally resumed.

...

”Next up, we have a five-hundred-year-old Dragon Beard Grass. Legend has it that this Spirit Grass is formed from the whiskers of a dragon. It possesses the Purest medicinal energy, can neutralize a hundred poisons, and is an excellent ingredient for refining various Antitoxic Pills. This herb is exceedingly rare; it blooms at dawn and withers by dusk, making it an exceptionally difficult find. The starting bid is four hundred thousand Gold Coins...”

Lian Ruoshui opened the Jade Box in her hands, her eloquent words painting a vivid picture of the Dragon Beard Grass’s wonders.

Just as the crowd was hesitating, Shui Qingwu, who had been sitting quietly beside Shen Lang, suddenly called out, ”One thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones.”

Shen Lang, who had just taken a sip of tea while lost in thought about the demonic youth from the Profound Dao Sect, nearly sprayed it everywhere. ”I... You...”

”Two thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones!” Xue Dangdang immediately countered with a smirk.

”Agh! Dangdang, you...” Shen Lang was fuming.

Four hundred thousand Gold Coins was equivalent to four hundred Low Grade Spirit Stones at most.

This was one of the very items Shen Lang had planned to buy, but Shui Qingwu had, in a single bid, jacked the price up to one thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones!

’Alright, fine. She’s just messing around. I can tolerate it...’

’But then Xue Dangdang, clearly just trying to pick a fight, immediately raised the price to two thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones!’

”Do you two have some kind of grudge against me...” Shen Lang lamented.

Shui Qingwu paused, stunned. ”Huh? You wanted this? I... I just saw that no one was bidding and thought I’d liven things up a bit. You know I don’t actually have that many Spirit Stones.”

As she spoke, she shot a defiant, sidelong glance at Xue Dangdang.

”Aha! So you were targeting me after all!” Xue Dangdang retorted, puffing out her cheeks in indignation.

”Enough!” Shen Lang snapped. ”If you’re going to cause a scene, do it outside. What kind of behavior is this?”

”What’s it to you!” Shui Qingwu and Xue Dangdang shot back in unison.

Seeing this, Lanlos immediately busied himself with brewing tea, pretending he hadn’t seen a thing.

”...” Shen Lang looked from one to the other, then sighed dramatically before calling out a listless bid, ”Two thousand and one Low Grade Spirit Stones.”

The crowd below chuckled. A bid increase of a single Spirit Stone was a rare sight indeed.

While a single Spirit Stone was worth a hefty one thousand Gold Coins, and the bid wasn’t against the rules, in a competition that had escalated to using Spirit Stones, the bidders were all wealthy individuals or powerful factions. To bid like this was seen as a loss of face.

And what’s more, it came from Shen Lang—the same person who had just so brazenly humiliated Shen Haoxuan and his group!

”I’m warning you both,” Shen Lang said, turning to face them. ”I need this Spirit Grass to refine some Healing Medicine for my father. Don’t mess with my bid, or I’ll flip out.”

He turned away, then whipped back around. ”I’m serious, I will flip out!”

Xue Dangdang stuck her tongue out at him but fell silent.

Shui Qingwu, though slightly embarrassed, still felt a surge of inexplicable irritation. She gave a cold snort and also went quiet.

The Dragon Beard Grass was nowhere near worth two thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones, so naturally, the item went to Shen Lang.

”Our next item is the third eye of a Howling Moon Celestial Wolf. The starting bid is five hundred thousand Gold Coins. Although this eye comes from a juvenile wolf, it possesses unique properties. It can be refined into Potions used to dispel Illusion Realms or see through hidden Restrictions. This can be crucially important when exploring a Secret Realm. The Howling Moon Celestial Wolf has become an exceedingly rare Demon Beast. Outside of the Deep Barbaric, they are almost never seen...”