Sui Yun was somewhat puzzled by this strange request, but when he saw the look in his younger brother's eyes, he immediately understood something and allowed himself to fully relax.
Starlight poured a cup of water from the silver kettle on the coffee table and handed it to Sui Yun, much to his surprise. On the other side, Moen naturally reached out and patted Little Gold's hair.
In the next instant, Noah's powerful soul power followed the point of contact between their skin, quickly covering Sui Yun and Little Gold and pulling them into the soul link.
“I don't know what the House of Red is plotting, but just to be safe, I’ve pulled you in as well!”
While Sui Yun was still in a state of shock, Starlight's voice already resonated in his mind.
“This is...?”
Sui Yun's hand trembled slightly as he took the cup, nearly spilling the water inside. However, well-versed in the ways of the world, he quickly masked the surprise on his face.
He had only heard of certain Grand Archmages being capable of this form of mental dialogue, yet here it was being performed by a young man like Starlight.
“Sorry, Big Brother. This is a little secret of our team; please don't look into it too deeply! Regardless, our conversation is now completely secure. Is there anything you want to say?” After a brief silence, Po Kong's voice joined in.
“I understand... I won't pry. Hehe, you kids have given me yet another surprise! If this skill could be used on a battlefield...”
Sui Yun calmly accepted the teacup, brought it to his lips for a sip, and replied in his mind.
“Brother, stop right there! This ability cannot cover a wide area! It takes everything we have just to use it on ourselves at close range!” To prevent Sui Yun from asking further, Po Kong quickly explained.
Starlight also nodded silently. Although he didn't know what Sui Yun was thinking, he decided it was best not to expose Noah's existence.
Sui Yun rolled his eyes at the two of them and said in a teasing tone, “Well then, little brother, it seems your feathers have grown in and you think you can make decisions for me now?”
“Not at all, not at all...” Po Kong quickly shook his head.
At the same time, Little Gold's excited voice suddenly joined the link: “Wow! I didn't know you humans could use a soul link too! This is a very profound ancient magic!”
This statement immediately caught everyone's attention. Xia Duo asked curiously, “What? Little Gold, you know this spell?”
“Hmm... how should I put it? It's like a memory in my bloodline. And when I was still an egg... it felt like someone used this method to chat with me... I can't really explain it clearly.” Little Gold shook his head and spoke slowly.
“Alright, let's get back to the topic at hand...” Seeing that Little Gold couldn't provide any useful information, Starlight steered the conversation back on track.
“Brother Sui Yun, what kind of message do you think Miss Isabella was trying to give us?”
“I’m not sure. The influx of people in the Crimson City-State over the last few days has been too massive; we haven't been able to verify every piece of news. Is it possible someone really intends to cause trouble at the auction?” Sui Yun shook his head and took another sip of tea.
“Among the list of attendees this time, are there any particularly extreme or eccentric individuals?” Xia Duo asked softly, glancing at the crowd gradually filling the seats below.
“Heh, if you’re talking about extreme, who could be more extreme than those old fogies of the House of Red? As far as I know, there are about ten Saint Rank experts attending this auction. If someone really wants to cause trouble, they’d better be confident they can suppress everyone present.”
“Fair point... Let's just wait and see.” Starlight nodded, thinking back to that strange fat man and the Archmage Branno.
With their collective combat power, as long as no major catastrophe occurred, they would certainly be able to protect themselves.
After the group discussed things through the soul link for a while, the auction finally reached the eve of its opening.
Not only were the thousands of seats on the ground floor filled, but blurred figures had also appeared in each of the private boxes on the second floor.
According to Sui Yun, those who could enter the boxes were either top-tier royalty and nobility or Saint Rank experts. Such a lively scene was rarely witnessed in ordinary times.
After another moment, Starlight noticed that the originally boisterous crowd on the first floor suddenly fell silent.
At the same time, a grey-haired middle-aged man dressed in formal attire walked onto the stage from behind the curtain and bowed deeply to the thousands of people before him.
“Oh~ It looks like it's starting. The old fellow on stage is Philip Red, the recognized next head of the House of Red.” Sui Yun walked to the glass wall and explained to the others as he looked down.
After scanning the surroundings, Philip took a yellow crystal from his pocket, held it to his mouth, and began to speak.
“Honored guests, welcome to the ‘Crimson Secret Treasures’ night, meticulously prepared by the House of Red.”
“In this hall illuminated by starlight and magic, every gemstone, every ancient scroll, and every artifact contains unknown power and stories. Tonight, they await the touch of those destined for them to together begin a new legendary chapter.”
“Now, I declare the opening of this year's ‘Crimson Secret Treasures’ auction!”
Philip's voice was amplified many times by the yellow crystal in his hand, allowing the entire hall to hear him clearly. In the soundproofed boxes on the second floor, his voice was transmitted through a speaker beside the glass wall.
“Next, please welcome our gold-medal auctioneer, Miss Lia, and our first treasure of the night!”
As Philip's voice faded, the curtain at the center of the stage was slowly drawn back, and a beautiful woman in a magnificent long dress walked gracefully onto the stage.
Her long golden hair fell like a waterfall, her eyes sparkled with confident light, and she held an exquisite auction gavel in her hand.
“Good evening, distinguished guests. I am your auctioneer, Lia. It is an honor to witness this grand event with all of you.” Lia's voice was crisp and pleasant, yet carried a convincing authority.
Starlight noticed that this seemingly delicate auctioneer was actually an expert of considerable strength. Although not yet at the Saint Rank, she wasn't far behind them.
With a gentle wave of Lia's hand, a section of the floor at the center of the stage slowly rose, revealing a display stand covered by a red silk cloth.
“The first treasure tonight is a favorite among all the young talents! A first-edition recording stone personally recorded by the beloved Miss Xue Ying of the Shining Silver City-State!”
As Lia spoke, she gently pulled back the red silk. A circular thin disc could be seen lying quietly on the display stand, its surface shimmering with a faint silver light.
“It includes several classic songs such as 《Song of the Snow Fairy》 and 《When Spring Snow Melts》! The starting bid is five thousand gold coins!”
“Huh? Brother, isn't the first item of an auction supposed to be a rare treasure to build up hype? The House of Red is just putting up a recording stone? Isn't that a bit too lazy?” Po Kong asked, turning his head in confusion.
Although he had never attended this so-called “Crimson Secret Treasures,” he had accompanied his family to various auctions in the Royal Capital a few times. In his view, a mere recording stone didn't seem to meet the criteria for an opening item at all.
To his surprise, however, the usually calm Sui Yun pressed the bidding button beside the glass wall right before their eyes.
“The first bid is from the distinguished guest in box number three—six thousand gold coins!” Lia announced loudly.
“?!! Big Brother??? Are you crazy?! Six thousand gold coins for a piece of junk stone?” Po Kong jumped up from the sofa, asking in a tone of utter disbelief.
“Ahem, little brother, it seems you haven't kept up with the current trends during the two years you were away! Just watch!” Sui Yun cleared his throat, unfazed, and pointed downward.
“I recall that recording stones refer to minerals that can record a person's voice, right? Although they are relatively rare, I still think six thousand gold coins is...”
Starlight agreed with Po Kong's sentiment, but before he could finish his sentence, the bids coming from below slapped them in the face at lightning speed.
Rate on N.U.
