Wan Jianfeng looked at Huang Mao with a mix of awe and fear in his eyes.

Everyone present now viewed Huang Mao differently.

Such a mysterious expert, outwardly only at the first level of the Qi Condensing Realm, yet able to make an Innate Expert suffer. No one dared to underestimate him.

"Liao Huoyun, weren't you going to kill me? Why aren't you moving? If you don't kill me, I'm leaving!"

Facing everyone's gaze, Huang Mao remained calm and mocked Liao Huoyun.

Now, no one called him arrogant.

To publicly kill Liao Qingfeng in seconds and beat Liao Huoyun into submission—if such a person isn't qualified to be arrogant, who is?

No wonder he acted so fearlessly. People thought he was crazy, but they never imagined he had the confidence to back it up!

Liao Huoyun was so furious he could explode, but with the raging fire consuming him, he dared not act recklessly. He could only focus all his efforts on suppressing the flames and protecting his heart.

What shocked and angered him even more was that under the burning of this strange flame, it seemed his soul was also being scorched. The burning sensation from deep within his soul was excruciating. If not for his willpower far exceeding that of ordinary people, he might have fainted.

Fortunately, he was strong, and he believed extinguishing this flame was only a matter of time.

He finally understood that this flame had been lurking in his body and was only triggered now; it wasn't something that could ignite easily.

"Xue Wuqing, go up and kill him!" Liao Huoyun ordered.

Xue Wuqing hesitated for a moment, took a step forward, but dared not advance further.

The power of that flame left a deep impression on him. Even the sect master, such a powerful expert, could barely withstand it. If he got hit, he would most likely end up like Liao Qingfeng.

"Go quickly!" Liao Huoyun shouted angrily.

Xue Wuqing remained unmoved.

Seeing this, Huang Mao mocked, "Haha! The son is useless, the father is just as useless, the elder is useless, the entire Fire Cloud Sect is useless!"

Xue Wuqing's face turned beet red with anger.

Liao Huoyun was so enraged that he spat out a mouthful of blood.

Seeing this, the crowd began to whisper among themselves, with many covering their mouths to stifle their laughter.

Unable to maintain his dignity any longer, Liao Huoyun forcefully suppressed the flames and left the auction house in utter humiliation, with Xue Wuqing following behind in a hasty retreat.

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With this, the reputation of the Fire Cloud Sect was utterly destroyed.

"President Wan, I will remember your help today," Huang Mao casually remarked, leaving Wan Jianfeng flattered and hurriedly bowing, "I dare not, I dare not! Lord Xiao's divine skills are unmatched; we dare not claim any credit."

Huang Mao waved his hand, "I said, I owe you a favor."

If it hadn't been for Wan Jianfeng stepping in to block Xue Wuqing's palm earlier, Huang Mao would have had to consume an Explosive Yuan Pill to counter with temporarily boosted strength. Doing so would have caused some damage to his body and exposed certain things.

Although Wan Jianfeng acted out of self-interest, he still helped, and Xiao Long wouldn't forget that.

Wan Jianfeng was thrilled, fully understanding how valuable this favor was.

Su Ya handed over a storage ring, "Lord Xiao, this is the profit from your previous auction."

Huang Mao took the ring, which Xiao Long placed in his inventory. Upon opening it, he found a total of 3.5 million middle-grade spirit stones, and the money for the staff wasn't deducted. Additionally, there were many valuable medicinal materials inside.

"Su Ya, you're quite good! I hope to see you next time I come by," Huang Mao said casually.

Su Ya's eyes lit up with joy. Although Lord Xiao didn't express anything else, just that one sentence meant so much.

Wan Jianfeng's eyes also flickered. He had originally planned to send Su Ya to Master Gu Yun as an apology after the auction, but with Lord Xiao's words, he had to reconsider.

Huang Mao suddenly turned his gaze to the trembling Li Wei nearby.

"As for him."

"My lord, I..." Li Wei was already so scared he nearly wet his pants.

Even Liao Huoyun was beaten into submission; what could he do?

"Scoundrel, kneel!" Wan Jianfeng struck down with a palm from the air, forcing Li Wei onto the ground, his entire body and head embedded in the floor.

"Lord Xiao, this wretch is my failure to discipline. I leave him to your disposal!" Wan Jianfeng said, cupping his hands.

"I don't want to see him again! Farewell!"

Turning around, Huang Mao leaped out of the auction house, disappearing from everyone's sight.

The implication of his words was clear, and Wan Jianfeng surely understood.

Wan Jianfeng glanced at the trembling Li Wei and shook his head.

"Boom!"

With a casual punch, he struck Li Wei's back, channeling True Qi to destroy his dantian.

"Su Ya, drag this scoundrel out and feed him to the dogs. From now on, you will be the chief auctioneer."

"Yes!" Su Ya replied joyfully, dragging the barely alive Li Wei away.

Wan Jianfeng let out a long breath, feeling quite pleased inside. Although the auction house was damaged, the auction was interrupted, and he offended the Fire Cloud Sect, Lord Xiao's favor was worth all those losses.

"Ladies and gentlemen, apologies for the spectacle today. The auction is hereby concluded. Please take your leave."

Wan Jianfeng issued the order to leave, and the people in the auction house cupped their fists and gradually departed. Judging by their expressions, they were still in shock.

Today's events were deeply etched in everyone's minds. It turned out that even god-like Innate Experts were not invincible!

It wouldn't be long before this news spread throughout the Tianfeng Kingdom.

Gu Sha's eyes darted around as he chased in the direction where Huang Mao had disappeared.

...

Back at the Fire Cloud Sect, after some recuperation, Liao Huoyun finally stabilized his breath, and the flames on his body gradually diminished until they extinguished.

Though he had extinguished the flames, Liao Huoyun's face was extremely pale, as if he had just fought a battle against an Innate Expert.

"Sect Master, Elder Xue has learned of the masked man's whereabouts and has already led the elder council to pursue him. That thief won't escape," Elder Wu, the pale-faced elder beside him, said respectfully.

Liao Huoyun's face was grim, and he remained silent. After this ordeal, the soul power he had painstakingly recovered was back to square one. What was even more infuriating was that in front of so many people, he, a dignified Innate Expert, couldn't do anything to a mere ant at the first level of the Qi Condensing Realm and was called a waste to his face. How could he hold his head high in the future?

Xue Wuqing was even more of a coward, scared by a flame and not daring to act!

The Fire Cloud Sect's reputation was utterly ruined!

"Wu Yi, pass my order, summon the Fire Cloud Sword!" Liao Huoyun commanded.@@novelbin@@

"The Fire Cloud Sword!" Elder Wu was shocked.

The Fire Cloud Sword was the Fire Cloud Sect's Innate Spiritual Treasure. The sect had always stipulated that the sword should not be drawn unless the sect faced life and death.

Due to the sword's age and the long period without anyone to maintain it, each use increased its wear and tear. Under the current circumstances, it could only be used three more times before it would be completely ruined.

Liao Huoyun was actually willing to summon the Fire Cloud Sword to kill one person, showing how close today's events had driven him to madness!

"Sect Master! The Fire Cloud Sword is the sect's Innate Spiritual Treasure and holds great significance. It must be approved by the Grand Elder," Elder Wu said respectfully.

"Do you dare defy me?" Liao Huoyun looked at him expressionlessly.

Elder Wu's mouth twitched, and he cupped his hands, "I will go to the Fire Cloud Secret Realm to retrieve the sword immediately."

With that, he bowed deeply to Liao Huoyun and turned to leave.

After Elder Wu left, Liao Huoyun fell into deep thought.

Why did Wan Jianfeng risk falling out with the Fire Cloud Sect just to protect that masked man?

Where did the soul-burning flame come from? And when was he poisoned with the Bone-Corroding Powder?

According to his understanding, the flame on Liao Qingfeng was planted by that person during a conflict the night before, known as the "Ghost Fire Seed." But how did it happen to him?

During that time, he had been recuperating in the Fire Cloud Sect, never leaving, at most taking some Gathering Qi Pills. It was impossible for him to have been planted with the Ghost Fire Seed or to have taken the Bone-Corroding Powder!

The only suspicious item was the Soul-Reviving Pill he had just acquired.

"That's it!" Liao Huoyun suddenly realized!

...The Soul-Reviving Pill!

When he got the Soul-Reviving Pill, he had a vague feeling that there was something strange about it, as if it contained other substances. But he had never seen a third-grade Soul-Reviving Pill before, and since the pill did have the effect of restoring soul power, he didn't pay much attention.

Now it seemed the situation was far from simple! Someone had deliberately poisoned him!

The pill was delivered by Elder Wu, and with his abilities, he couldn't have perfectly sealed poison within the pill, nor would he betray him. Everything pointed to one possibility!

Suddenly, Liao Huoyun realized something, his eyes bulging.

"Not good! The Soul-Reviving Pill was refined by that masked man, which means he is a third-grade alchemist!"

Everything made sense now!

No wonder Wan Jianfeng was willing to go to war and oppose him. It all made sense! The value of a third-grade alchemist far outweighed the friendship of the Fire Cloud Sect!

In other words, his Fire Cloud Sect had offended a third-grade alchemist?

Liao Huoyun's face turned ashen.

"We must kill this person at all costs, or else the Fire Cloud Sect will face destruction."