Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Yang Hui Hui and Zhou Xiu Wu

The speed with which the auction house delivered what she asked for made Lin Zhao reassess Ning Wen Gui yet again.

A man who could move an Imperial auction house with a word was not as “unsteady” as Steward Wang’s worry made him sound.

When they prepared to leave, an old man approached, bowing with eager courtesy. “Crown Prince, Your Highness, and Young Lord Lin—your presence honors us. We failed to greet you in time and have not hosted you well. The herbs Young Lord Lin requested are in this Spatial Ring.” He held it out with both hands. “It holds about thirty cubic meters of space as well. Please accept it, Miss Lin.”

Lin Zhao took it, then gave Ning Wen Gui a quick thumbs-up before smiling at the old man. “Then Lin Zhao owes you and the auction house a favor.”

The old man nearly waved his hands raw. “Wang Meng told me you can save His Highness’s legs. This is only a small token of thanks.”

Lin Zhao didn’t miss the name. Wang Meng. The man was Ning Wen Gui’s.

She accepted the ring without putting on airs.

When the old man saw them still lingering, he asked carefully, “Would Your Highness and Miss Lin like to attend the evening auction?”

Lin Zhao paused.

He knew exactly who they were and still invited them—meaning he believed tonight held something worth their time.

Ning Wen Gui lifted his brows at her. “Then let’s take a look.”

Lin Zhao nodded and followed him into a private room on the second floor.

It was elegant in a way that made ordinary luxury look cheap: pale violet Spirit Crystals inlaid into a glass lamp, two orchid spirit plants by the door breathing a faint, clean fragrance. Even the spiritual energy inside was noticeably denser than outside.

This wasn’t just a private room. It was a statement.

Slender, beautiful attendants entered with spirit fruits and spirit wine and set them on the low table.

Lin Zhao took a sip and couldn’t help the comment. “The Empire really is unmatched when it comes to luxury.”

Ning Wen Gui didn’t touch the fruit or wine. His gaze rested on the gauze curtain, distant. “That style is inheritance. A thousand years ago, Empress Wei Yang reshaped everything. They say she came from another world.”

Lin Zhao stilled slightly.

“Back then,” Ning Wen Gui continued, “she unified what are now the four great Empires and called it the Heavenflame Empire. During her reign, the Heavenflame Empire could contend with the Immortal Sect.”

A thousand years ago, the Empire’s customs hadn’t differed much from the Immortal Sect’s. It wasn’t until Ji Wei Yang unified the realm and standardized weights, measures, and rule that the entire world’s habits were jolted. After she underwent Tribulation Transcendence and ascended, her Empire fractured into what it was today.

But the rules, systems, and aesthetics she left behind remained. Later generations only refined them further.

The name Ji Wei Yang pricked at Lin Zhao’s memory.

Once, when Chen Luo Luo had visited the Empire, she’d frowned around a street of glass lamps and clean lines and muttered, “Why does this place look so much like modern Western fashion and aesthetics? Is it a mix of East and West?”

At the time, Lin Zhao hadn’t understood what she meant.

Now, she did.

Chen Luo Luo came from the same “other world” as Ji Wei Yang.

But compared to the empress, Chen Luo Luo seemed… dim.

Empress Wei Yang had been praised as the one most likely to unify the Heavenly Phoenix continent. Even the Ji Family—the number one noble house blazing across the continent—was only basking in her afterglow.

Lin Zhao set down her cup and sighed. “A person like that… is truly something to admire.”

Ning Wen Gui poured her another cup. “Heroes are shaped by their times. In the future, you and I might have a day like that too.”

Lin Zhao laughed, surprised by how easy it felt. “Right. Maybe one day you and I will become figures like Empress Wei Yang.”

As they talked, the auction platform rose. Through the pale violet gauze, they saw the first item: a flame-red longsword.

“Upper-grade Treasure Artifact, Fire Spirit Sword. Starting bid: one hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones!”

Lin Zhao’s interest sharpened. She’d expected a royal auction to be good, but not this good.

In the Cultivation World, weapons were divided into four ranks: Treasure Artifact, Spirit Artifact, Sacred Artifact, and Immortal Artifact. Each rank held upper, middle, and lower tiers, and each tier was divided further into grades.

An upper-grade Treasure Artifact was already rare among ordinary factions. Spirit Artifacts were usually reserved for major powers. An upper-grade Spirit Artifact? The You Lan Empire might not even have ten.

As for Sacred Artifacts… even the Lin Family possessed only a single inherited low-grade Sacred Artifact.

Immortal Artifacts were practically extinct across the Heavenly Phoenix continent. Across both of Lin Zhao’s lifetimes, she had never even heard a reliable rumor of one.

The Fire Spirit Sword was excellent, but Lin Zhao’s spiritual root wasn’t purely fire. Ning Wen Gui’s attribute leaned wind. Neither of them moved.

They watched as the sword was sold for one million low-grade spirit stones.

Lin Zhao’s mouth twitched. “People in the Empire are really rich.”

She’d thought a few hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones made her wealthy. Here, she couldn’t afford the first item.

Ning Wen Gui explained quietly, “Its true value is around six hundred thousand. It went higher because two people decided it suited them.”

Sure enough, when the Fire Spirit Sword was delivered, laughter boomed through the auction house.

“Hahaha! I told you this sword suits me! That woman from the Firecloud Alliance still wanted to snatch it!”

A sharp shout snapped back from a nearby private room. “Martial Madman! Hmph! Enjoy your victory this once. We’ll see!”

Neither side bothered to lower their voices. The entire hall heard the quarrel.

Ning Wen Gui sighed, half amused. “So it’s them. Then it’s not surprising.”

Lin Zhao glanced at him. “You know them?”

Ning Wen Gui pointed toward the room with the woman’s shout. “Yang Hui Hui, eldest miss of the Firecloud Alliance. And the one laughing is Martial Madman Zhou Xiu Wu of the Mad Sword Sect. Those two factions are strong in the Imperial Capital. My brothers have been trying to win them over, but both have stayed neutral.”

Lin Zhao’s smile faded into thought.

Ning Wen Gui himself was formidable. His position was still steady—for now.

But his injured legs weren’t only shaking the Emperor Lord’s confidence. Other powers in the Imperial Capital were watching the rightful Crown Prince with doubt.

That uncertainty was poison.

And it was extremely unfavorable for the Lin Family.

If this time she could solve his problem… it would be best to do it thoroughly.

The Lin Family couldn’t endure another blow.