It wasn't that Huo Yuhao hated Shrek Academy, but rather that the Body Sect needed a stepping stone to quickly gain fame. Shrek Academy was the best stepping stone in Huo Yuhao's eyes.
Of course, Huo Yuhao didn't exactly feel fond of Shrek Academy either. After all, he was often brainwashed by the teachers there, which wouldn't make anyone happy. Except for those successful, brainwashed fools.
At night, Huo Yuhao, Song Ming, and Ran Hongyue walked out of the Star Emperor Hotel. They passed through the bustling crowds and, after a few streets, arrived in front of a building with a pointed roof.
"Song Ming, are you sure you didn't take the wrong path?" Huo Yuhao looked up at the building, which was reasonably tall, but not very prominent compared to the surrounding, taller buildings.
A sign hung above the main entrance, depicting a hammer. It wasn't surprising that Huo Yuhao was puzzled; the place looked like a blacksmith's shop.
Song Ming also understood Huo Yuhao's confusion and immediately explained, "Young Master, please don't worry, I won't make a mistake. This is the Starlight Auction House. The hammer pattern is different from a blacksmith's shop; the one on a blacksmith's shop is much cruder."
Huo Yuhao nodded slightly upon hearing this. He had instructed Song Ming to inquire a couple of days ago, as the Starlight Auction House was going to auction off a Ranked Engraving Knife.
"Yuhao, long time no see."
A gentle voice came from behind him. Huo Yuhao turned around and saw a familiar face. Wang Yan was walking over with a group of Shrek Academy students.
"Brother Beibei, long time no see. How have you been lately?" Huo Yuhao smiled slightly, his tone as usual.
"I'm fine, everything's as usual. Are you also here to attend the auction, Yuhao?" Beibei had a warm smile on his face, making it difficult to discern his true thoughts.
Heh, almost lost his life, and he's still putting on a show. Huo Yuhao thought to himself, but didn't expose him. "Since we've met, why don't we go in together? We haven't seen each other in a while, and there are also a few senior brothers and sisters."
"That's fine. It has been a while indeed. You wouldn't know, Yuhao, but someone has been thinking of you day and night," Beibei said meaningfully, then looked at Wang Qiu'er.
Ugh!
Huo Yuhao felt an urge to slap himself twice. He was just being polite! Beibei couldn't possibly be unaware of the hatred between Shrek Academy and the Body Sect. Normally, they shouldn't be associating with them.
Having said that, Huo Yuhao stopped talking and led the way towards the auction house. At the same time, he didn't forget to glance at Wang Qiu'er, only to find her staring straight at him, with Dai Yaheng, her shadow, standing beside her.
Entering the auction house entrance, there were no staff guiding them. Inside, a five-meter-wide passage extended downwards, with a red carpet covering the floor.
The group followed the passage down. After walking about twenty meters, they finally saw staff members. The staff first registered each person and then gave each of them a number plate. After receiving the number plates, the staff led everyone inside.
Passing through a simple, antique door, the scene before them suddenly changed. Everywhere the eye could see was a sea of gold and silver. The wide passage was resplendent, the luxurious decoration even surpassing the Star Emperor Hotel, which was under the royal family's name.
The passage behind the door was ten meters wide and five meters high. The floor was paved with valuable ivory-white jade bricks. On both sides of the passage, every ten meters, there was a pair of pillars made of the same material, carved with exquisite patterns. They looked as if they had been brushed with gold powder. Exquisite crystal chandeliers hung from the top of the passage, and the bright yellow light shone down on the surroundings, making the entire passage like a golden ocean.
In short, it was as luxurious as possible, and the air seemed to carry the scent of money.
Seeing this scene, Huo Yuhao couldn't help but admire the Starlight Auction House's wealth. They were only in a passage; the real show was yet to come.
As they walked, the staff leading the way gave them a brief introduction.
Today's auction was a special auction for Soul Tools. Because only Soul Tools below level six would be auctioned, the scale was relatively low. According to the grading, it could only be considered a level four auction. The Starlight Auction House's grading was from one to five, with level one being the highest specification. Only level one auctions would be held in the main auction hall. Huo Yuhao and the others were going to the No. 12 auction hall, which was exclusive to level four auctions.
The staff guiding everyone handed out a golden mask to each person before they entered the auction hall.
According to the staff's explanation, the masks weren't just for concealing appearances and hiding identities; they also served to distinguish the wearers' status.
There were six colors of masks in total: white, yellow, purple, black, red, and gold. White was the lowest grade, while Huo Yuhao and the others received the top-tier golden masks.
The lighting in Auction Hall Number Twelve was dim, with only a few wall lamps illuminating the space. Two hundred large chairs, upholstered in velvet, were arranged in an arc around the auction stage.
Huo Yuhao and his group were led to the front row by the staff.
Then, a waitress approached them to ask about their drink preferences. Huo Yuhao casually took a glass of juice from the tray the waitress was carrying.
The auction hadn't started yet, so Huo Yuhao and the others from Shrek Academy chatted idly.
During this time, Huo Yuhao learned that they had come to purchase some suitable Soul Tools. Wang Dong, however, was extremely resistant to Soul Tools and thus hadn't come with them.
As for the official Shrek Academy team, Beibei and the others seemed to be intentionally avoiding him. Huo Yuhao knew what was going on and didn't bring it up either, understanding the situation.
Also, not long after he left Shrek Academy, Tang Ya disappeared. Surprisingly, Beibei even asked Huo Yuhao if he knew anything about her.
Of course, Huo Yuhao didn't know. But thinking about the original story, he figured Tang Ya probably left because she saw the difference in talent between herself and the Shrek Seven Monsters. Later, she went down the path of a dark Soul Master.
"Huo Yuhao, can I ask why you joined the Body Sect?" Wang Yan, who had been silent, suddenly interjected while Huo Yuhao and Beibei were talking.
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao looked at Wang Yan, his eyes indifferent. He detected a hint of questioning in Wang Yan's tone. "I joined because I wanted to. Besides, I have a body martial soul, isn't it normal to join the Body Sect? Does Teacher Wang have any questions?"
In fact, Huo Yuhao had been somewhat forced to join the Body Sect by Du Busi. Du Busi wasn't exactly a good person. Huo Yuhao knew that if he hadn't joined at the time, Du Busi might have considered eliminating him.
Major powers often did things like that. Especially the great empires. They'd say, "Either you work for us, or you don't work for anyone."
However, Du Busi had also been quite helpful to Huo Yuhao, assisting in his martial soul's second awakening and later gifting him a legacy mark. Therefore, the slight displeasure Huo Yuhao had felt had long since dissipated.
Ugh!
Wang Yan was speechless, choked by Huo Yuhao's words. In his impression, Huo Yuhao was a student of Shrek Academy and should be repaying Shrek. Now, he had turned and sided with Shrek's opposition. What was this if not treason?
(End of Chapter)