Chapter 36: Mittor Auction House

Watching the Great Elder's back as he left the study, Xiao Yan and Xiao Zhan looked at each other, neither understanding why the Great Elder had suddenly become excited to such a degree.

"Perhaps he is happy for the future development of the Xiao Clan," Xiao Zhan guessed, then stopped dwelling on the question and asked, "Come to think of it, is there something you needed me for today?"

Xiao Yan also withdrew his attention from the Great Elder and said, "It is like this: I have some resources here that I cannot use myself, and I intend to bring them out for the clan to use."

As he spoke, Xiao Yan handed the Storage Ring containing the wealth of the Mo Clan to Xiao Zhan.

Hearing this, Xiao Zhan smiled with gratification, but in his heart, he did not place too much importance on these resources. After all, in his view, Xiao Yan had been out training for these past years; even if he had accumulated some wealth, how much could there be? Moreover, Xiao Yan had clearly stated that they were things he could not use, so it was even less likely that there would be a large amount.

"Oh, Yan'er, the clan has its own sources of income, and with the help of your medicinal pills now, there is really no need—this, this is! How can there be so much!" Originally, Xiao Zhan was thinking of having Xiao Yan take them back; even if he couldn't use them, they could be exchanged for money, as one always needed a little money when traveling. Only when he took a brief glance at the situation inside the Storage Ring did he realize how much Xiao Yan's "some" actually amounted to.

This was the life savings of over a dozen high-ranking members of the Mo Clan plus the Great Elder Mo Cheng, and Mo Lan had even added a portion from the Mo Clan's treasury. Even though the resources had already been reduced by two rounds by Xiao Yan (the alchemy materials he could use and the first and second-grade medicinal pills he had previously taken out), there was still an extremely massive quantity, especially the ten fourth-grade medicinal pills that Xiao Yan had not touched at all!

It is no exaggeration to say that the contents of this one Storage Ring alone could equal the entire family fortune of two or three Xiao Clans!

"Yan'er! This—" Xiao Zhan looked at Xiao Yan with trembling hands, but in the end, he said nothing and put away the Storage Ring. He was not a fool; when he saw the things in the Storage Ring, he knew that this stuff definitely did not come through normal channels. But regardless of whether the hidden dangers behind this had been cleaned up, it was meaningless at this moment; the only thing that could be done now was to use these resources to become stronger as quickly as possible.

Xiao Yan saw through Xiao Zhan's thoughts and said with a smile, "Rest assured, Father, I have handled the matter; there will be no problems."

Xiao Zhan took a deep breath and let it out with a sigh, saying, "Perhaps it is so for you, but for us who use these resources, we should still treat it as if the loose ends were not cleaned up and cultivate with all our might. Only then can we be worthy of your painstaking efforts, Yan'er."

Xiao Yan gave a bitter smile but did not continue to say anything. For a person like Xiao Zhan, his talent might not be considered very good, but he had his own pride and could not take others' help for granted, even if that person was his own son. In fact, it was precisely because it was his own son that it made Xiao Zhan feel even more at a loss, feeling a sense of indebtedness.

"What are your plans for what comes next?" Xiao Zhan asked.

"Next, I plan to first finish refining the medicinal pills that the Xiao Clan needs to sell. However, since they are all low-level first and second-grade pills, it is impossible for me to refine them personally forever, so I will have to trouble Father to find a second or third-grade alchemist to bring back. Don't worry about the cost; I will take care of it," Xiao Yan said.

"Indeed, it is better to find an alchemist specifically to refine pills for our Xiao Clan," Xiao Zhan nodded, though he had some differing opinions: "However, the cost of hiring an alchemist should still be borne by the clan; after all, we cannot rely on you for everything. Furthermore, you are someone who will eventually leave home. If you are away for a long time, I fear those alchemists who stayed in the Xiao Clan because of you will not be able to be kept."

Xiao Yan heard Xiao Zhan's words, felt it made sense, nodded, and did not insist further.

"Since that is the case, let us do as Father says. By the way, regarding the matter I just discussed with the Great Elder, I would trouble Father and the Great Elder to discuss and come up with a list, about ten people or so will do. I still have some things to do and will be going out in a while. If the fairy comes looking for someone to ask in a while, I will have to trouble Father to explain."

"Mm, that is fine. Leave this matter to me; you go ahead."

Emerging from the Xiao Clan's main gate, Xiao Yan identified the direction slightly and walked toward the largest auction house in Wutan City, which was also the fifth largest power outside of the three great clans and the City Lord's Mansion: the Mittor Auction House.

Although the clan elders had sent over quite a few medicinal herbs for alchemy, there were still many gaps, especially the Monster Cores used for alchemy. This thing had basically no other use besides alchemy, so the stock in the Xiao Clan was not very large.

Although this kind of matter could be left to the people of the clan to come forward and purchase, considering efficiency, quality control, and strengthening the relationship with the Mittor Clan, among other reasons, Xiao Yan decided it was better to come forward personally.

At the end of the street under his feet, one could see from afar the massive venue with the six characters "Mittor Auction House" written on it, appearing quite spectacular against the backdrop of the fully armed guards all around. Many passersby could not help but stop their steps to watch. The auction house guards did not drive them away. Although these people could not become customers of the auction house, these people gathering here were a symbol of the auction house's strength.

However, the current Xiao Yan was no longer the green kid who had just started cultivating. Having seen quite a bit of the world, he walked straight into the Mittor Auction House venue. The first thing that came into view was the passage leading to the auction hall and the place for selling treasures on the side, printed with the three large characters "Treasure Appraisal Room."

As an auction house, Mittor naturally would not have counters like those in the market displaying goods for people to choose from.

But in a small city like Wutan City, if one wanted to obtain a large, stable, and high-quality supply of alchemy materials, it could only be solved through the Mittor Auction House, which had a commercial network across the entire country. Therefore, Xiao Yan had not intended to waste time in those other places from the start.

He walked straight into the Treasure Appraisal Room and found the appraiser who looked the most senior. On his body was a medicinal cauldron embroidered with two silver ripples; this was the mark of a second-grade alchemist. Perhaps he was Gu Ni.

Xiao Yan thought, though he did not care much. He casually took out a third-grade medicinal pill he had refined earlier from his Storage Ring and handed it to him.

Perhaps Gu Ni's people were not very interested at first, but when he saw the medicinal pill in the jade bottle clearly, he immediately became excited.

"This is! A third-grade Qi-Returning Pill! This young master, may I ask if you can sell it directly to me? I will definitely give you a satisfactory price!" the person before him said excitedly.

However, Xiao Yan did not take this medicinal pill out to sell it; it was just a stepping stone. After all, he couldn't use his fists to knock on the door.

Reaching out, amidst the disappointment, reluctance, and astonishment in the other party's eyes, Xiao Yan took the Qi-Returning Pill back.

"You don't need to look at me like that. I took it out to see the person in charge here; I have no intention of selling it. However, if you can help me negotiate today's business, I wouldn't mind giving it to you."

"Really!" the person before him said excitedly: "I am Gu Ni. Young Master, please rest assured, as long as the Young Master's business today is not harmful to the Mittor Auction House, I will definitely be able to help you negotiate it!"

It really was Gu Ni, Xiao Yan thought to himself.

"Young Master, please this way. The person in charge here is Miss Ya Fei of the Mittor Clan; she is upstairs now. I will take you there right away."

"Mm, lead the way."