Chapter 104: Yu Yu Hongxi, Gong Luan Yu

The fair-skinned man who suddenly appeared behind the little boy also caused Duze Duze Beixuan's expression to shift slightly. He could feel that in that instant, he seemed to be locked onto by a venomous snake. Under the latter's grasping palm, the phase force within his body faintly showed signs of stagnating.

Clearly, this was an expert of extremely powerful strength.

At the very least, a Heavenly Gang General Stage.

Was this the guard of the little boy before him? What kind of identity did this little thing actually have?

Duze Duze Beixuan was filled with suspicion and astonishment in his heart. Even within the Duze Prefecture, an expert of the Heavenly Gang General Stage held an extremely high position, second only to his father. Generally speaking, even Duze Duze Beixuan would find it difficult to mobilize such an expert, yet now, this little boy was able to carry a guard of such strength by his side?

While Duze Duze Beixuan was filled with suspicion, the fair-skinned, beardless man released his grip, then said indifferently: "Since my young master has bid for the item, naturally he won't refuse to pay."

Li Luo, standing to the side, was also slightly taken aback. This Great Xia City truly harbored hidden dragons and crouching tigers; a casual outing, and he'd already run into some tough nuts.

This fair-skinned, beardless man didn't draw the slightest attention, but Li Luo recalled that this person seemed to have been sitting not far from them earlier, and had been following along from the very beginning...

Clearly, those guards searching for the little brat earlier were merely putting on a show. This true guard had been following the whole time; his failure to appear before was likely just to let the little brat enjoy himself a bit more.

It was possible that even the scene of him casting the Water Shadow Art on the little brat had been witnessed by the other party.

The moment he thought of this, Li Luo couldn't help but clear his throat dryly, feeling a bit uncomfortable.

Duze Duze Beixuan retreated two steps, his expression shifting uncertainly between dark and light, and said nothing more. Ning Zhao beside him also sensed the other party's firmness and inwardly cried that things were not looking good.

At this moment, from behind, someone from the Golden Dragon Treasure House came running in a hurry, saying: "Pardon the disturbance to our honored guests. President Yu has said that there's no need to charge for these few materials; please enjoy yourselves to your heart's content."

An attendant stepped forward and respectfully presented the four materials to the little brat.

The little brat blinked twice, but felt a bit bored. He shook his head and said in a childish voice: "Sister said I can't take other people's things for free."

"I don't want it anymore, you can have it."

The little brat said to Li Luo, then coughed violently a few times, a few shades of paleness added to his small face.

"Young master, let's head back." The fair-skinned, beardless man bent down and said.

The little brat nodded with some regret, and followed the man as they gradually turned and left.

With their departure, the atmosphere here gradually eased. Li Luo looked at the four materials beside him, then said to Lv Qing'er: "What should we do with these?"

"My mother already said there's no charge." Lv Qing'er said with a smile.

Li Luo shook his head; he likewise disliked taking things for free.

"Then let's go with the previous base price." Lv Qing'er also understood Li Luo's thoughts, thought for a moment, and said.

"Then I shall accept with grace." Li Luo hesitated, then finally nodded. These four materials were indeed rather crucial to him.

Duze Duze Beixuan stared at this scene expressionlessly and said indifferently: "Li Luo, in the future at the Saintly Celestial Star Academy, we'll have plenty of opportunities. I hope your luck holds every single time."

As his words fell, he turned and left directly.

Li Luo stared at his departing back, sighed, and thought: He wants to provoke me again.

The last person who pushed me—who knows if he can even get into the Saintly Celestial Star Academy now.

And as the excitement here dispersed, no one knew that atop the Golden Dragon Treasure House, behind a pane of crystal glass, two figures were also watching this place.

They were two women at the absolute peak of their glory.

One was a beautiful woman in a red dress. Her slender figure was curvaceous, her long hair pinned up with a fish-shaped hairpin, her aura appearing both commanding and gorgeous.

Her features bore a slight resemblance to Lv Qing'er's, but with more of a mature charm.

She was none other than Lv Qing'er's mother, the President of the Great Xia Kingdom's Golden Dragon Treasure House, Yu Yu Hongxi.

"A farce, but it seems I've given the Princess a laugh." Yu Yu Hongxi said with a smile.

Beside her was a woman of breathtaking beauty, dressed in a white gown. Her long hair was coiled into a phoenix bun, appearing exceedingly noble. A pair of sharp phoenix eyes, a tall, delicate nose, thick lashes, sensual red lips—her entire being radiated astonishing charm.

She was also rather tall. Beneath her swan-like neck was a truly admirable, magnificent bosom. If Li Luo were present, he would likely sigh inwardly, having finally found a woman who could rival Sister Cai Wei.

However, Cai Wei's temperament was overly bewitching, while the woman before them carried a noble coldness that made one dare not underestimate her, and kept others at a respectful distance.

This woman's identity was also extraordinary: her name was Gong Luan Yu, the Eldest Princess of the current Great Xia royal court, and the elder sister of the present King.

The old King passed away some years ago, and the new King ascended the throne. However, he was far too young, so all state affairs were overseen by the Regent Prince. The Eldest Princess also shared some of that power, making her arguably the most powerful woman in Great Xia today.

Additionally, she was a student of the Four-Star Courtyard of the Saintly Celestial Star Academy, exactly one level above Jiang Qing.

"It was my little brother's mischief that caused President Yu trouble." The Eldest Princess smiled faintly, speaking with some apology.

"The King is still young; being a bit playful is only natural." Yu Yu Hongxi said with a light laugh.

The two exchanged a few more words. Finally, seeing the time was right, the Eldest Princess took her leave.

After seeing the Eldest Princess off, Yu Yu Hongxi returned to the crystal glass, her gaze sweeping over the area below. When she caught sight of Li Luo and Lv Qing'er walking side by side, her brow furrowed slightly.

"This kid... really does look a lot like that bastard Li Taixuan."

At the back gate of the Golden Dragon Treasure House, guards had already sealed off the street. A golden carriage sat there, surrounded by a strict guard detail.

As the Eldest Princess stepped into the carriage, she saw the little brat rubbing his small face. From his face, a layer of skin peeled away, and then his features underwent some changes.

First, his skin became fairer, then he actually appeared bright and handsome, his big dark eyes sparkling like stars.

"Sister!" Seeing the Eldest Princess, he immediately called out joyfully.

The Eldest Princess, however, said sternly: "You are now the Emperor of Great Xia, yet you still play so recklessly. Even though guards are with you at all times, what if something went wrong?"

This little brat was actually the current young Emperor of Great Xia, Gong Gong Jingyao.

The little Emperor stuck out his tongue and, tugging at his ear, said: "Sister, I know I was wrong."

Only then did the Eldest Princess's expression soften slightly. "What happened today?"

The little Emperor giggled and recounted everything that had happened earlier.

"Haha, that Li Luo is pretty fun. He deliberately provoked me into bidding against that Duze Duze Beixuan, but I also pretended to fall for it and played along with him."

After hearing the little Emperor's account, the Eldest Princess also smiled, her beauty radiant as an era: "That Duze Duze Beixuan's temperament is indeed much like his father's—vengeful over the slightest grievance..."

"As for this Li Luo, he does surprise me somewhat. I expected him to be as sharp-edged as Jiang Qing, but looking at him now, he appears very reserved and slippery."

The little Emperor complained: "That guy is also annoying—he even swindled five thousand gold from me."

The Eldest Princess smiled. Just as she was about to speak, she saw the little Emperor's complexion suddenly turn deathly pale. His breathing grew rapid, and blood-colored veins surfaced on his fair little face, giving him a somewhat ferocious look.

The Eldest Princess's heart sank. Knowing this was the little Emperor's old ailment acting up again, she hurriedly took out a jade vial from the carriage, intending to pour out the healing pill, but when she tipped it, it was completely empty.

"The medicinal supplies are exhausted?" A shadow of gloom flashed through Princess Dan Feng's eyes; she remembered having ordered beforehand that medicinal pills be kept ready at all times for emergencies. Were these servants so useless?

"Return to the palace immediately!" Princess Dan Feng commanded.

The carriage moved swiftly.

Princess Dan Feng seized one of the Little Emperor's hands; a mighty and domineering Phasing Force surged forth, pouring into the Little Emperor's body to help alleviate the agony of his ailment's onset.

This affliction of the Little Emperor's had taken root since childhood; when it struck, the pain was considerable. With the medicines now missing, he could only endure it through sheer will.

The blood-red patterns on the Little Emperor's small face gradually grew more intense. Finally, finding it somewhat unbearable, he suddenly drew a glass vial from his robes. Before Princess Dan Feng could react, he had already drunk most of the unknown liquid within the vial.

However, she quickly regained her senses and snatched the glass vial away with a swift grasp, speaking in some anger: "What is this? How can you recklessly drink unknown substances?"

Yet her shock and fury quickly subsided, for she saw that the blood-red patterns on the Little Emperor's face were, at this very moment, showing faint signs of receding.

Crucially, the twisted agony on the Little Emperor's face was also vanishing bit by bit.

Confronted with this scene, even Princess Dan Feng, whose composure was exceptionally strong, could not help but experience a momentary lapse of focus.