Chapter 1832: No One Comes Out Alive

Luo Fu had heard countless people mention the Linglong Pavilion along the way.

After all, as the organizer of the largest auction in Shanhe City, they certainly wouldn't act so disgracefully—so one side must be lying.

The black-clad men dared not clash with Luo Fu, so they naturally became more courteous.

"What the little girl said isn't necessarily false!"

"But this crimson-black little snake wasn't brought into our Linglong Pavilion by this girl—someone else came to our Linglong Pavilion to register it for auction!"

"Since the auctioned item was stolen, we can only follow protocol and take it back!" said the black-clad man.

Luo Fu nodded; this explanation made sense.

After all, these black-clad men were merely hired by the Linglong Pavilion to guard the entrance; they couldn't question the origins of items registered for auction—it was only natural.

The little girl sniffled and quickly stepped forward.

"It's because my crimson-black little snake was stolen! You Linglong Pavilion don't ask about the origins of auction items and sell them off arbitrarily—that violates protocol!"

"If someone bought the crimson-black snake, I'd hold them accountable too!"

"But when the thief took the money, your Linglong Pavilion still profited a portion as intermediary fees—yet you dumped the mess onto me and the innocent buyer?"

"So this is how the Linglong Pavilion operates!"

The green-clad little girl spoke sharply and left the black-clad men stunned—they had no rebuttal and could only exchange uneasy glances.

But none of this was their concern.

The black-clad men were merely hired by the Linglong Pavilion to guard the premises; their only duty was to retrieve the items—they didn't care whether the claims were true or false.

"Little girl, this isn't our responsibility!"

"If you have grievances, go straight to the head of our Linglong Pavilion!"

"But right now, you must hand over this crimson-black little snake and come with us back to the Linglong Pavilion to explain everything!" The black-clad men's tone remained firm.

The little girl once again hid behind Gong Sun Huohuo.

Gong Sun Huohuo now didn't know which side to support—both sides sounded somewhat reasonable; unless the truth came to light, this couldn't be resolved peacefully.

The two sides remained locked in stalemate, and Luo Fu exhaled.

If this stalemate continued, it would lead to no resolution.

"Huohuo, you don't want this little girl taken away, do you?" Luo Fu set down his teacup and looked up at Gong Sun Huohuo, as if seeking his opinion.

Gong Sun Huohuo nodded immediately—he didn't want this little girl taken away!

After all, no one knew whether anyone taken into the Linglong Pavilion would ever emerge alive—no one could guarantee it.

"Master, if this little girl is taken away, we might never see her again!"

"Look—you can see this crimson-black snake clearly recognizes its master; it's been curled up in this girl's arms the whole time, showing no aggression whatsoever!"

"The crimson-black snake recognizes only one master and is extremely aggressive toward everyone else!"

Through the crimson-black snake's reaction, Gong Sun Huohuo concluded the little girl was innocent.

Luo Fu also found this reasonable, but the black-clad men weren't wrong either—so he took out the soul-bone he had always worn and placed it on the table.

"Take this back first, and also register me for an auction slot."