Chapter 430: Undead
Under Yu Mingche’s guidance, Qinghe naturally integrated into this big family.
「Half a month later.」
Yun Han bid farewell to Ning Xuan and left for the New Star Body to carry out a mission.
After Yun Han’s departure, Ning Xuan began frequently appearing at the major auction houses of Central Star with Qinghe and Di Youlin. Suddenly, many high-grade Elixir Pills, precious and rare ores, and even the legendary Prajna Fruit—a Spirit Fruit with miraculous effects—appeared on the market. For a time, the major auction houses of Central Star became incredibly lively.
In private room number three on the third floor of the Darklight Auction House, which had the best view, Di Youlin knelt beside Ning Xuan in reverent submission, massaging her legs. Listening to the fierce bidding outside, he grew a little distracted. The pressure from his hands accidentally became too strong, hurting Ning Xuan. She let out a soft hiss and chided him with a frown, “You’re so distracted. Step aside.”
‘Ning Xuan never intended for him to do these things in the first place. He was the one who, as if possessed, insisted on serving her up close.’
Seeing Ning Xuan was angry, Di Youlin immediately prostrated himself to beg for forgiveness. “Forgive me, Master. This slave was distracted by the bidding outside and hurt you. Please punish me, Master.”
Although Di Youlin assumed a posture of begging for forgiveness, his hands and eyes were restless. His hand slid up Ning Xuan’s thigh, and his provocative gaze seemed to be glued to her face.
‘Here we go again. Who knows what kind of secret training Di Youlin received, but ever since he returned from his last visit home, he’s been pulling these seductive stunts. The problem is, he has absolutely no talent for it. No matter how much he tries, he just looks awkward and unconvincing.’
Annoyed, Ning Xuan leaned over and deftly untied the sash at his waist. She tied the palm-wide sash over his eyes and patted his cheek. “Be good. Tell me later how much money we’re going to make at this auction house.”
Blindfolded, Di Youlin’s world went dark. As Ning Xuan’s hand started to pull away, he seized it with lightning speed and brought his face close to it.
“As you command, Master.” Using Ning Xuan’s hand to help himself up, Di Youlin sat down naturally beside her.
“The Prajna Fruit is priceless. Don’t you feel bad about giving my father so many?” With his eyes covered, Di Youlin’s other senses grew sharper. He followed her scent and leaned in to whisper hauntingly by her ear.
The moment Di Youlin’s words fell, Qinghe shot to his feet. In a single, smooth motion, he thrust a palm in Ning Xuan’s direction. The force of the blow sent her hair flying. At the same time, Di Youlin’s seemingly soft body instantly became like a sword as he kicked out at a dark figure that had materialized beside Ning Xuan.
The dark figure twisted like a phantom, narrowly avoiding Di Youlin’s vicious kick. In the instant it paused, Qinghe’s second palm strike arrived! The force of the palm wasn’t a direct hit; instead, it cleverly pressed downwards, forcing the dark figure to leap back to evade.
At that very moment, as if he had already predicted it, Di Youlin closed in like a shadow, his fingers striking like lightning toward a vital point on the dark figure’s side.
The private room was spacious, but at this moment, it felt cramped. The wall was not far behind the sofa where Ning Xuan sat. She remained motionless, her eyelashes trembling slightly, as she calmly watched Qinghe and Di Youlin battle the dark figure that had infiltrated the room at some unknown point.
The three moved so fast they almost left afterimages. Powerful gusts of wind filled the air, yet they strangely contained the area of effect. The auction house had an energy suppression barrier, meaning Spirit Controllers couldn’t use their own energy or summon their Companion Spirits to fight. This was undoubtedly a contest that relied purely on their Martial Arts and coordination.
Di Youlin and Qinghe were clearly holding back. Although their attacks were as fierce as a tempest, they always kept the fight away from Ning Xuan’s area, avoiding any impact on her. Every clash, every turn, was precisely controlled within that empty space.
Di Youlin’s moves were cunning and vicious, his movement technique exceptionally flexible, often launching attacks from impossible angles. Qinghe, on the other hand, was bold and sweeping, his palm strikes fierce and powerful, sealing off the dark figure’s possible escape routes and forcing it to face Di Youlin’s killing blows head-on.
The dark figure’s strength was not to be underestimated. Despite being at a disadvantage under their combined assault, it managed to narrowly escape danger several times with its bizarre and unpredictable movement technique. It was like an intangible phantom, always managing to slip through the gaps in their coordinated attacks.
The intense battle lasted for over a dozen rounds. The muffled sounds of fists and feet connecting were exceptionally clear in the well-soundproofed room.
Finally, through their coordination, Di Youlin managed to entangle the dark figure, and Qinghe landed a palm strike he had been charging on the center of its back.
“THUD—” With a muffled sound, the dark figure’s lunging body slammed heavily onto the floor, shaking the room’s floorboards slightly. It struggled twice, then stopped moving.
The sound of disorderly footsteps came from outside the room, followed by an Attendant knocking on the door. KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK. “Esteemed guests, is there anything you need help with?”
Although the fight was fierce, less than two minutes had passed from the moment Qinghe detected the dark figure to when the two of them subdued it.
“No, you may leave,” Ning Xuan replied coolly.
Qinghe had already bound the dark figure tightly with a Forbidden Spirit Rope. He stripped off the figure’s black outer garment, revealing a young man with short purple hair and pointed, elven ears.
Qinghe grabbed his hair and forced his head up. The young man’s skin was a cold white, the color of someone who hadn’t seen the sun in a long time, like jade buried deep underground, emitting an almost fragile luminescence. His facial features were sharp and delicate, with a high nose bridge, thin, cherry-like lips, and a pair of azure eyes.
The young man’s face possessed an almost uncanny beauty.
They were eyes that should have been exceptionally captivating—long and narrow, with the corners tilting slightly upward. But right now, they were like an abyss shrouded in thick fog. The eyeballs seemed fixed, without a trace of focus, the pupils dilated like a pool of stagnant, dead water.
Anyone could see at a glance that these were the eyes of a blind man.
What made Qinghe’s heart turn cold was that the skin under his fingers was abnormally cold, without a hint of warmth. He also couldn’t feel any trace of energy flowing within the other’s body.
“Master, this is one of the ultimate weapons created by the Lord of Myriad Phenomena Star River from out-of-control Half-beastmen. They’re known as Undead Warriors. They can only obey commands and have no consciousness of their own. The one controlling him must be here in the auction house,” Qinghe said to Ning Xuan.