The old man was somewhat conflicted. On the one hand, he felt deeply greedy, but on the other hand, Meng Hao’s background caused him to waver and suppress that greed to a certain degree. After vacillating for a moment, his eyes suddenly glittered, and he looked outside the building.

Currently, a red-robed cultivator was out there, bowing deeply with clasped hands.

“Patriarch, the mark is currently on his way to an auction. It seems he plans to partic.i.p.ate.”

The old man’s eyes flickered with determination, and he shot to his feet. He then strode out of the building and headed in the direction of the auction, flanked by four red-robed cultivators. All of them had fierce expressions and radiated killing intent.

“It doesn’t matter who you are or where you’re from, if you have less than 1,000,000 Immortal jades, I’ll leave you alone. Until I know more about your background, I won’t touch you....” Having made his decision to go observe Meng Hao a bit further, the old man’s eyes flashed.

Just as the red-robed cultivators had said, Meng Hao had finished his shopping spree in the shops and vendor stalls, and was now in the main auction house in the middle of the bazaar. He stood off to the side, looking at the main stage, and the items being auctioned off. Not many people were calling out bids. There were quite a few magenta-robed figures in the area, keeping track of the bids, and generally looking very threatening.

No one was allowed to make fraudulent bids, and anyone who did make a bid was required to be able to purchase the lot at the said price. Anyone who tried to cause problems would run the risk of being chased down and killed by the forces of the Heavencloud Bazaar.

Meng Hao’s expression was the same as ever as he stood there watching. People in the area almost immediately noticed him, and were visibly excited. Word began to spread, and soon everyone in the auction house had become aware of his presence.

After all, having been in the bazaar for a short half-day, he had already bought nearly thirty percent of all the available goods there. He was obviously incredibly rich. It would have been impossible for him not to attract attention, and that was especially the case with the female cultivators. Whenever they looked at him, their eyes gleamed, and they tried to look as pretty as possible. Obviously, they were hoping to catch his eye and have the chance to strike it rich themselves.

There were a few people who seemed to find him familiar. After a moment, their eyes would widen as they realized who he really was.

That was even true of the auctioneer, who couldn’t help but glance at him occasionally and pay special attention to him.

Meng Hao seemed indifferent to the commotion as he stood there calmly; however, inwardly, he was actually feeling quite puzzled.

“Why haven’t they come yet? Something’s off. They followed me for a long time, and keep coming and going. After reporting back in, they should have told someone all the details.

“Maybe these people aren’t that adept at robbery?” He frowned. He didn’t have the time to sit around waiting. After a bit of thought, he came to the conclusion that perhaps because he hadn’t left the bazaar itself, the people who were after him felt it wasn’t convenient to make a move....

“In that case,” he thought, “I might as well just leave. That will at least give them a chance.” Having made up his mind, he was just about to leave, when suddenly, the auctioneer produced a jade tray which he held aloft.

“Ladies and gentlemen, Fellow Daoists, the next lot has a mysterious background,” he said, his voice proud. “For the sake of ensuring that our bazaar remains a flouris.h.i.+ng place, and for the purposes of gaining fame for our auction house, Patriarch Heavencloud has decided to offer up one of his rarest heirlooms!

“This is none other than a jade pendant, a medallion that is not from the Ninth Mountain and Sea. No, this medallion comes from the Eighth Mountain and Sea. On one side is carved a lightning bolt, and on the other side, the character Meng 孟. According to our Patriarch’s speculations, this is none other than... a command medallion belonging to a member of the Meng Clan from the Eighth Mountain and Sea. Although it's impossible to tell who exactly it belonged to, clearly, they had a high status!

“How do we know? Because this medallion, despite being an Ancient Realm treasure, is stained with blood, sealing it completely, and ensuring that it can only unleash Immortal Realm power....

“Although our Patriarch is unable to remove the seal, there are many almighty ent.i.ties in Heaven and Earth. Surely someone exists out there who CAN unseal it!” He held the jade pendant out in his right hand, and it glittered with green light. Furthermore, the sound of thunder rattled out from it in all directions. It was even possible to just barely make out a green lightning bolt building up within the light that emanated out from the pendant.

Although it seemed incredible, the sensation it gave off was only that of the Immortal Realm. Even still, the pendant would clearly count as a valuable treasure to any Immortal Realm cultivator.

There was also a deep gash on the surface of the pendant, which had turned a dark purple color, as if it were filled with congealed blood. Its overall appearance was very bizarre.

“The starting bid for this item is 8,000,000 spirit stones!” the auctioneer cried out in a loud voice.

Meng Hao had originally intended to leave. But then he stopped and looked at the jade medallion, and immense waves of shock smashed through his mind.

As he looked at the jade pendant, he began to pant. How could he ever have imagined that he would run into this object at a bazaar like this?!?!

It was most certainly a command medallion of the Meng Clan from the Eighth Mountain and Sea. Furthermore, it was not the command medallion of an ordinary clan member. Meng Hao all of a sudden recalled the visage of an old man, an old man who had come to stand by the side of his heartbroken Grandpa Fang when he had experienced his first Seventh Year Tribulation.

That old man was no stranger. It was his Grandpa Meng!

He was the Grand Elder of the Meng Clan from the Eighth Mountain and Sea!

Meng Hao remembered playing with his command medallion as a child, a medallion had looked exactly like the one on the auction stage right now!

Meng Hao was panting, and his mind was spinning. He would never be able to forget how his two grandfathers had left looking for an Outsider, all to save him. That Outsider eventually came, and had explained to Meng Hao’s parents what they needed to do. However, his Grandpa Fang and Grandpa Meng... never returned.

Meng Hao would never be able to forget those matters, and he had always hoped that one day, he would be able to find them, or at least some clues regarding what had happened.

Now, looking at the jade medallion, he was filled with the intense sensation that it... was none other than his Grandpa Meng’s command medallion.

That thought caused his heart to tremble. He wasn’t sure whose blood it was that had stained the pendant, but it filled him with intense concern for his grandfather.

“50,000,000 spirit stones!” he cried out, his voice decisive enough to sever nails and chop iron. “Give me that pendant!”

As soon as the words left his mouth, deathly silence filled the air. Others who had been about to call out prices first gasped, then closed their mouths and refrained from speaking out any bids. One by one, everyone turned to look at Meng Hao.

Even the auctioneer stared in shock. In his estimation, the jade pendant was worth no more than about 30,000,000 spirit stones. However, Meng Hao had unexpectedly cried out a bid of 50,000,000.

“Um... are there any other Fellow Daoists who would like to make a bid?” he asked without even thinking about it. n.o.body responded. All of the surrounding cultivators were simply awestruck by the price which Meng Hao had just bid.

The auctioneer swallowed hard and said, “Very well, since that’s the case, this lot goes to--”

He had been just about to strike down the auctioneer’s hammer, when all of a sudden...

“I bid 100,000,000 spirit stones.” An ancient voice rang out as if from the Heavens above. Everyone turned their heads to see an old man stride into the auction house, flanked by four red-robed cultivators.

He had brown blotches on his face, and he seemed threatening without looking angry. His cultivation base was in the late Ancient Realm, and he almost seemed to be at one with his surroundings. His sudden appearance on the scene caused shock among the surrounding cultivators.

“It’s Guru Heavenwind!!”

“That’s Guru Heavencloud’s Junior Brother, one of the Patriarchs of the Heavencloud Bazaar!!”

“What’s he doing here? And why did he just make a bid? 100,000,000.... Could it be that this jade medallion has some shocking power or ability?!” The crowd immediately went into an uproar. The auctioneer stared in shock and immediately shut his mouth. Instead of striking down with the hammer, he clasped hands and bowed respectfully to Guru Heavenwind.

It wasn’t just him. All of the magenta-robed cultivators, as well as all of the other auction attendees, clasped hands and bowed in greeting.

Guru Heavenwind smiled and nodded. Then he turned to Meng Hao, his expression one of kindness and even regret. When he looked at him, he realized that he seemed familiar, and his heart began to pound. Then, his eyes went wide as he suddenly realized who Meng Hao was.

But then he pretended to be unaware of his ident.i.ty. “Young friend,” he said, “I offer my sincere apologies. My Elder Brother sent his item here to be auctioned completely on accident. It should never have been put up for sale. However, the reputation of the Heavencloud Bazaar is of the utmost importance. Rather than cancel the auction, I will purchase it. I hope you can understand the situation, young friend.”

Upon hearing his words, everyone in attendance laughed inwardly. Although the explanation seemed reasonable on the surface, considering that he owned the auction house, it meant that he could bid whatever price he wanted.

Meng Hao’s gaze turned icy. After looking at the old man for a moment, he completely ignored him and said, “100,000 Immortal jades.”

His words immediately caused everyone to gasp. 100,000 Immortal jades was equivalent to 1,000,000,000 spirit stones. Such a sum caused every to begin to pant. Although they all knew Meng Hao was rich, to hear him mention a number like that left them flabbergasted.

Guru Heavenwind trembled inwardly, but he put on a calm front and said, “We can’t sell it to you, young friend. I’ll offer one more Immortal jade than you.”

“500,000 Immortal jades,” Meng Hao said, his voice calm.

“Young friend, please, don’t make trouble for--”

“1,000,000 Immortal jades,” Meng Hao said coldly, flicking his sleeve and rotating his cultivation base. “Give me that medallion!” His cold voice was like an icy wind that swirled from all directions, causing everyone to instantly feel colder. However, even if they were colder, they would still be thoroughly shocked by the price Meng Hao had just named.

“1,000,000 Immortal jades.... that’s equivalent to 10,000,000,000 spirit stones.... Heavens! J-just what kind of jade medallion is that!?!?”

“Crazy! They’re all crazy....”

As the crowd burst into an uproar, Guru Heavenwind felt his heart pounding, and he began to pant. The longer he looked at Meng Hao, the less he was able to control his emotions. Finally, his eyes went bloodshot.

“The Heavencloud Bazaar doesn’t allow fraudulent bidding!” he said, his voice hoa.r.s.e. In response, Meng Hao slapped his bag of holding, causing one Immortal jade after another to fly out. In the blink of an eye, a mountain of 1,000,000 Immortal jades had piled up next to him.

The towering mountain caused everyone to stare in complete shock. Their minds were blank, filled with nothing but a roaring sound.

As soon as the Immortal jades appeared, Meng Hao flickered toward the main stage, and reached out to grab the jade medallion from the auctioneer.

It was at this point, however, that Guru Heavenwind, eyes bloodshot, suddenly flew into the air to stand in his way. He glared at Meng Hao and, voice hoa.r.s.e, said, “10,000,000 Immortal jades and you can have it!”