Chapter 1136: Peak of the Cloud Sea, Forgetting Each Other in the Jianghu (First Update)

The part of Penglai Market City that was damaged by Wang Lin's Spirit Command Seal was quickly rearranged within these short two days, as Cultivators from the Penglai Treasure Jade Sect brought in massive stones from all directions.

In just two days, the number of Cultivators mobilized and the amount of Spirit Stones expended reached an extremely high level. By the time the auction began, Penglai Market City had already been fully restored.

Penglai's auction was the most important event within its Market City. The auctioned items were all of great value, and many Old Monsters possessing great Divine Abilities came to Penglai specifically for this auction.

The auction venue was located on the main plaza in the center of the Main City of Penglai Market City. This auction was not open to everyone; only those who possessed an Invitation Slip could enter this area.

Within a radius of a thousand zhang, a large number of Treasure Jade Sect Cultivators surrounded the area, preventing outsiders from entering.

As the auction was about to begin, Old Monsters possessing great Divine Abilities from various Sects within the Market City arrived one after another, entering the interior using their Jade Slips. Wang Lin also held some interest in this Penglai auction, so at this moment, he remained calm and transformed into a long rainbow, heading straight for the Main City.

As Wang Lin flew, every Cultivator who saw him respectfully clasped their fists in greeting. Over the past two days, Wang Lin's appearance had been firmly imprinted in everyone's minds, and no one dared to offend him easily.

Before long, Wang Lin arrived inside the Main City. While the Treasure Jade Sect Cultivators could stop anyone without an Invitation Slip from entering, upon seeing Wang Lin, they were instantly shaken, giving way one after another, not daring to check whether he had an Invitation Slip at all.

Outside the plaza, within a thousand zhang, there were scattered Cultivators, nearly a hundred in number. Most of these Cultivators were at the Nirvana Scrutiny or Pure Nirvana stage; shattered nirvana Old Monsters were not numerous.

Wang Lin's arrival immediately drew the attention of these nearly one hundred Cultivators. They all clasped their fists in greeting, and some even stepped forward to strike up a conversation. Wang Lin handled these people with composure, his gaze sweeping across the crowd until he spotted Li Qianmei in the distance.

Noticing Wang Lin's gaze, Li Qianmei smiled faintly, her eyes bright like stars.

Moments after Wang Lin stepped onto the auction plaza, an Elder wearing a red robe immediately approached, leading four middle-aged Cultivators. Seeing Wang Lin from afar, he clasped his fists and laughed heartily, "It is truly an honor for my Treasure Jade Sect that Fellow Daoist Lu could attend our auction."

Wang Lin recognized this red-robed Elder. He was one of those who had visited the inn where Wang Lin was staying a few days prior, representing the Treasure Jade Sect.

"So it is Elder Cao." Wang Lin smiled and clasped his fist slightly.

The red-robed Elder's expression was extremely courteous. He dared not look down upon the white-robed young man before him, even harboring a faint sense of dread. Especially when he thought of Wu Qing's death, his heart trembled even more.

When he previously visited Wang Lin on behalf of the Treasure Jade Sect, he clearly sensed during their conversation that this person had extraordinary bearing and was definitely not an ordinary individual. The composure and calmness in his speech, coupled with the subtle illusionary sensation that appeared in his mind when their eyes met, all left him deeply alarmed.

Afterwards, he reported all of this to the Sect Master. After the Treasure Jade Sect Master remained silent for a long time, he issued an order that no Disciple of the Treasure Jade Sect on the Penglai Continent was allowed to offend this person.

"Whether this person is a member of the Divine Sect or not has no bearing on my Treasure Jade Sect. Even if he isn't, the mere fact that he effortlessly killed Wu Qing is enough to earn him this level of respect." The red-robed Elder chatted and laughed with Wang Lin for a moment, then glanced at the sky and smiled at Wang Lin, "Fellow Daoist Lu, the auction is about to begin. If you have any items you wish to put up for auction, you should hurry."

Wang Lin pondered briefly. He did indeed have a few items he wanted to auction off, hoping to exchange them for as many Origin Crystals as possible. Hearing the Elder, he smiled and said, "Very well, I have two Magic Treasures that I wish to put up for auction."

"Oh? Any Magic Treasure that Fellow Daoist Lu is willing to part with must certainly be extraordinary." The red-robed Elder showed interest.

Wang Lin remained silent, raising his right hand and grabbing at the Void Realm. Immediately, a Storage Rift appeared before him, and two items, encircled by black light, flew out and shot toward the red-robed Elder.

The Elder's eyes flashed as he glanced at Wang Lin, his expression unchanged. He could tell that the two Magic Treasures had Restrictions and Seals on them, so he did not use his Divine Sense to check their effects. Instead, he allowed the gazes of the nearly one hundred Cultivators surrounding the plaza to converge, and after they had clearly seen the appearance of the items, he put them away.

Wang Lin looked at the red-robed Elder with a faint, ambiguous smile and clasped his fists.

The Elder coughed lightly and whispered, "I will first send these two items to the Elder in charge of the auction. Fellow Daoist Lu, please rest assured." With that, he clasped his fists and led his people away.

"This old man is quite an interesting person." Wang Lin's gaze swept over the Elder's retreating figure.

After the red-robed Elder left, Cultivators continuously came forward to converse with Wang Lin, including the White-Robed Scholar and the Glamorous Young Woman he had met during Cang Songzi's private gathering.

The three were not strangers. After exchanging polite conversation for a moment, the ground of the plaza suddenly began to shake. Immediately, the surroundings fell silent. The ground vibrations grew increasingly fierce, and shortly thereafter, the ground around the plaza cracked open with rumbling sounds, as sixteen massive stone steles shot up from the earth!

These sixteen massive stone steles burst out of the ground and slowly stopped only when they reached a height of a hundred zhang. Immediately afterward, light began to circle around the steles.

At the same time, outside these sixteen steles, the ground continued to shake, and more than forty slightly smaller steles broke through the ground and rushed out, stopping when they reached a height of eighty zhang.

It was not over yet. Outside those forty-plus steles, nearly a hundred more steles, approximately fifty zhang high, continued to appear, eventually forming a circle, transforming into a Stone Stele Great Array!

The vast majority of the surrounding Cultivators were not participating in the auction for the first time, so they showed no surprise at all. Instead, they dispersed one after another, sitting cross-legged on the various steles according to their cultivation level and status.

Wang Lin's expression was calm. He took a step forward and landed on one of the sixteen steles at the very front, sitting down cross-legged. No one was surprised that he was sitting there; rather, it was taken as a matter of course.

Looking around, the Cultivators also sitting on the front steles were all shattered nirvana Old Monsters, most of whom Wang Lin recognized. After most of the Cultivators had taken their seats, a graceful figure fluttered over, arriving at the stele where Wang Lin was located. Li Qianmei winked at Wang Lin and quietly sat down beside him.

"I am leaving," Li Qianmei whispered after sitting down, as if talking to herself.

She was sitting cross-legged to Wang Lin's side. A breeze blew past, causing Li Qianmei's dark hair to flutter. A few strands brushed against Wang Lin's face, and a delicate fragrance emanated from the jade-like woman beside him, clearly entering Wang Lin's nostrils.

The scent was faint, just like Li Qianmei's tranquility, capable of calming people down.

The auction had already begun. The person in charge of the auction was a square-faced Elder from the Treasure Jade Sect. He floated above the plaza. The first item being auctioned was a bell-shaped Magic Treasure, engraved with totems of numerous Vicious Beasts.

Noticing that her hair had brushed against Wang Lin, Li Qianmei's pretty face flushed slightly. She quickly pulled her dark hair away and casually tied it up.

"When?" Wang Lin did not look at Li Qianmei. He watched the Treasure Jade Sect Elder in front describing the effects of the Magic Treasure in his hand, and asked in a deep voice.

"I will leave right after the auction," Li Qianmei whispered, her gaze fixed on the distant sky, wondering what she was thinking.

"I will see you off," Wang Lin said calmly.

At this moment, the bell had already been purchased, and the Elder from the Treasure Jade Sect brought out the second item: a Medicinal Pill.

Li Qianmei smiled gently, turning her head to look at Wang Lin with bright eyes. She whispered, "How will you see me off? Will you escort me away from the Penglai Continent…"

"Alright," Wang Lin nodded, still not looking at Li Qianmei.

Li Qianmei looked at Wang Lin's profile, thought for a moment, and whispered, "Or will you escort me to the ninth-rank Star Domain?"

Wang Lin remained silent, saying nothing.

"Or perhaps escort me to the Demon Sect, to fight against the invasion of Vicious Beasts there alongside me?" Li Qianmei's voice was very pleasant, swirling around Wang Lin's ears like the sound of a flute.

Wang Lin was still silent.

Li Qianmei turned her head back, looked into the distance, and sighed softly.

At this moment, the second item was also auctioned off. The Elder from the Treasure Jade Sect brought out the third item: a painting. It depicted no mountains, only rivers, lakes, and oceans churning and surging, appearing vividly real.

"I wouldn't have left so quickly; there were still some matters I needed to confirm. However, Master sent a message yesterday that the Vicious Beasts in the Rift near the Demon Sect have suddenly increased… Disciples from all the Nine-Rank Sects must hurry there to provide assistance. Once I go, I don't know when I will return…" Li Qianmei was silent for a long time before speaking softly.

"Travel safely," Wang Lin said slowly.

"Before, during your fight with Wu Qing, I did not intervene because…" Li Qianmei hesitated, but Wang Lin interrupted her words.

"I understand," Wang Lin said calmly.

Li Qianmei looked at Wang Lin, and after a long moment, she whispered, "Do you truly understand…"

Wang Lin did not reply. Instead, he looked at the Jianghu Scroll in the hands of the Treasure Jade Sect Elder. The surrounding Cultivators successively bid prices. He pondered for a moment, and his voice spread throughout the area.

"I want this painting."

As soon as these words were spoken, the previous bidders immediately stopped. After glancing at Wang Lin, none of them called out another price. No one dared to compete with Wang Lin. Everyone already knew about the matter concerning Wu Qing. Besides greed, another reason for Wu Qing's death was competing with this Evil Star by raising the price of a treasure.

Wang Lin grabbed into the Void Realm with his right hand and took the Scroll from the Treasure Jade Sect Elder. He held it, opened it, glanced at it, and put it away. For the first time, he turned his head to look at Li Qianmei's heart-stirring, pretty face and tranquil eyes.

"This is for you!" Wang Lin handed over the Scroll.

Li Qianmei was silent. After a long time, she smiled, accepted the Scroll, bit her lower lip, and stood up. She whispered, "If you find the person my Potian Sect is searching for, please inform him that the Potian Sect requests his presence."

After speaking, she stopped looking at Wang Lin. Her body floated up slowly like a dancing butterfly, and her black hair instantly turned a stunning blue. Under the gaze of the surrounding Cultivators, she gradually departed.

In her hand, she continuously held the Scroll.

"Forgetting each other in the Jianghu… is that it…"