Chapter 61 - 60: The Troublesome Xiong Jiaojiao

The hairpin resembled jade, yet it was surprisingly light.

It was engraved with simple yet beautiful patterns, giving it an air of elegance and refinement.

The moment Feng Qiwu saw the hairpin, he instinctively felt it would be perfect for Chu Liangyu.

Feng Qiwu stared for a long moment at Chu Liangyu’s long hair, held up by only a single ribbon. Then, as if moved by some strange impulse, he offered the hairpin to her.

"For me?"

Chu Liangyu figured she was probably overthinking it. She didn’t take it right away, but instead asked.

Feng Qiwu didn’t answer. He simply pressed it into her hand and started walking ahead of her. "Weren’t we heading back? Let’s get going."

Chu Liangyu held the hairpin, lost in thought, but she felt no particular joy.

’It was obvious Feng Qiwu was starting to develop feelings for her.’

’But so what? She had no interest in romance right now.’

Casually twisting her hair up with the hairpin, Chu Liangyu followed him, her expression unchanged.

A mountain of hunted game was piled by the door. ’The others must be back,’ Chu Liangyu thought.

Inside, several people were busy with their own tasks. When they saw her, they all stopped what they were doing in unison.

She scanned the room. Cheng Miao was lying where Xiong Jiaojiao had been, but Jiaojiao herself was nowhere to be seen.

"Where is she?" Ignoring the others, Chu Liangyu walked straight over to Cheng Miao and demanded.

Cheng Miao’s face was drained of color and his eyes were vacant. He didn’t seem to hear her question.

Chu Liangyu kicked him lightly. "I’m asking you, where is she!"

"She went out."

Chu Liangyu’s intuition screamed that something was wrong. She pressed him, "Where?"

But Cheng Miao simply closed his eyes, lay back on the pile of straw, and clearly had no intention of answering.

Chu Liangyu turned to Chi Yizhong and the others. "Did you see Xiong Jiaojiao on your way back?"

"No," Chi Yizhong replied concisely.

’Xiong Jiaojiao wouldn’t just disappear for no reason. Cheng Miao must have something to do with this.’

Chu Liangyu’s patience ran out. She hauled Cheng Miao to his feet. "You just want me to help save your clan, don’t you? Tell me where she is, and I’ll help you!"

Cheng Miao’s eyes finally opened. He glanced at Chu Liangyu’s hand, gesturing for her to let him go.

After smoothing out his wrinkled clothes, he said unhurriedly, "She didn’t go far. She just went to rescue them one step ahead of you."

Chu Liangyu couldn’t understand. They were both his people, so how could he be so unconcerned about Xiong Jiaojiao’s safety?

"If I didn’t do this, would you have helped?"

"Heh. How despicable."

Chu Liangyu had to fight the urge to just kill the bastard. But with Xiong Jiaojiao’s whereabouts unknown, he was still useful.

"I know you can sense your clan members within a certain range. Now, lead the way!"

"With pleasure."

Cheng Miao walked with deliberate slowness, giving the impression of a leisurely stroll.

But Chu Liangyu knew he was just too badly injured to walk any faster.

Rolling her eyes, she waved Yu He over. "You carry him."

’She had no patience for his tranquil act.’

"Tsk. You really are treating me like free labor, aren’t you?"

Despite his complaint, Yu He obediently hoisted the man onto his back.

With his clan’s lives on the line, Cheng Miao didn’t dare delay.

Only then did Chu Liangyu see a glimmer of sincerity in him. The direction he pointed, however, was very familiar.

"Female Master... why are we back here?" Feng Qiwu stared at the cave entrance they had just left, highly suspicious that Cheng Miao was lying.

"Let’s go in." Chu Liangyu said little, simply handing the Token to the guard at the entrance again.

The man gave her a strange look and offered a kind warning, "Just this once. Next time, you’ll have to enter from the main entrance."

"Understood. I’ll be sure to next time."

Once inside again, Feng Qiwu moved with the ease of a regular, and began explaining things to the others as if he’d been there countless times.

"Let me tell you, not just anyone knows about the Black Market, let alone gets inside."

"And the stuff inside..."

"I’ve been here before."

Chi Yizhong’s comment cut Feng Qiwu off mid-sentence. He shot Chi Yizhong a glare. "Just had to show off, didn’t you!"

"A country bumpkin who’s seen little of the world assumes no one else has, either. Little does he know, for some of us, places like this are routine," Yu He’s voice drifted over coolly.

Feng Qiwu, who had been struggling to maintain his composure, finally snapped. "You stinking salted fish, it wouldn’t kill you to shut up for once!"

Xiang Qiancheng watched them in silence, not joining in. A closer look at his expression revealed a hint of disdain.

Chu Liangyu heard the noisy argument break out behind her, but she was in no mood to get involved.

They had already made several laps around the area but still hadn’t found any trace of Xiong Jiaojiao.

"This place isn’t even that big. How can you still not sense them?"

"Utterly useless."

Cheng Miao looked sickly pale. He could clearly feel they were nearby, yet he just couldn’t pinpoint their location.

He didn’t know what was happening either, so he answered truthfully, "I can sense that they’re definitely not far. Very close, in fact. But..."

"Perhaps I know where they are."

Chi Yizhong took out a gold medal and explained, "The Black Market has another level. Only the main families of powerful Beastmen can enter."

"Anyone else needs this token to get in."

Chu Liangyu’s eyes lit up. "Then I’ll have to ask you to lead the way."

"Mm."

Chi Yizhong nodded and walked straight toward the largest lampstand.

On the back of the lampstand was an indentation that perfectly matched the gold medal.

He gently pressed the gold medal into place, and the stone wall before them slid open automatically—just like the entrance.

The moment they stepped inside, they were blinded by a brilliant light, forcing them to instinctively shut their eyes.

All the walls here were coated in a layer of what looked like gold dust. Luminous Pearls were set everywhere, as if they cost nothing, illuminating the space so brightly that not a single shadow remained.

It was this reflected glare that had stung their eyes. By comparison, the market outside now seemed like a collection of simple, unadorned street stalls.

There were no stalls inside. Instead, rows of chairs were arranged neatly, all facing a large stage at the front.

The layout looked like an auction hall.

"Everything here is bartered. To get what you want, you have to offer something of equal value in exchange."

Just then, Xiang Qiancheng, who was usually quiet, unexpectedly spoke up to explain things to the group.

"It’s worth noting that no one guarantees the safety of the patrons during transactions, so..."

’So it was possible for goods to be stolen.’ No one was a fool; they all instantly understood his unspoken warning.

"So, is this what you’d call an auction?"

Xiang Qiancheng gave her a surprised glance. "No one has ever given this type of transaction a formal name. Female Master... ’auction’ isn’t a bad term for it."

Chu Liangyu felt a bead of sweat. ’Looks like I just assumed.’

"In that case, they’ve probably been turned into items for today’s auction."

Whether they were auctioning members of the Wood Spirit Clan or the Desperate Fruits they could be forced to cultivate, it was bound to cause a sensation.

It might even incite conflict between the clans. But no matter what, she was determined to rescue them.

There seemed to be more than one entrance into this space. Just as they took their seats, doors began to open from various directions.

The people who emerged all walked with their heads held high, their gazes fixed forward.